Civics + Activism in Children's Media

COMM Exam 2

What did Hyman research 1959

Political socialisation

political socialisation

first systematic study of how children acquire political attitudes + behaviours

what did hyman identify about political socialisation

family and school as primary agents

when was the ‘heyday’ of research into political socialisation 

1960s+70s 

what did greenstein, hess and torney, dawson et al find

youth largely trusted the government and viewed it as benevolent

what challenged the assumptions of greenstein, hess and torney, dawson et al

civil rights, anti war movements

what did the shift go from in the 1960s and 70s in this research 

from obedience to inquiry 

civics

knowledge and understanding of government, citizenship, participation

civic education

formal and informal means by which children learn political systems, rights, and responsibilties

eg of agents of civic education 

family, schools, peers, media 

what is implication of piagets research on civics + activism in children media

media for younger children should emphasise cooperation and fairness, older kids can handle systemic ideas like gov + rights

what does kohlbergs moral reasoning implicate for civics of childrens media

civic education can nurture moral reasoning by exposing children to dilemmas about fairness, justice + rules through stories, debates and character decisions in media

what does banduras SLT implicate for childrens media and civics 

use clear, prosocial characters who demonstrate civic engagement visibly and positively 

what does fisch’s cm implicate for civics and children media

civic or moral

what does solomons AIME theory implicate for childrens media and civic s

programs that frame themselves as important, interactive or discussion-worthy increase effort and recall

what is a summary to alk about for these theories and civics with childrens media 

as children grow, their understanding of civics evolves from imitating prosocial behaviour → underdstanding system → imagining collective change 

what has childrens media long functioned as

informal civic classrooms, using narrative and song to teach governmental processes and rights

whats some examples of media as civic educators since the 1970s

schoolhouse rock introucing constitutional principles and election rights through song

what was Eveland, McLeod and Horowitz main argument 

they advance an interactive model of political development, claiming 

• comm provide the information einvorment for political learning 

what do Eveland, McLeod and Horowitz say about age and what it reflects

reflects cog capacity / ability to process + intergrate info

what do Eveland, McLeod and Horowitz say about age

impact of communication on political knowledge is moderated by age- younger children learn less from same exposure than olderr ones 

what does eveland, mcleod, and horowitz model challenge

both transmission model and stage model

what does transmission model assume

learning is simple imitation from parents/media

what does stage model assume 

which assumes rigid development steps like piaget 

what kind of process do eveland mcleod and horowitz propose

interactional, continuous process

eveleand mcleo and horowitz 1999 process

290 children, aged 9-18 in san jose california

telephone interviews

findings eveleand mcleo and horowitz 1999 

both age and communication idependetly prdedict political knowledge 

what was the crucial finding eveleand mcleo and horowitz 1998

age moderates the relatiomship - 

• older children gain more knowledge from newspapers, campaigsn, etc than younger ones

  • tv show no interaction

implications eveleand mcleo and horowitz 1998

cognitive capacity moderates learning, political k requires not just exposure

media design should be developmentally appropriate l

limitations eveleand mcleo and horowitz 1998

small, localised samples

focused only on political knowledge

potential reliability issues

civic imagination

ability to envision alternatives to current, social, political and cultural conditions

everyday activism 

the informal, often individually oriented practices of resistance, advocacy or change making that occur in daily life 

everyday activisim and schema theory

children use schemas to interpret stories, roles and social events

repeated exposure to media patterns teaches what civic action looks like and who performs it

what about the future of civic research in children mkedia

not enough research

media become informal classrooms for democracy