Why Isn't Kid's TV More Eco-Friendly?
Despite all of the content available on television for kids, there is something missing on children’s television.
Ecology. Environmentalism. Going green.
Although the inhabitants of our world are diverse, the one thing we all have in common is the planet on which we live. We share the same sky, the same oceans, the same soil. And all of it is in danger. In order to tackle issues that have and will continue to affect each and every one of us — like global warming, animal extinction, pollution, conservation, etc. — we must embrace an “eco” frame of mind. If the next generation learns to make a minor, habitual change — by practicing recycling, for instance, even on the most local level — there is the potential to make a huge impact on the global environment.
The challenge lies in how we can teach such a subject effectively, and how to use what children already embrace as an educational tool.
Children’s television has the ability to effectively teach its millions of viewers about environmental issues, yet very few programs attempt to do so.
“Captain Planet” was really one of the first to do it in the ’90s, featuring super heroes out to save the planet against eco-villains with names like Sly Sludge and Looten Plunder. It’s obviously a very commercial example, which you can sometimes catch in re-runs on digital cable. But what’s come since then?
It’s a Big Big Win
The best example of an ecology curriculum on current children’s television is “It’s a Big Big World” on PBS. The show uses a diverse collection of animals who live in the canopy of the rainforest. Through their stories, viewers aged 3- to 6-years old experience scientific discovery, the diversity of animals and what they need to survive, and geography, providing the viewer with a basic understanding that the world is more than just what’s outside their own neighborhood.
By emphasizing discovery over the memorization of facts, “It’s a Big Big World” is able to foster a sense of excitement about the learning process. After all, curiosity is the basis of all good scientific inquiry. If you haven’t caught an episode of this groundbreaking series, don’t miss it.
The preschool series “Franny’s Feet,” also on PBS, is another ecologically-minded children’s television program, although the emphasis is less obviously “green” and more about globalism. The show’s pedagogy teaches exploration, world awareness, and problem solving.
Have you seen something on children’s television that teaches basic environmental concepts and fosters an appreciation of the natural world? Why do you think there is so little on this topic on kid’s TV? Is TV (as an indoor, inactive medium) the right place to teach ecology?