Television: the Medium to Start Active Learning

PROGRAMME 44 18/2005 E

Susanne Schosser Television: the medium to start active learning

Television is not only able to pro- perspective. They provide knowledge 530,000 children is quite an astonish- vide children with explanations but and fun at the same time. Now, if you ing achievement. The large number can also stimulate young viewers to read the previous sentence without of adult viewers proves that well-de- join in and imitate what is going on. beginning to wonder, you have fal- signed children’s television can also Super RTL programmes such as len right into the trap! Many formats be attractive for a mass audience. Blue’s Clues and Art Attack illus- are based on this very model. They But how does Disney’s Art Attack trate how such programmes can impart knowledge and they are also with its tips and ideas on arts and achieve successful ratings. funny (in the ideal case). And yet crafts promote artistic activity in over children do not accept such pro- a million viewers? In my opinion, grammes. They are quick to notice the Disney’s Art Attack does exactly the uper RTL has established itself raised finger in the background and opposite of what one would expect over the past few years as the react accordingly: they simply switch of a smug, traditional “arts and crafts Schildren’s favourite channel in off. Our goal is to entertain children. programme”: Art Attack lives on its Germany. Since February 1998 we Imparting knowledge at Super RTL “surprise effect”. Consider the title of have been the clear market leader in must be fun for the children. the programme, which ingeniously the 3- to 13-year-olds’ age-group It is, however, essential to take the combines art with the idea of “ac- segment. In my opinion, our ability children’s (age and gender) differ- tion”: hence our decision to retain the to distance the field is explained by ences into account, the child audience English name, as this effect would the care we have taken to cater for being extremely heterogeneous. What have been lost in German. our child viewers’ needs and wishes. captures the 12-year-olds’ interest is The next clue is the fantastic studio Needless to say, it is necessary to not necessarily suitable for 3- to 5- decor, consisting of huge coloured identify the latter before they can be year-olds. I would like to present three crayons, loud colours, palettes, tools fulfilled. A number of programmes formats that appeal to children in and paintbrushes. The setting arouses are excellent also from the adults’ completely different ways: Disney’s the viewer’s curiosity and enthusi- Art Attack, WOW Die Entdeckerzone asm, paying tribute to a significant di- (WOW The Discoverers’ Zone) and dactic principle: the learning environ- Blue’s Clues – Blau und schlau ment has to be stimulating. In each (Blue’s Clues – Blue and Wily). episode a colossal fantasy picture is created from clothing, bank notes, books and other everyday items. Disney’s Art Attack While the picture is taking shape, the viewer is invited to join in the gues- Anyone can become a great artist. sing game as to what the picture will This is the motto Art Attack adheres represent. I find it quite remarkable to in its firework display of brilliant that the final products are not the com- ideas. These ideas are intended to fuel mon-or-garden beetles, in Germany the children’s creativity. Disney’s Art usually cockchafers, or ladybirds Attack has been broadcast on Super made from cheese-spread boxes or RTL since 1998 and ranks among the giraffes made from chestnuts. Every- most successful programmes to pro- day objects – from washing powder, mote creative activities among chil- leaves, or old newspapers – are used dren. Even by our standards conquer- to create ingenious works of art that

Children without any imagination do A young girl not exist: they are just waiting to be pours sugar encouraged. Disney’s Art Attack helps into a glass children to release undreamt-of crea- brimful of tive energy, to overcome the emotion- water. Why al “I can’t do it” blockade. The pro- doesn’t the wa- gramme features just the right blend ter flow over of thick-and-fast entertainment and the brim? The humour. The parts intended for imita- children learn tion are easy for the children to com- that the sugar prehend; interesting techniques are “hides” in the used to repeat necessary instructions. molecular cav- © Super RTL Art Attack is exciting; it captures the ities in the WOW The Disoverers’ Zone attention of both the children who sit water. back and watch and those who im- During these processes the children plastic bowl, plastic foil, some mediately join in the activities of- remain within their everyday environ- gravel and water.” Several experi- fered. To judge by the findings of pri- ment and experiment with normal ments are repeated in the television vate field research projects and the household objects. Sometimes their studio. enormous response, the creative smaller brothers and sisters get on Selected themes are explained in viewers are in the clear majority. their nerves when they want to con- more depth by the presenters: tinue with their homework. WOW “Now we know what we can taste WOW The Discoverers’ Zone also shows children at home in South with our tongue. But without our The co-production WOW is the only Africa and Alaska to provide an ap- nose tasting’s no fun. Look at experiment series on German televi- propriate setting for experiments in this…” sion to encourage children to carry heat and snow. The scientific background is then out experiments by themselves. Since The scientific information is not pre- explained competently by adults its launch in April 2004 at Super RTL packed and then presented to the (off-screen or in the studio); the the programme has conquered a children but stems from the direct children on set play an indepen- market share of up to 37%, a highly environment of the children. This dent role, however, so they do not impressive rating for an information makes it possible for the programme come across as super-intelligent programme. The leitmotiv of the to elucidate complex relationships. high-flyers to their peers watching. WOW concept is to introduce children Since the children understand why The presenters provide the viewers to scientific issues step by step, draw- they require the knowledge imparted with figures they can identify with; ing on themes from their everyday and are intrigued to discover the they address the children directly, lives. In WOW children are the pro- background to this knowledge, they not forgetting touches of humour. tagonists. In entertaining film inserts, remain mentally fit and “on the ball”, They ask themselves typical ques- they discover physical, chemical and as it were. The WOW concept thus tions that would occur to the view- biological phenomena underlying arouses and stills the children’s natu- ers in the process, encouraging daily events. Their curiosity is raised ral curiosity. WOW offers a wide them to carry out the experiments as a result and they begin to experi- variety of subjects in each episode to at home. ment: sustain the viewers’ interest for a full WOW The Discoverers’ Zone pro- Why does the sound of a car 30 minutes. There is something for vides children with the opportunity engine change as it drives past? everyone: for boys and girls, younger to learn the way they find easiest: the Children imitate the phenomenon, and older. About ten experiments are programme raises questions that whet swinging a bleeping stop-watch carried out in each programme, with the children’s curiosity and delivers attached to a piece of cord. This is time to recapitulate and assimilate. skilfully devised answers. As children the model WOW uses to The individual items in which the carry out the experiments, the young demonstrate the Doppler effect. children pursue many activities are viewers soon grasp that they can A boy drops a raw egg on the floor. presented by Nina Moghaddam and easily copy them. How can a raw egg be prevented Marcus Werner. The role of the latter from breaking so easily? The chil- comprises a variety of functions: Blue’s Clues – Blue and Wily dren put an egg into vinegar. The Complicated contents are repeat- Our pre-school block TOGGOLINO fragile shell becomes elastic as a ed: “Right, what do we need for caters for the needs of our youngest result. this experiment? A bucket, a small generation of television viewers, PROGRAMME 46 18/2005 E

regular viewing and guessing with the others in the programme, Blue’s Clues fans performed significantly better in various tests than children who had not watched the series. What do children learn in Blue’s Clues? When they try to find out the message Blue seeks to convey with her pawprints, they train their ability to think logically, to deploy quickly their powers of deduction and to come up with solutions. What do you get if you put a bird and a house together? That’s right, a birdhouse. What’s the name of the room where you normally find a spoon? Exactly, a kitchen. And then Steve has to leave directly to find Blue’s next clue. In © Super RTL the process the children learn a num- Blue’s Clues – Blue and Wily ber of other things that are important for life. In one episode, Tickety Tack and his friends, for example, make offering highly imaginative pro- dog Blue Steve plays a game called sure that in a good 20 minutes the grammes designed to carefully guide “Blue and Wily”: Blue leaves a blue youngsters learn a considerable the children to the medium of televi- pawprint on three objects. Steve has amount of material on the phenom- sion. In 2003 we introduced a com- to find these clues – with the help of enon of time. In another episode, the pletely new pre-school format in Ger- his friends, who include the children inquisitive audience discovers which many, Blue’s Clues – Blue and Wily, sitting in front of the television at spices are added to a meal. featuring innovative, interactive and home –, jot them down in his note- Thanks to Blue’s Clues learning is consistent items based on the peda- book and find out what Blue is trying literally child’s play, for example, gogically meaningful principle of rep- to tell him with these unusual mes- counting, painting and classifying etition. The series, which now runs sages. The advantages of this inter- objects. In addition, Blue’s Clues en- in over 60 countries, is watched every active approach are self-evident. If hances the viewers’ social compe- week by over four million young the children at home shout to Steve tence, propagating important values viewers in the US alone. In Germany the same solution as their invisible such as friendship, team work and the our programme Blue’s Clues reaches peers, they are filled with pride and readiness to help others. Blue is sad. on average an almost 50 % share of consequently feel affirmed. One of What can we do to cheer her up? the 3- to 13-year-olds’ market. Young the key benefits is that the children’s Steve plays “Blue and Wily”: team- children love repetition. This is the learning is reinforced every day by work is the only way for us to solve discovery ascribed to by Blue’s Clues, repeats, each episode being rebroad- problems! a series that has already been awarded cast on the next six days. Blue’s Clues Translated by John Malcolm King a number of significant prizes, includ- was developed by experienced edu- ing the Prix Jeunesse Award and on cation experts. Working on each two occasions the Television Critics’ episode for ten months, they are not Award for Outstanding Children’s satisfied until Blue’s latest adventure Show. meets the standards set by teachers The host of this innovative pro- and parents and passes the test of the gramme for preschoolers is Steve. A preschool audience. They have suc- world is created around his person ceeded in creating a series in which that reminds children of their own children feel at ease and accepted, THE AUTHOR home and at the same time offers where children can learn a vast them sufficient surprises to sustain amount. Some astonishing facts have Susanne Schosser is Programme Director at Super RTL, Cologne, their excitement and their power of been revealed by studies on the Germany. imagination. Together with his little subject: after only one month of