http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...senter-scaring-children-parents-tell-BBC.html So, the question: to what extent is it natural that children could be scared of a woman with one arm? Is it something innate, or is it something learned? Thoughts?
Naturally they immediately recognize that the same fate could happen to them. Children are have way more empathy than adults, particularly sciforumites.
I really don't think it would adversely affect a child to see someone on TV with a handicap of any type. I just don't see to many physically challenged people on TV ever. The special Olympics were one that did carry many people with physical anomalies and there wasn't any negative feedback that I ever heard about. I would ask why would a child be having a problem with anyone that had a impairment for they really do not understand what it is about anyway. They would probably ask questions of course but it wouldn't really bother them to much at all. IMHO
I think so, too. Typically it's the kids who don't care what color their friends are, or what they look like, especially at that age.
I think the parents are more worried than the kids will be, but also think it's a little overly PC to present such a challenge to pre-school children. To be honest, I think kid's TV should be as uncontentious as possible, and kids should be allowed a period of innocence.
Only above a certain age. Children below 3 or 4 have no empathy at all. That's why they don't understand why hitting someone else (for instance) is bad.
Like it wasn't bad enough having only one arm... now she gets to be ridiculed for it. Some people are just cold. "OMG I have to talk to my kid about real issues now - what a burden!" Kids these days are force-fed fluff until about middle school and then one day the whole of reality gets dumped on them.
"So, the question: to what extent is it natural that children could be scared of a woman with one arm? Is it something innate, or is it something learned?" Scared: Learned or innate? In my opinion, innate. I feel it's natural to be curious, maybe scared, maybe sympathetic. This is what I feel when I see a fellow human, who is disabled.
Kid's TV presenters don't display much talent, and having seen her, she doesn't shine as being especially good, so I suspect she's been selected because of her disability, and that's a politically correct motive, to make an issue of disability and present it to pre-school children. It's OK for adults to think kids need exposing to this stuff, but it needs to come with some explanation, and I also think kids should be allowed some age of innocence, before we start throwing real world issues at them. We grew up fine like that, why do we now assume kids need 'challenging'?
It's parents being concerned for their children, and that's their job. She isn't an especially talented presenter, because, let's face it, presenting kids TV doesn't call for much talent. She presents shows aimed at pre-school kids, two and three year olds. Don't you think that might be a little early to start talking to kids about 'real issues'? You don't think showing a woman with one arm to a two year old without explanation or re-assurance isn't dumping reality on them?
This argument holds some water when you're talking about dealing with war and the bad things of human life, but how can you possibly class a woman who was born with half an arm as this?
Do they explain that before she appears on TV? Who said 'ruining' btw, that's a tad dramatic. I never said that. I said just let them have a period of innocence before challenging them, and this woman presents some shows watched by two years olds. The debate here is merely when we think kids should be exposed to such things, and I think it's a bit early to expose kids that can barely speak and explain their fears to such stuff.
See my response above, there is no explanation, parents have to re-assure their kids that's how she got that way, and that she isn't in pain (if you had seen her, you'd see what appears to be bone protruding from her stump, and and while it's covered in skin, it doesn't look comfortable to live with.) And we are talking about an audience of two year olds here. While I agree kids should be presented with diversity, I just think it can wait until they are a little older.
Okay so kids with half an arm should not be able to attend a daycare with other normal kids - so we can preserve their innocence.
Did anyone say that? No, you can explain that to kids when they meet the kid with one arm. Kids are curious, they want to know why things happen. Just showing them someone with half an arm, and not explaining it is falling short of adult responsibilities. Also, how many one armed people are there that kids might meet, vs the thousands that watch TV? They are trying to make something mainstream out of something that is rare. That's PC bullshit.
So your beef isn't with people with one arm on TV but with parents who don't pay attention to what they're kids are doing so they can explain something to them if their child asks. Personally I think that's a pretty weak argument. If a kid was that curious about it they'd probably ask their parent later on if a parent wasn't there.
No, my beef is that youngsters are presented with this without explanation by the people presenting it, the BBC, and parents are left having to explain, and clearly in some cases this is causing children some distress. I don't think kids' TV should be contentious.
I'd think any amputee without arms running after a child trying to frighten them would be very scarry to any young whipper snapper.Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
