Introduction

Why use television to teach citizenship?

Television can be a central resource for teaching Citizenship. It exposes us to and provides information about and insights into the global community, a wide range of political and social issues - from ethnic and national identities to electoral politics, from conflict and conflict resolution to how governments work. It can also provide the starting point for developing important skills of enquiry, analysis and communication.

In the National Curriculum for Citizenship students are required to find out about and understand the significance of media in society. Television is perhaps the most influential of the media, watched by the vast majority of the population everyday. It informs and influences our understanding of many of the themes highlighted in the Programmes of Study for Citizenship, so it makes sense to develop children's critical awareness of how it influences their lives and their understanding of the world around them.

Media literacy is seen as an increasingly important skill in a world where the media is so prevalent in so many different forms. Developing the skills to analyse and use the media is a task that teachers of citizenship and English, in particular, might increasingly share. Through studying the media students can develop strong analytical skills and learn important communication skills.

Television tends to be used mainly as a source of entertainment and is the focus of much debate about 'dumbing down'. There is at least one TV in every household in Britain and 86% of children in the UK watch up to six hours of TV a day (source BBC news). While much programming on television is trivial, there is also much that is interesting and stimulating. Even reality TV shows such as Big Brother can be used to raise issues about what it means to be a citizen or a participant in society. Other programmes, such as the news and documentaries offer a view on the wider world, while television also provides access to a wide range of cultural experiences.

Some people claim that television provides 'a window on the world', but it is important to recognise that people who make programmes - whether news or drama, or anything in between - have to make choices about what to put in this 'window', and these choices are influenced, if not governed, by a wide range of considerations, including personal, political and institutional ones. So what we see on television is inevitably partial, which is one of the reasons we must view it with a critical eye.

The aim of this guide is to help you to explore the role of television with your students. It provides:

• Background information about television broadcasting, particularly focusing on Public Service Broadcasting, how this has influenced the development of television in the UK and how it is changing;
• An overview of major television genres and formats and how these are evolving;
• An introduction to ways of studying television and using it in the classroom;
• Units of work to help you teach with and about specific television programmes or formats.
• Starting points for media production work in school.