Broadcasting and Citizenship

Abstract

AT the North of England Education Conference on January 6 the Central Council for School Broadcasting and the Central Committee for Group Listening were represented by their secretary, Mr. A. C. Cameron, who discussed the principles on which these two bodies are at present shaping their policies and raised a number of questions as to the moulding and educating influences of broadcasting on the citizen of to-morrow and to-day. As regards school broadcasting, for the reception of which, by the way, in England and Wales some 7,000 schools are equipped, he emphasized its importance as fostering the interest of the child in life outside the school and the interest of the parent in the school. As evidence of the growing interest of parents he mentioned that a school broadcast recently brought him three hundred letters from parents who had listened to it. To promote group listening and discussion seven area councils representative of voluntary bodies, local authorities and the universities have been constituted. Many listening and discussion groups have been formed by such bodies as women’s institutes, townswomen’s Guilds and public libraries, and many are recognized by local education authorities as eligible for grants for “further education”. Another speaker at the Conference, a member of the executive of the National Union of Teachers, argued that wireless receiving sets ought to be regarded as essential pieces of equipment for schools and for bodies such as juvenile organization committees and community centres which undertake to promote group listening as a means of adolescent and adult education. It seems open to question whether grants should be made for encouraging such listening and discussion groups without some sort of guarantee that they are conducted by competent leaders. With proper guidance (for which attendance at university extension tutorial classes would provide an excellent training) such groups could be developed into a powerful agency for education for citizenship.