subject: Our Schools Can Beat The Media Influence [print this page] Recently, the federal government officially declared that the media - especially television and movies - exercises a real negative influence on the attitudes young people have towards tobacco and alcohol consumption, and on the chances that young people will engage in smoking and drinking. But teachers don't need the federal government to tell them; they see the effects in front of their eyes, whether in recess, in halls between classes or even reflected in class discussions. In fact, educators have consistently been on the frontlines in insisting that the shows and movies children watch exercise a power that is very difficult for parents to match.
Here are a few statistics for those who remain skeptical:
* Ninety-nine percent of American households have televisions.
* By the time American children reach third grade, over 2/3 of them will have televisions in their (more often than not private) bedrooms.
* The average American child spends over 36 hours a week in front of some kind of screen.
* At least 70% of 12 year olds watch rated-R movies.
* Studies have shown that children who watch PG-13 or rated-R movies are five times as likely to engage in alcohol consumption.
* Teens who see their favorite stars smoking in the movies are 16 times as likely to harbor aspirations of smoking in the future.
When we are dealing with a society in which more households have televisions than have running water (!) and children are spending the time equivalent of a full-time job vegging out in front of a screen, it becomes apparent that we are dealing with a major problem. And our teachers are in a unique position to help us deal with it.
How can teachers help?
The first way is by running awareness programs for parents. Many parents are not aware of just how much the tobacco and alcohol manufacturing industry invests in advertising geared to children, and how aware that industry is that the more movie stars are seen smoking and drinking, the more young people will follow suit. To give an example, teen smoking rates were decreasing until 1991. What happened that year? Joe Camel made his debut, and influenced thousands of young people to take up smoking. Honest. So the first step is to open parents' eyes. Statistics gleaned from studies such as those above are a good start.
Once parents are aware, teachers can talk about what they can do. An important point is to start with the preschool parents. A common misconception is that the smoking/drinking problem starts with the preteens. Not so. Studies have shown that preschoolers are highly aware of both cigarettes and alcoholic beverages, and their role in society (in one study, a six year old boy could identify the cigarettes he was "purchasing" as Marlboros, but couldn't identify his favorite cereal as Lucky Charms). And it is much easier to decide never to allow the kids to have a TV in their room than it is to take the set away once it's there.
Another factor teachers can emphasize is participation in team sports. Many parents don't realize the importance of team sports participation in reducing the chances of smoking/drinking initiation. Studies have proven that participation in team sports is a major factor in preventing young people from these harmful habits. Parents should, however, be warned that team sports is not a guarantee on its own, because its positive influence wanes in direct proportion to the amount of PG-13 and R-rated movies team members watch.
Above all, parents should be assured that the school administration and teaching staff are available, willing and able to help them. Just knowing that there is a support system out there that is joining hands with them in the battle for their children's health is a major boost to parents, who often feel beleaguered in their efforts to counteract media influence.
The second - and most obvious - way that teachers can help is by talking with their students. Here, teachers have the ability to play an almost-mentor role, because they can approach the subject with a far greater degree of objectivity than can parents.
The greatest tool teachers can give their students is media literacy. Media literacy refers to the ability to analyze that which one sees through a wider perspective, and to differentiate between fantasy and reality. For example, many movies use smoking as a way to portray a character as cool, macho, rebellious or all three. But - obviously - the movies never ever portray the detrimental effects that smoking has on one's health. We never see those same heroes getting lung cancer or emphysema. Why? These kinds of discussions stimulate young people's minds and get them to think about the distortion of reality on the big screen, and who might be behind it.
Another way teachers can fight is to employ the old adage, "if you can't fight 'em, join 'em." In other words, the fact is that there is really no way to stop celluloid heroes from influence today's young people. But those selfsame heroes can be used to portray a different message. Popular stars who don't smoke or drink can be pointed to as real role models. Many times, favorite actors and actresses are willing to come to schools to talk about this issue, especially if their appearance will be covered by the media. Seeing these people who - for better or for worse - are looked up to by our children talking about the dangers of smoking and drinking and how definitely NOT cool it is can have a much more powerful influence than any parental or educational discussion.
A third way to get the message across - both to parents and students - is to encourage them to check out websites that screen movies for smoking and drinking content. Sites such as ScreenIt and CommonSenseMedia rate movies for tobacco and alcohol portrayal, and can be used as springboards for class discussions and projects. Even math teachers can get in on the fight through graphs and statistics. These kinds of projects and debates are actually enjoyable for kids, and get the message across in a more subtle manner.
These are just a few ideas for teachers on how to fight the media influence. But the bottom line is, teachers, we need you and our kids need you, to help them fight an industry that is willing to sell them down the river of death and disease in order to make a few more millions.
