In my CI 3850 class we have been recently discussing the topic of Whittle Communications Channel One. For those who don’t know what this is, it is a TV news channel that is produced and aired for the use in schools. When a school signs up for the use of channel one they in turn receive the channel and equipment for free. Every room is set up with access and a TV. Sounds great, right? The only catch is that the 12 min program that is aired several times a day on this channel contains two full minutes of advertisements within the show. Now the big question is, do you think that the potential use of this channel outweighs the fact that students are being exposed to this type of advertisement in order to pay for the free use? Let me know what you think, and also if any of you actually had the channel in school.

We had Channel One in middle school. We watched it every day, but I honestly can't remember it at all. I just know that it took up class time, so that was nice-haha.

We had Channel One throughout junior high and high school. I really enjoyed it because it gave you a quick break down of the current issues taking place in the world. I think it is valuable even with the avertisement, because I think this is the only way a lot of teenagers will hear any news. The majority of them are not going to take the time to read the newpaper or watch the evening news. I think you need to do what ever it takes to keep the youth up to date with what is going on in the world.

This is the first I have ever heard of the Channel 1. If it presents current issues in a brief manner to school kids, then I definately think it is a good thing. As Ashley said, most kids do not read the news paper nor do they watch the news, so if this Channel exposes kids to current events in our world, then i say go for it!

Also Channel One was presented by young journalist who I think teenagers would related with better than your typical evening news anchor. They don't present the news from an anchor desk, but from the "hacienda". I think teenagers find this kind of environment more inviting than the typical 7 o'clock news.

i remember channel one!...the blonde chick and lisa ling before "the view". i think there was a cute guy too...

anyway...i watched it in middle school. i have no doubt that this was the only possible way we would have gotten tvs in the classrooms. but aside from that, i really think it was helpful with current events and increasing political interest at an earlier age. I don't remember the advertisements...so i personally don't think they were a problem. i guess i'd have to appreciate businesses contributing to education even if they do have an ulterior motive. i wish they would contribute more...

I remember watching channel one in high school. I really enjoyed it, but I love the news anyway.
I know many people would not have a clue what was going on in our world if they hadnt watched channel one. I think with or without the advertisements, channel one is a great thing. If it is still around when I start teaching I want my students to watch it.

We had Channel one at my High school and I loved watching it. I was so busy with soccer, track and work that i never had a chance to watch the news so what i saw in school was all i knew about. My teacher also handled the ads in a unique way. We would watch the show as a class and on the commercial breaks we would talk about what we had heard, or ask any questions that we might have had. In my opinion i think its a good thing for students to be up-to-date on what is happening around the world.

i never had channel one in school, so perhaps thats why i have nothing good to say about it. personally, where i come from and where i plan to return to teach, channel one would be a joke in the classroom. ill be with high-schoolers, students old enough to watch the news at home, or even read about it in a newspaper. instructional time is already hard enough to come by, so i don't even see the point in wasting 10 minutes (or however long) in class for kids to supposedly watch this little news program. i dont think they really would!! not the high school kids of today. i just visited my sister over spring break in her classroom and the kids could barely sit still during work time - they were constantly up and walking and talking. so why waste time in class for kids to watch a little bit of news on the tv? they can do that at home!

i mean, sure, current events and stuff are important. im not a fanatic about watching the news, but i keep general ideas about what's going on. and i managed to do that my whole life without having my teacher to help me in yet another aspect of life. if you want to incorporate current events and allow your students to stay abreast of the news, tell them to read the newspaper as part of an assignment. im gonna be an english teacher - im in support of students actually reading these days. it doesnt happen often. IF i even took time out of class to keep up with the news, i wouldnt have my students watch it on tv! tv is everywhere!!! we could all read the newspaper for 10 minutes. i dont even care about the free equipment aspect of it. kids are surrounded my tvs and computers all day. it wont kill them to sit in a class for 90 minutes, or however long, and actually listen to a real person talk, write on real paper with a real pencil, and think about things on their own without having some aspect of technology or the media to influence them.

Many school systems lack funds to have TV's in every classroom. Students are subjected to advertising daily and are used to tuning it out. I think the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages.