TVs in Children’s Bedrooms Linked to Bad Behavior and Alienation

What with television sets becoming a fixture in most rooms of our houses, it’s no wonder that children are already starting to show in school the negative effects that much exposure to TV shows has. As Dr. Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in the UK, points out, children who have TVs in their bedrooms are more prone to bad behavior and alienation, which should come as a warning signal that parents should start taking a more active role in their children’s lives.

According to the figures made public at the most recent ATL meeting, many youngsters start school without even being able to hold a normal conversation, because they communicate so little with their parents. Most of these kids have TV sets in their bedrooms, and spend countless hours in front of them, even doing homework and having dinner with the TV switched on, it has been said.

The downside to this is that children are more aggressive towards each other, engaging in the type of conflicts that they should not even be familiar with at their age, and employing the vocabulary they see in comedies and reality shows. Among these, the catchphrase “What-evah!” seems to be a favorite with young kids, it has been noted at the ATL meeting. Shows like “Big Brother,” “Little Britain,” and “EastEnders,” now airing in the UK, have been identified as those with the most negative impact on children.

“Children are watching more TV and more children have TVs in their own bedrooms, so it is very difficult for parents to supervise what they are watching.” Dr. Bousted has stressed during the meeting, as quoted by the Daily Mail. “I don’t think children should have TVs in their bedrooms. Bedrooms should be where children sleep. This notion of TVs everywhere breaks up families. They are together in the same house but essentially live an isolated existence. You are nominally living together but living separate lives.” she adds.

Other types of behavior encouraged by TV shows, in the sense that children who watch too many of them feel compelled to emulate, are swearing, causing a scene by storming out of the class and talking back to the teachers. Too much exposure to TV also leads to alienation, in that kids are not able to properly communicate with anyone, be them a child their own age or someone older, like a parent or a teacher.