Browsing by Author "Abebe, Doris"

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    School children’s visual media consumption habits in selected primary schools in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
    (University of Dar es Slaam, 2014) Abebe, Doris
    This study aimed at determining children’s visual media consumption habits and parental intervention in Tanzania. More specifically it was informed by three objectives which were, to identify the types of visual media present in the daily lives of children, secondly to determine visual media consumption patterns among school children and thirdly to identify mediation strategies employed by parents in monitoring and regulating their children’s use of screen media. This study used an embedded single case design grounded within the quantitative research approach. The study involved collection of primary data through the use of questionnaire from 100 pupils and 100 parents at Academic International Primary School based in Dar es Salaam region.The study revealed high levels of household ownership of various forms screen media with television being by far the most prevalent. Among the media activities undertaken by children almost every day, watching television was ranked highest (48.9%) followed by using a computer/laptop (21.1%) and using the internet (14.4%). The study further found that most of the children spent 1 to 2 hours with screen media for each day of the week. Finally, the study revealed that parents employed various strategies such as limiting screen time, co-viewing, setting limit on the types of content, talking to children about what they see and helping children choose appropriate screen programmes in regulating their children’s use of screen media. Based on the findings derived from this study, it can be concluded that there is an indication of potential rapid expansion and rise in children’s consumption of screen media in Tanzania due to increase in household access to multiple types of screen media particularly in urban areas. However, there is healthy and wise use of screen media by Tanzanian children resulting from active parental mediation strategies in monitoring and regulating children’s use of screen media. As children continue to become more immersed in media and their preference for fighting and shooting games pose a challenge requiring to reinforce appropriate use of screen media. The study recommends that much attention should be paid to media literacy to guide educators and parents and/or guardians in the selection, use, integration and evaluation of interactive media for children.