Programme research 42 23/2010/E

Shalom M. Fisch, Hsueh Yeh, Zhou Zongkui, Chi Jin, Maissa Hamed, Zeinab Khadr, Gabriela Martínez Noriega, Adriana Hinojosa Céspedes, Allison Druin, Mona Leigh Guha Crossing borders

Learning from educational media in 4 countries

This international study on ’s multi-media project was conducted with 4- to 7-year-olds in the US, China, Mex- ico and Egypt. Panwapa’s educa- tional aim is to promote global citi- zenship. The main questions were: What can children learn from these TV, print and online materials? Are there differences in the learning outcomes across countries?

any research studies have Used by permission Workshop. © Sesame proven that educational Ill. 1: Screenshot of the English-language Panwapa website Mtelevision can help chil- ing similarities and differences, and serve children in poverty (especially dren learn subjects such as language, understanding and being responsive outside the U.S.), the children in the literacy, mathematics, science, and to economic disparity (Cole, 2008). It study were largely middle class and social studies (e.g. Fisch, 2004). Yet, addresses these goals through videos above. (Of course, “middle class” re- the changing landscape of television (that portray either Muppet stories fers to very different economic levels gives rise to new questions that have or the lives of real children in vari- in different countries, because such not been researched before. For ex- ous countries), online games and ac- judgments are relative to the over- ample, television has become increas- tivities (e.g. Panwapa World, a virtual all economic level of each country.) ingly global, but most research has community in which users can create For this reason, the demographics of been conducted in only one country, pages to describe themselves and visit our sample were not nationally rep- rather than comparing learning from a pages created by other kids around resentative, but they were sufficient given program across countries. How, the world), and hands-on activities to reveal cultural differences, as we then, is learning from television simi- (as detailed in a Panwapa magazine shall see. lar or different across countries? for parents and caregivers). To find out, we assessed children’s We measured learning from Panwapa Design of the study learning from Panwapa, an interna- in 4 countries: Egypt, Mexico, the tional, multiple-media project pro- United States, and 2 sites in China, Children were divided into 3 groups, duced by Sesame Workshop and dis- Beijing and Wuhan. A total of 1,277 each of which used a different com- tributed internationally in 5 languag- children participated in the study, bination of Panwapa materials for 4 es. Designed for children aged 4 to 7, including roughly equal numbers of weeks: Panwapa’s educational goals are to boys and girls, and a fairly even distri- •• “TV + Print group”: These chil- promote positive attitudes, skills, and bution of children between the ages of dren viewed 4 Muppet videos and behavior regarding several aspects 4 and 7 years old. Because some Pan- 4 live-action videos about real of global citizenship, such as aware- wapa activities required internet ac- children in various countries. They ness of the wider world, appreciat- cess, which can be rare in schools that also played 2 hands-on games – Programme research 23/2010/E 43

one that encouraged children to Results •• talked about foreign countries, differentiate between needs and community service, and/or needs wants, and a board game that Across the 4 countries, children’s vs. wants while playing the spanned the Panwapa curriculum. engagement with and learning from 2 hands-on games. For example, •• “All Materials group”: These chil- Panwapa was evident in several during the board game, 98 % of the dren used all of the above materi- ways: their comments while using the children who picked the relevant als, plus 4 activities on the Pan- materials, their subsequent recall of card named something they would wapa website. They created and content from the videos and activities, give to a needy child, and more visited other kids’ pages in Pan- and increases in their more general than 90 % attempted to say “Hello” wapa World, played a hide-and- understanding of global citizenship. in a foreign language. seek game that incorporated words For example, while using the materi- Not surprisingly, children often were in other languages, and played a als, many children: particularly engaged when they had movie-playalong game that turned •• commented on countries, activities, some familiarity or felt a personal live-action video segments into in- or languages as they watched the connection with the cultural content teractive games. videos, and sometimes related on- presented in the materials. For ex- •• “No Exposure (i.e. control) group”: screen material to their own lives ample, many Mexican children re- This group did not use any Pan- (e.g. a Chinese child said “They sponded while watching video seg- wapa materials, thus serving as a speak Swahili” during a segment ments about Guatemalan children baseline for comparison to the 2 from Tanzania; an Egyptian child (probably because they looked most groups that used Panwapa. waved back at the screen and said like the viewers and engaged in famil- Researchers observed the “TV + “Hola” in Spanish). Across the 4 iar activities), whereas Jewish chil- Print” and “All Materials groups” as countries, we recorded 942 such dren in one U.S. school responded they used Panwapa materials, and lat- comments during viewing; to on-screen portrayals of Israel and er interviewed them to assess compre- Hebrew letters in another segment. hension and recall of the educational Similarly, in the online hide-and-seek content presented in Panwapa. In ad- game, children often chose to play the dition, before and after the 4-week game and count along in a foreign period, children in all 3 groups were language that was already somewhat interviewed to assess their under- familiar to them. standing of several aspects of global At the end of the 4 weeks, most chil- citizenship: “languages” (e.g. naming dren understood and retained edu- their own and other languages, say- cational content from the Panwapa ing words in other languages), “coun- materials over time, even when we tries” (e.g. naming their own and asked them about materials they used other countries, finding their country several weeks earlier. Most children on a globe), “culture” (e.g. identifying could accurately recall the problem similarities and differences between •• tried to count along in a foreign (63 %) and solution (54 %) from the their own and other cultures), “needs language during the online hide- first Muppet video, and 67 % remem- and wants” (e.g. distinguishing be- and-seek game. In all, 75 % of bered at least one activity from the tween physical needs and things they the Egyptian children, 70 % of live-action videos of children in other might want but did not need), and the Chinese children, 37 % of the countries (e.g. finding and collecting “economic disparity” (e.g. recogniz- Mexican children, and 28 % of the water in a desert). Children who used ing inequalities in access to resources U.S. children tried to count along; the website recalled 31 countries that across different countries or cultures). •• used Panwapa World as a vehicle they visited in Panwapa World, and Finally, we also interviewed 50 par- to reflect on themselves (while a majority of the children (53 %) re- ents and 50 teachers of children in the creating pages about themselves) called one or more activities from the study (i.e. 10 parents and 10 teach- and to visit and communicate with board game. ers in each site). The adult interviews children in 121 different countries; Finally, across all 4 countries, chil- were intended to lend further insight dren who used Panwapa improved into any educational effects that More than 90 % of significantly more than non-users in might be found among children, and the children attempted to their understanding of global citizen- to gather the adults’ own reactions to ship. This overall impact stemmed the Panwapa materials. say ‘Hello’ in a foreign from Panwapa users’ demonstrating ­language small but significant gains in every as- Programme research 44 23/2010/E

The role of parents and teachers

Since parents, teachers, and other adults often serve as gatekeepers for educational media, we must also con- sider the implications of culture in adults’ percep- tions and use of Panwapa. In all 4 countries, adults praised Panwapa for its appeal for children, educa- tional value, and usefulness as an educational tool. © Sesame Workshop. Used by permission Workshop. © Sesame In addition to these broad Ill. 2: Chinese-language website of Panwapa similarities, however, we pect of global citizenship measured in most to on-screen children and places sometimes found evidence of cultural this study: languages, culture, coun- that were familiar in some way, and differences that could either facilitate tries (primarily in Egypt and Beijing), children often chose to play the online or pose challenges for adults’ use of economic disparity, and distinguish- hide-and-seek in a foreign language Panwapa with children. On the one ing between needs and wants. The that was already somewhat familiar. hand, because one of the schools in positive effects of Panwapa were Conversely, learning effects were the U.S. was a parochial school where consistent for boys and girls, and for sometimes stronger in countries all of the students share a common children of different ages, ethnicities, where children may have less expo- religious background, some parents and socio-economic levels, although sure to the relevant concepts in their and teachers from this school particu- some effects of Panwapa appeared day-to-day lives. For example, chil- larly appreciated Panwapa’s expos- more strongly in some countries than dren in the U.S. showed the great- ing their children to other cultures in others, as we shall discuss next. est improvement in understanding (e.g. “It’s really important, especially economic disparity, perhaps because if you don’t have regular exposure to the United States has a higher eco- different people. This is a really good Learning across cultures nomic standard of living. Yet, some age to understand that the world is effects regarding foreign languages made of all different people, and that Across the 4 countries, we found were stronger in Egypt, Mexico, and we’re all made by God.”). more similarities than differences in China, perhaps because 18 % of the On the other hand, adult attitudes what children learned from Panwapa U.S. children reported that they al- toward either media or other ethnic – and in how they learned, as well. ready used foreign languages with groups can also hinder the use or im- their families at home (versus 7 % of pact of projects such as Panwapa. Learning does not occur the Mexican sample and 2 % or less Chinese educational practice favors in China and Egypt). hands-on learning for preschoolers, in a vacuum Thus, children appeared to connect rather than computers (e.g. Gardner, most immediately with aspects of 1988; Wong, 2008). Thus, in China, Similar types of comments and be- Panwapa that they found familiar or some parents and teachers preferred havior were observed among children to which they felt connected. At the Panwapa’s hands-on games to its in different countries as they used the same time, however, they sometimes online activities (e.g. “It’s better to Panwapa materials, and significant benefited most from content that they make things with paper, so that the learning effects were found in all did not encounter regularly in their children’s ability to use their hands 4 countries. own lives. Looking toward future can improve. Materials like paper are Yet, the data also highlighted the fact international efforts, these data dem- good for the purpose of protecting that learning from educational media onstrate the effectiveness of using fa- their eyes [versus watching a screen]. does not occur in a vacuum. Culture, miliar situations or settings as an entry Paper things are portable, too.”). In- experience, and prior knowledge all point for children, and as a bridge to deed, while recruiting sites for this play roles as well. As noted earlier, introduce them to diverse, unfamiliar study, our Chinese research team viewers of the videos often reacted cultures from around the world. found that many preschools did not Programme research 23/2010/E 45 have internet access at all. In Egypt, only one child and parent, it high- Truglio, Rosemarie T.; Lovelace, Valeria O.; Seguí, Ivelisse; Scheiner, Susan (2001). The varied role the U.S., and Mexico, however, we lights the fact that educational media of formative research: Case studies from 30 years. found little evidence of any such are only one influence in children’s In: Fisch, Shalom M.; Truglio, Rosemarie T. (eds.). “G” is for “growing”: Thirty years of research on bias against computers (although, of lives, alongside the much stronger children and . Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence course, access is always a challenge, influences of family and society. Such Erlbaum Associates, pp. 61-79. particularly in low-income areas). attitudes point to the vital need for Wong, Margaret N.C. (2008). How preschool chil- With regard to attitudes toward ethnic such projects, designed to promote dren learn in Hong Kong and Canada: A cross- cultural study. In: Early Years, vol. 28, no. 2, groups, it is helpful to recall research tolerance and mutual respect. Yet, pp. 115-133. on the U.S. version of Sesame Street. as we set expectations and standards Preschoolers who watched Sesame for judging their success, reasonable Street race relations segments often expectations must take into account understood that the children in these the socio-political context in which segments were happy to be together, the materials are used. but some also assumed that the par- In light of such challenges, it is all ents of the on-screen children were the more impressive that children’s less pleased, apparently reflecting use of Panwapa resulted in signifi- their knowledge of their own parents’ cant learning about aspects of global attitudes toward other ethnic groups citizenship. These data demonstrate the authors (Truglio et al., 2001). In our study, that the benefits of educational me- virtually all of the nearly 1,300 chil- dia can reach across countries and Shalom M. Fisch is President of dren and 100 adults in our sample cultures. However, we also must Media­Kidz Research & Consult- appreciated Panwapa’s encouraging recognize that such media are only ing, and former Vice President an appreciation of diverse cultures. one influence in children’s lives. To of Program Research at Sesame Workshop, USA. As one Egyptian teacher put it, “the best understand how children learn materials create the cooperation spirit from media – and how to create ef- Hsueh Yeh is an Associate Profes- inside the child. They teach him that fective educational media – we need sor in the Counseling, Educational we are all similar; there is no differ- to consider their impact within the Psychology, and Research Program at the University of Memphis, ence between Muslim and Christian, context of all of the other influences USA. or between Egyptians and anyone in a child’s world. else.” Zhou Zongkui is Dean of the School of Psychology at Central China Normal University, China. Media are only one note ­influence in children’s Chi Jin is on the faculty of China This research (along with the production of Pan- Women’s University, China. lives wapa) was supported by grants from the Merrill Lynch Foundation and Boeing Global Corporate Maissa Hamed is an education and Citizenship. Because of the scope of the study, the research consultant based in New The only child who did not seem to full research team consisted of more than 100 re- York City, USA. appreciate Panwapa’s diversity was searchers – too many to list, although we are deeply grateful for all of their hard work. In addition, we Zeinab Khadr is an Associate Pro- one Egyptian child, who cried dur- gratefully acknowledge: Charlotte Cole, June Lee, fessor in the Faculty of Economics ing a segment that showed real Is- Lewis Bernstein, Brett Pierce, Christine Capota, Eóin Cunningham, and Louise Peneguy of Sesame and Political Science, Department raeli and Palestinian children working Workshop; the staff, teachers, and students of the of Statistics at the American Uni- together to design a clock for their participating schools and preschools; and the entire versity in Cairo, Egypt. town. Since all of the other Egyp- Panwapa production team, without whom Panwapa would not exist. Gabriela Martínez Noriega and tian children enjoyed the segment, Adriana Hinojosa Céspedes con- the research team was puzzled by references duct research through Gemark in this reaction – until they interviewed Mexico City, Mexico. the child’s mother, who objected Cole, Charlotte F. (2008). With a bright enough hue: Allison Druin is Director of the strenuously to the Israeli segment: Panwapa’s global online effort to build a passport to peace for young children living in a conflict-ridden Human-Computer Interaction Lab “… We raised our children that we world. In: Journal of Children and Media, vol. 2, and Associate Professor, iSchool at do not love the Israelis; they kill us no. 3, pp. 300-304. the University of Maryland, USA. and hate us. This is the truth, but the Fisch, Shalom M. (2004). Children’s learning from educational television: Sesame Street and beyond. Mona Leigh Guha recently re- media tried to deceive us … We are Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. ceived her doctorate from the Uni- not one world …” While we must Gardner, Howard (1989). Learning Chinese-style. versity of Maryland, USA. stress that this reaction came from In: Psychology Today, vol. 23, no. 12, pp. 54-56.