TV watching

habits
Opener
 In a one-storey yellow house, there was a
yellow person, a yellow cat, a yellow dog, a
yellow chair, a yellow table, a yellow
telephone, a yellow bathtub—everything
?was yellow! What colour were the stairs
There weren’t any stairs, the house was
.only one storey
In your opinion, do you think that watching
television can help in teaching?
 .TV can be educational
?Do you agree or disagree
.Justify your answer
Recent data indicates that, on average, children
spend approximately three hours a day
.watching television
on average

normally; usually
This figure may seem staggering
.statistic, but it is true
 staggering

very shocking and astonishing

A teacher realised the accuracy of this statistic
.after a quick survey amongst her students
 accuracy

the quality or state of being correct

Using teaching aids in the classroom helps
.students understand the lessons very well
 teaching aid

material or equipment used in

teaching
 Primarily, audio visual teaching aids help
.students practise listening to spoken English
 primarily

for the most part, mainly

 The Science teacher teaches students the
fractional distillation, which is the separation
of the mixture into its component parts, by
.doing an experiment
 fractional

relating to the separation of components of

a mixture
Telling stories helps listeners visualise the
.characters and the setting of the story
visualise

to imagine
 Broadcast television stations should schedule
their core programming including educational
programmes that can be shown both in and
.outside the classroom
 core programming

the central or most important programme

 The educational programmes should be
.broadcast on TV daily during the prime time
 prime time

the time at which a television or radio audience is

expected to be the greatest
New Vocabulary
 accuracy (n.)
core programming (n.)
fractional (adj.)
on average (exp.)
primarily (n.)
prime time (n.) mainly
staggering (adj.)
teaching aid (n.)
visualise (v.)
Workbook
Page 54
Read this article about educational television programmes written
.by a 17-years-old student and answer the following questions

How many hours do .1

children approximately
?spend watching television
Why does the teacher .2
make sure the math and
science shows do not
?contain any new lessons
.Check your answers
 How many hours do children .1
?approximately spend watching television

Children approximately spend three hours

.a day watching television
Why does the teacher make sure the math .2
and science shows do not contain any new
?lessons

The teacher makes sure the math and science

shows do not contain any new lessons to help
.them visualise what they have been learning
Workbook
Page 55
.Check your answers
a. What does the student describe as
?‘staggering’? Why

The student describes the figure as

.‘staggering’ because it is astonishing
b. Why is a television described as a ‘teaching
?’aid

It is described as a ‘teaching aid’ because

it helps the students to learn more,
especially about other cultures or
.languages
 c. Why do you think educational programmes
are used as a revision tool in maths and science
?lessons

They are used as a revision tool in maths

and science lessons because they help the
students visualise what they had been
.learning
d. From the student’s point of view, what is
?wrong with children’s TV programme

.We don’t learn much from them

 ?e. What is the moral message of this text

We should make use of television as it can

be an educational tool helping us to learn
.more effectively
!Reading Time
Recent data indicates that, on average, children
spend approximately three hours a day watching
television. Although this figure may seem staggering
at first, after a quick survey amongst my fellow
.classmates I realised the accuracy of this statistic
In view of this, I believe that broadcast television
stations have a responsibility to serve the educational
needs of children when scheduling their core
programming, including specifically designed
programmes that can be viewed both in and outside
.the classroom
On average, we watch television programmes two or
three times a week at my school. Television can be
a valuable teaching aid, especially when we are
,studying other cultures or languages. For example
a geography lesson on Sri Lanka can be greatly
enhanced by viewing a documentary about the
country and its customs. Every week in one of our
French lessons, we watch a programme about a
family who lives in Paris. Primarily, this helps us
practise listening to spoken French. However, I also
feel it helps me relate to my studies more, and
.improves my concentration
• Pre-recorded programmes are also commonly used
in maths and science lessons. The teachers
themselves record them late at night, as
educational programmes are rarely shown at
prime time. The teacher makes sure the maths and
science shows do not contain any new lessons, and
are instead used as a revision tool. This helps us
visualise what we have been learning; for example,
I found it much easier to understand fractional
distillation after I had seen the process on video.
I definitely feel that the programmes we are shown
at school have a greater educational value than most
children’s programmes. Although they are fun, we
don’t learn much from them. Public broadcasters
should be injecting more education into children’s
entertainment, especially during after-school hours,
when the majority of viewers are students.
.Check your answers
.Check your answers
 Programme Writer’s attitude
Geography programmes Good at giving students information
and ideas about different cultures
Maths and science They revise things the teacher has
programmes already taught in normal lessons
A programme about a Helpful to practise the language
family who lives in Paris
Can teach you things in a different
Educational programmes way from books

Children’s programmes One doesn’t learn much from them

Study the chart on page 54. Discuss. Then )5
write a paragraph summarising the extent to
which it shows the importance of educational
.programmes on television
Read your
.paragraph
Closure
?Why is television described as a teaching aid
 It’s described as a teaching aid and helps
students to learn more. It also helps students
.to revise their lessons
?How can television be used as a teaching aid
 .It can be used in revising lessons
It can help by showing a documentary about
.countries studied in geography
It can help in language learning, specially
.listening and speaking
?How do revision lessons on TV help students
 They help them to revise what they
.have studied at school

They help them to visualize what they

.have been learning
Thank you