New York,
NY (April
2,
2003) --
Like adults, children struggle to make sense of world affairs — right now it is the war with Iraq. To do so, children and adults rely on news outlets for information and updates on these events.
In an online poll conducted last week by Scholastic, the global children's publishing and media company,
61 percent of students in grades 1 through 8 believe that the amount of television news coverage of the war with Iraq has been appropriate, while
39 percent of kids voted that TV news outlets are airing too much news about the war. The online poll at Scholastic News (
www.scholastic.com/news), a leading source on the web for age-appropriate, daily news content for kids, began on March 24, 2003 and has already received more than 58,000 responses. Kids can share their opinion on this subject until April 4th.
Kelsi, age 10, from Georgia said, “…My cousin is over in Iraq, and my family is worried, and if we couldn't listen to the news we would be even more worried and more scared. People who have family in Iraq would be glad to have the war coverage on television; it helps us to know what is going on.”
One fifth-grader wrote, “I do think that there is too much war news on television. I have a younger sibling who sometimes sees war stuff on TV just because he is surfing the channels. For the sake of little kids, there should be less war coverage on television.”
“Our young readers feel that they need information on the unfolding events in Iraq,” said Rebecca Bondor, Editor in Chief, Scholastic Classroom Magazines. “However, it's very important that parents and teachers seek out news sources created with their children's ages and sensitivities in mind, and that they also find a balance between keeping kids informed about world events and having them be bombarded with minute by minute televised reports.”
Bondor added, “We believe news about war, geared to school age children must have age-appropriate content. Scholastic's classroom magazines and news web site have always been a valuable resource for parents and teachers, delivering articles and information written for their kids' ages that foster discussions and address children's questions and concerns.”
The “Is There Too Much War News on TV?” poll is part of a Scholastic News Online special report on America at War. Children, teachers and parents can log on to
www.scholastic.com/news to find daily, age-appropriate news coverage of the war with Iraq. A highlight of the resources online include:
- News In-Depth - Students can keep up-to-date on the unfolding events in the Middle East with daily articles posted online, including “The Cost of War,” “Sandstorms Black Out Baghdad,” and “Humanitarian Aid Stalled by Combat.” Parents and teachers may want to print out these articles to spark discussions.
- A Detailed Look at Iraq - Children often need supplemental details including information on a country's history, cultural heritage, or geographic location to fully understand the impact of current events. Created with resources from Grolier Online, the leading provider of online children's reference and nonfiction material, students can learn about Iraq, its people, and its relationship to the world.
- Teacher Lesson Helpers - Scholastic News Online provides teachers with activities and lessons on current events that textbooks and standard curriculums simply cannot provide. Teachers will find timelines, vocabulary words, reading comprehension passages, worksheets and other activities to facilitate classroom lessons on events in the news.
- Expert Advice - Parents and teachers will find tips from Scholastic's child psychologist Dr. Adele Brodkin on how to talk to children about war.
The Scholastic poll is not based on a scientifically designed sample of the student population. It is designed as an educational activity to encourage student thought and debate, and to give students an opportunity to express their opinions. The respondents are self-selected, based on teachers who want their classes to participate and students who want to participate individually.
Scholastic is the world's largest publisher of educational magazines for grades pre-K through 12. Scholastic News, grade-by-grade classroom magazines for grades 1-6, gives kids their own thought-provoking, interactive news weekly through which they can understand current events and relate them to their world. Junior Scholastic is a bimonthly current events magazine for grades 6-8. The magazines' online companion Scholastic News (
www.scholastic.com/news) is a free resource for teachers, parents and children that can be used in the classroom or at home to discuss current events and develop students' understanding of how national and international news affects their lives. Scholastic News Online special reports have won high praise from teachers for sensitive coverage of major breaking news.