“Books are Fun, Books are Great”

Abstract

Television has been shown to influence young children's development of attitudes and skills. Evidence also suggests that children's television programs contain both positive and negative messages about various topics, including literacy. Yet little has been done to examine whether and how television messages about literacy affect young children's attitudes about literacy. Guided by three theoretical frameworks (Emergent Literacy perspective, Active Viewing model, and Social Cognitive Theory), this investigation involved two experiments in which 4- and 5-year-olds (N1 = 63; N2 = 52) in the US viewed clips that contained positive or negative messages about literacy. The General Literacy Attitudes Measure (GLAM) and the Specific Literacy Attitudes Measure (SLAM) were employed. Results from both experiments suggest that, although participants understood the varying messages, the messages had little significant effect on their attitudes. Limitations as well as directions for future research are discussed in light of these findings.