Sesame Street might have been started to target the low income African A. children. I don't think it worked because in the mid to late 70's few A.A. owned televisions. Those that did did not allow their children to watch TV. It was rare for A.A. to allow their children to watch TV. I wonder if it had something to do with church. TV was for adult viewing. We were expected to play outside while our mothers cleaned the house and cooked. We were expected to play not watch TV.
It sounds like the launching of Sesame Street was like many other government programs. Another way of saying we're doing something for those poor little Black children who come to school not knowing anything.
Sesame Street was not utilized by Black parents then nor today, this is why is has not been beneficial to the black population.
I teach Kindergarten, my Black children still come to school knowing less and having less experiences then the whites. It is not Sesame Street's design or focus. It's a parental issue. Most Black parents still do not see the true value of education. Parental education about education is not taken serious and parents are not willing to become self-sufficient. If parents had attitudes of self-sufficiency then they would be modeling the value of education and most Black children would come to school more ready.

In the article we read in class, the author said that it was created for inner city students. I think of schools in the cities rather than schools in rural areas. I wondered too about the true reason it was started because i thought of the families without money to buy televisions.

Heather, I think that a lot of people will go without a lot of things but own some high ticket items. We have kids who come to school with raggedy clothes and shoes that don't fit, but the parents are able to provide Gameboys, cigarettes, booze, etc... A lot of time it depends on their priorities. Back in the 70's I'm sure you could find homes without TV's, but I bet you couldn't now. Most of my students have multiple forms of media in their bedrooms.

At least someone, the creators, recognized the need and tried to address it. I still like Sesame Street, despite it's flaws. It may not teach children to read, but it is a whole lot better programming than SpongeBob!

The other night my husband came upstairs and announced there was a one hour special of Sesame Street coming on television. I began telling him about how Sesame Street does not really foster reading. He didn't really get what I was saying and he said that he had never heard such. I flipped the channel to Sesame Street and my two year old enjoyed every minute. I agree with Karen that there are other programs on tv that aren't as educational such as Sponge Bob. It's not like my son is going to watch Sesame Street everyday.

I watched Sesame Street a few days ago, it has changed since the 1980's. It use to focus more on character education, letter and number recognition. They have incorporated more reading skills like spelling words. Between the Lions does focus on reading skills. Dora has a slow pace and gives children time to think and interact. Yes, parential interaction with a child during any television viewing is the vital key to any educational program being beneficial.
It is amazing what is given priority in lower socioeconomic families. Many times, education is not the priority. We feel this everyday. Teachers are forced to attempt to fill in the social emotional and cognitive gaps.

When my sister-in-law taught in the "slum" school in Charleston, SC, she would complain that her first graders did not know the ABC's or 123's. There was a McDonalds one block from the school, but not one of her 30 students had ever been taken there by their parents... She said the parentes were either on drugs or figuring out where to get the next hit. Never once did anyone show up for parent night... children were dirty, had no supplies, and things were bleak. The one thing that the kids knew how to do well was watch TV. That is what they did all day long... watch tv... not that Sesame Street was the number one program. So TV watching is prevalant in the right setting...