Date of Award
Fall 1975
Document Type
Dissertation - Restricted
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Education
First Advisor
DeRoche, E.
Second Advisor
Bogenschild, Erika G.
Third Advisor
Grams, John
Abstract
The purpose of the study was to determine the relative effects of commercial television as compared to other information sources on the knowledge and attitudes related to career development gained by sixth grade children, and what changes in knowledge and attitudes could be brought about in the area of career development by teaching efforts that employed the use of instructional television. The sources of information selected for investigation were books and newspapers, school work, commercial television friends, parents and other relatives. The teaching effort using instructional television involved a new career development series entitled "Bread and Butterflies" developed and produced by the Agency for Instructional Television in cooperation with 32 state departments of public instruction. Fourteen elementary schools selected at random from elementary schools in the Milwaukee Public School system were chosen to participate in this study. One-half of the schools chosen at random were asked to have sixth grade teachers use the television series "Bread and Butterflies" as a part of their teaching efforts in career development. In the other seven schools, the sixth grade teachers were asked to conduct their classes not using the television series for any part of their instructional program. The results of the study as measured by the information test indicated that in regard to the accuracy of information about careers, commercial television provided more accurate information than three of the other four sources. These sources were school work, friends and parents and other relatives. In comparing commercial television with books and newspapers there was no significant difference. In regard to quantity of information, commercial television was the dominant source as indicated by significant differences in favor of commercial television as compared to the other four sources (books and newspapers, school work, friends and parents and other relatives)...