ESRC PhD Collaborative Studentship

Young children’s engagement with television and related media in the digital age

Principal Supervisor: Professor Jackie Marsh, School of Education, University of Sheffield

Co-supervisor: Dr Rebecca Parry, School of Education, University of Leeds

The student will be registered at the University of Sheffield.

This ESRC-funded studentship is a collaboration between CBeebies and the Universities of Sheffield and Leeds. The proposed study will focus on young children's engagement with television in the digital age. In recent years, children’s television consumption has become firmly embedded in an intertextual, multimedia network in which programmes can be watched across a range of media platforms, some transportable, and children can engage in play with products/ artefacts/ sites related to the programmes in offline and online contexts. There is a need to understand how children’s television viewing is undertaken in this complex media landscape. In addition, there is a need to identify what factors influence children’s choices as they move across channels and platforms and how their viewing patterns change at key transition points in their lives e.g. starting nursery or school. The objectives of the study are to:

() identify television-viewing patterns of 3-6 year-olds;

(ii) examine the relationship between children’s television viewing and their engagement with other media, digital technologies and related texts and artefacts;

(iii) analyse the transitions in children’s programme and channel choices and related activities over time and at key points e.g. the move from nursery to primary school;

(iv) identify the implications of the findings for CBeebies programme development, the children’s media industry, parents and early years educators.

The project will involve a mixed-methods study involving a large-scale survey of parents of children aged from 3 to 6 and qualitative case studies of a small group of children across this age group as they consume television and related media in the home over an extended period of time. The study will focus on families from economically and socially disadvantaged communities, given the lack of research in this area.

The successful student will have an opportunity to undertake a two-week internship at CBeebies at MediaCityUK, in order to develop knowledge about the children’s television industry.

How to apply Applicants must have an upper second class UK honours degree or equivalent and a Masters degree in a relevant subject area. Applicants should submit the following documents to: [email protected]

• A CV. • A personal statement indicating how your qualifications, experience and research interests make you a suitable candidate for this scholarship. • Full transcripts of previous undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications including Grading System and IELTS/TOEFL Certificate. • A piece of academic writing, such as an essay, dissertation or article. • Two academic references.

Closing date: Friday, March 15th, 2013 Interviews will be held on Monday April 8th at CBeebies, MediaCityUK, Salford (Any travel costs incurred to be met by applicant)

Further information The School of Education at the University of Sheffield is part of the ESRC White Rose Doctoral Training Centre. The successful applicant will be a member of the Centre for the Study of Literacies (http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/education/research/groups/csnl). The successful applicant will have her/his PhD fees paid at the appropriate level for 3 years and will also receive an annual stipend equal in value to the ESRC standard maintenance award (£13,726 in 2013-14) over this period. Any queries should be directed to Professor Jackie Marsh (email: [email protected]). Successful candidates will be notified by the end of April at the latest.!!