av LUCY EVANS 17 år siden
376
BLOCK 3 - Children's Cultural Worlds
av LUCY EVANS 17 år siden
376
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Debate on the ways children are influenced by what they read
e.g. Carnegie Medal winning novel Junk (1996) focus on drugs
Children encouraged to be critical readers
Greater diversity in stories, challenging stereotypes
e.g. Contemporary princess Princess Smartypants (1988)
Wider range of authors
Books promoted + tie-ins e.g. Harry Potter
Sees fairy tales as an expression of children's inner fears e.g. Hansel & Gretel - fear of being abandoned by parents.
Critised - does not acknowledge that children may take different meanings from stories - or that stories change through history and in different cultural contexts.
Audio: Anne Fine - children improverished if don't read quality fiction
ROMANTIC (J-J ROUSSEAU)
JEAN-JACQUES ROUSSEAU - wrote EMILE (1762) proposed 'natural' upbringing for BOYS but concerned that GIRLS accept subservience to men & learn how to please their husbands.
Recommended Daniel Defoe's ROBINSON CRUSOE for teenagers
Saw CHILDHOOD AS A SEPARATE STATE to be valued in own right
Influenced poets such as Wordsworth, Blake & Coleridge & writers e.g. THE SECRET GAREN - Frances Hodgson Burnett, ENID BLYTON, A.A. MILNE,
Charles Kingsley: The Water Babies (1863)
Charles KINGSLEY - SOCIAL REFORMER - drew attention to children's working conditions
Tom, orphan chimney sweep, cruelly treated by aster, runs away and is transformed into water baby.
Frances Hodgeson Burnett - The Secret Garden (1911)
BLANK SLATE (John Locke)
Philosopher JOHN LOCKE wrote Some Thoughts Concerning Education (1693). Advocated that children born like 'blank slats' ready to be written upon. Recommended a more gentler and enjoyable approach to learning.
LOCKE's views influenced JOHN NEWBURY
NEWBURY published the Little Pretty Pocket-Book (1744). Written with children as readership.
Also, The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes (1765). Strong moral values but written to amuse children.
Newbury: The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes (1765)
John Newbury - Little Pretty Pocket Book (1744)
PURITAN (Wesley)
PURITAN - Encouraged by Church children thought of as sinful. Encouraged to read the Bible.
Hugh Rhodes (1545) - Book of Nurture - an early guide to childcare - children should read the Bible & other Church teachings and kept from reading fables and stories.
Alternative view to LOCKE - Mary Sherwood wrote The History of the Fairchild Family (1818) - exemplifies Wesley's view that children should be subservient to their parents & there should be a religious emphasis in families.
Mary Sherwood - The History of the Fairchild Family (1818)
BAGWELL et al studied friendships over 13 year period - established link between positive childhood friendships to quality of life in adulthood. However, this could be because of personality features.
Video: Boys Friendships - ANDY & CHET
ANDY & CHET - known each otehr since pre-school. CHET says shared interest in drawing cartoons & aikido maintains their friendship.
BOYS & GIRLS form single sex groups - boys informal - girls more tightly bound
Video: MINNA & ELIZABETH
Middle-class CHITTAGONG - Exemplifies girls friendship - close friends, met 2 years ago when Minna joined Elizabeth's school - MINNA - "we're a photocopy of each other, that's what I think"
Friendships transitory - formed with whoever available
Video: Friendship -Shane, Steven & Wilfred
Video: Friendship - BILKIS & friends
CHITTAGONG - Bilkis, Taslema & Kobita playing kut-kut, shopping & making mash. Describe what friendship means to them.
ETHNOGRAPHIC APPROACH - studying children by extensive observation and involvement in their activities
Momentary physical playmate
Children aged 3-5 define friends in terms of shared activities & geographical locations i.e school/neighbours
One-way assistance
Children 6-8 become aware of others likes & dislikes, but don't acknowledge the reciprocal nature of friendship.
Fairweather co-operation
Reciprical understanding from 9-12 years
Mutual concern
11-15 years - friendship seen as a bond built over time, made stable by mutual support
Video: My Space - SEAN, TINCO, JOSHUA
SEAN & brothers - OAKLAND - playing in tunnel in park - appeal is its scariness - boys engage in daring games
TINCO & friend - CHITTAGONG - jump on trains to nearby town
JOSHUA - CAPETOWN - creates space in imagination by reading books
BORDERWORK - term used to characerise the ways children tend to form single-sex friendship groups that create & strengthen gender boundaries.
Video: Oakland+Chittagong clapping game
Video: Pretend Play
MELISSA & HADLEY - UK NURSERY - play at being parents & babies
LAURA & AALLIYAH - pretend to play lost babies
VIDEO: Cathy & Sharon's bedroom
Bedroom has aspects of their Chinese culture along side pictures of their favourite pop stars.
Negative
Can be addictive esp. video games
Positive
Children engage with media forms as part of their everyday lives: play/friendships
Form of self-expression - being a fan produces collective identity
AUDIO: Bilkis - music enhances her life
AUDIO: Terina 'whole world revolves around music
Use as 'cultural resource' for developing friendship groups - girls read mags collectively
KLINE - argues that consumption (shopping, toys, TV, music clothing) is central to socialization process
Use products to create peer culture or 'habitus'
Form friendships with others who like same products
VIDEO: Minna & Elizabeth - Chittagong
Minna & Elizabeth - VIDEO: FRIENDSHIP - Go shopping together, claim to have same taste in all things - 'we're a photocopy of each other'
Children are ACTIVE MEANING MAKERS - use products creatively
Consumption = use of manufactured products
Empowerment
Use texts in their play
Games require interactivity
Market responds to demand
Exploitation
Commerical exploitation e.g. encouraged to spend on collector cards
Commercial manipulation - Marketed to appeal to children
children actively construct what it means to be a child
Easy to track visits to websites - target for advertising
STEPHEN WAGG argues:
Blurring of boundaries between children & 'youth' - increasing issues previously considered taboo such as sex, drugs, family break up are incorporated into children's drama (e.g. Grange Hill)
Media increasingly 'media centric' steering children to glamorous world of media rather than purposeful activity
Arguments against:
Modern versions of old format appeal to children e.g. Andy Pandy, Muffin the Mule
TV has evolved
Teletubbies is a continuation of the tradition of Watch with Mother.
CD Roms, internet - not just passive
Texts draw on other media e.g. Simpsons, SMTV Live
Multi-media marketing, merchandising e.g. Pokemon
Exploitation or empowerment?
Children seen as 'consumers'
Digital divide between rich & poor
Children access previously forbidden material
Meyrowitz (1985)
TV makes backstage behaviour visible to all
TV reveals facts that contradict social myths (e.g. see Royal family/politicians as real people
Blurs boundaries between
1. Men & women
2. Individual citizens & political representations
3. Children & adults
Reflects adults changing perceptions of children
Tapscott (1998)
Childhood constructed concept. (In past children in poor families did not have a childhood).
Agrees that TV/technology has blurred boundaries between childhood & adulthood
Digital technologies are empowering – a new form of liberation e.g. children produce blog sites, publish their own websites.
Given children new skills to think about, use in their speech & play.
TV New technologies
Passive Interactive
Presents view Raises intelligence
Isolates Builds & communicates
TV generation Children hungry for
conservative expression
Hierarchical, Encourages self-
inflexible, centralised development,
savy, self-reliant &
analytical,
Globally orientated
Subtopic
ARGUES that television:
- has caused the 'death of childhood'
- is a 'total disclosure medium' - children learn 'secrets' of adult life
- blurs boundaries between childhood & adulthood - children increasingly behave like adults
- encourages precocious sexuality
(Link Sue Palmer - Toxic Childhood)
CRITICISED for
- generalizing
- not providing evidence of fundamental changes in family structures / early sexuality
- makes assumptions about childhood - draws on Aries belief that childhood was 'invented' in the Middle Ages, did not exist before then.
- assumption that making sense of tv is a natural rather than learned process
Puritan view - wants to return to traditional moral values - where adults had control
