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- It can take young children several viewings to fully absorb and understand the story and images in a movie. Indulge their need to watch a favourite movie over and over again. They’re learning more every time, as well as getting comfort from the familiar.
Kids have always enjoyed watching movies, and as films have become available through more and more media this popular activity has come to play an increasingly influential role in their lives: nearly half of Canadian teens say that movies are their favorite entertainment medium. [1]
Media violence has been taken up as a public policy issue by a number of Western countries. Central to the debate has been the challenge of accommodating what may appear to be opposing principles—the protection of children from unsuitable media content and upholding the right to freedom of expression.
In this section, we examine some concerns related to the movies kids enjoy and we offer tips for talking about problematic film content such as violence and gender and racial stereotyping.
The Internet has revolutionized how young people watch movies: half of Canadian teens say that they download movies without paying for them at least once a week. [1]
Despite the popularity of the Internet, movies and TV still dominate young people’s media use (though they are increasingly watching both online). [1] Given this widespread appeal, these media may have an indirect effect by influencing how groups or cultures view body image.
Though young adolescents may seem “all grown up”, there are still many issues that need to be addressed relating to movie content. Many movies aimed at the “tween” age group (11–13) contain material that isn’t appropriate for young teens. The rating systems don’t necessarily help either: films that were rated Restricted (17 and over) at the cinema may become 14A when released on home video in Canada.
There are two main strategies for addressing online hate and cultures of hatred in the classroom: teaching youth to recognize and deconstruct it, and empowering them to intervene by answering back to it.[1]
Schools are fully aware that the Internet is a treasure trove of knowledge and don’t hesitate to recommend it for research. According to a 2008 study, 77 per cent of teachers assign work involving the use of the Internet. Unfortunately, school curriculums rarely include teaching how to do research on the Web, so parents need to learn the skills for guiding their children as they go online for school assignments.
When discussing media representation of various groups, especially those we consider marginalized, stereotypes are often a primary concern. But sometimes, breaking a stereotype doesn’t go quite far enough, and the issue can be a little more complicated than merely determining whether or not a character is represented in a positive or negative way. The section that follows explores different approaches to queer content by analyzing various ways that popular media have used characterized LGBTQ people.