TV Time: Top 5 Educational Uses of Television

Classroom teachers need every tool at their disposal. Could a TV be one of them? Read this guide to discover the educational uses of television.

With the advancements in technology, teaching strategies are changing daily to make learning more interactive. The TV has been incorporated in the education systems to help nurture distinct skills such as letter and sound recognition.

Preschool children who spent time watching educational programs performed better in speech and grammar tests. Viewing time for children who are in pre-school averaged four hours per day in the US. This shows how classroom teachers need every tool at their disposal.

Could a TV be one of them? Read this guide to discover the educational uses of television.

1. Improve Understanding and Reading Speed

When watching a program or a TV show, the simple act of switching on the subtitles can help children in improving their reading skills. You can encourage children to watch TV shows of a different language with the subtitles turned on.

Try and encourage them to read at a slow pace so that they can understand what is going on. Subtitles help you comprehend the dialogue. By watching TV, you acquire and understand a number of new phrases.

2. Cultural Exposure

One of the uses of television in education is to expose children to aspects of the world they could never have known. Television is a very good way of learning through other people’s eyes. You get to see different cultures, foods, customs, and activities.

They can get regular doses of this knowledge through visual and auditory means. You can find an online streaming service like IPTV providers who have over 6000 culturally diversified channels to choose from.

3. Narrative Structure

The TV has the ability to fortify the traditional narrative structure when it comes to certain shows. TV shows that have a storyline offer children an understanding of different perspectives of the world, which has an advantage in social communication.

They tell stories in a simple, entertaining manner that is easy to comprehend. Children are able to improve their narrative structure by keeping track of the characters, plot lines, and even themes.

4. Educational Shows

There are numerous shows that add value to the development of your child. One of the uses of TV in school is to provide programs that teach them information on subjects like history, biology and so on.

This will keep the child entertained at the same time make them more knowledgeable. Teaching children to be smart about which content they choose to watch will gravitate them towards educative programs.

5. Improves Attention Span

The TV provides a certain flexibility in the learning space. Young students easily get bored and one way to keep them interested is through TV. It offers them active participation in class thus they are able to come up with new ideas during lessons.

When children learn through TV, they are able to engage better in academics as they have a visual memory of what they learned.

Best Uses of Television

Before finding a good program for the educational purposes of your child, ask yourself whether it triggers their imagination or pushes them to ask questions. Remember that children think that what they see on TV is a reflection of real life.

Look at how people are portrayed in those shows, their behaviors, and their storylines. While the effects of TV on children remains debatable, there are ways which you can use TV to benefit your children.

Check out our page for more information on the uses of television for educational purposes.