On Thu, Sep 3, 2009 at 6:10 PM, PGage<[email protected]> wrote: > I am tired of these assertions that the average attention span is > getting shorter - I am not aware of any evidence to support this; and > if it were even a little bit true, it would be a crisis to be solved, > not adapted to. If Video Games and Twitter really are shortening > attention spans then they should be allowed as hazardous to our > national intelligence and well being.
I can't speak to the specific cause, but I can attest to attention spans growing shorter in children. As a teacher, it becomes more apparent with each passing day. A few years back, the Sesame Workshop proudly announced it was revamping Sesame Street to include extended storylines and long form segments because their research proved that attention spans in kids had grown by leaps and bounds. But, and I'm not saying there is a direct causal link because I don't know, that was before kids got into IMs, Twitters, YouTube, Facebook, texting, etc. And yes, Sesame Street has been revamped again. Most segments are now shorter than they were in the '70s and '80s. It is expected that kids will not sit through an entire episode. As a teacher in a classroom, I can't show a video to illustrate a point anymore. Remember all the Jacques Cousteau specials and the like from your childhood, where you would simply watch and learn? Now, if I want to show a video in class, I have to do one of two things. I must either stop the video every five minutes or so to discuss what the kids watched, or I have to give them a series of questions to answer as they watch the video. Otherwise, and I am not exaggerating, at least 90% of the kids in the room will not be able to follow along. As adults, I don't know if our attention spans have been affected, or if they have, by what. But kids of today have greatly diminished attention spans by comparison to even 10 years ago. I, too, haven't seen specific evidence that points to anything, but I suspect some combination of the food they eat and the amount of time they spend using technology. -- Kevin M. (RPCV) --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
