Has Sesame become less educational?

[Docnzhoss]

Now it's a strictly enforced schedule with none of the glee I remember and way too much emphasis on ELMO. Give me back the Sesame of my youth and put Elmo back in the second story window he graced in "Follow That Bird".

YES!!!!!

 

[JaniceFerSure]

I did a whole Power Point Presentation on how Sesame Street's educational value has declined. I keep saying I think Elmo is evil, and it's because he brings nothing but cuteness (I shudder while I say this) to the show! Now it's not just Elmo, the whole format of the show has changed, and they do not teach all the values, morals and principles that they did in the old days not to mention the decrease in teaching reading and counting. I am very disappointed with the product they air these days, and will always cherish the memories of the classic sketches, songs and episodes.

You took the words right out of my mouth Ryan.

 

[Docnzhoss]

Thanks, Dee. It's just so frustrating. I remember when I was in Elementary School, it was fine if a kid still liked Sesame Street. Nobody got made fun of if they mentioned it, and I'm certain we all sat and watched it on sick days or snow days. Today, every school-aged kid I talk to about it denounces Sesame Street like it's some kind of plague. It's because they've lowered their standards and made it a little too baby-ish for even first graders. It is very disappointing to know that classic characters such as Grover, Two-Headed Monster, Prarie Dawn, Count, and countless others aren't being properly utilized to their full potential. Everyone talks about kids' short attention spans and how you have to keep things moving so they don't get bored. It seems to me, that if you keep insulting their intelligence, they will lose interest anyway.

 

[ssetta]

Actually, I think it was sometime in the 80s when it got labeled a "baby show." Because Andy told me that even by the time 2nd grade came (which would have been the 1988-89 season), he got made fun of for it.

 

[Hays]

New Audience

I think what you all are really reacting to is that Sesame Street has had to face the reality that it's audience is a great deal younger than it was when we were kids. I remember watching Sesame Street with my peers all the way through early grade school (later mostly by myself ) Unfortunately, my four-year-old would rather watch shows that are more advanced, like Between the Lions and Arthur; even if they're similar in production values (of course, this could easily be because I like Sesame Street, and what kid wants to watch what their Mom likes.)

But I think the educational aspect of Sesame Street has changed to reflect the large number of pre-preschoolers watching. I don't like Elmo's World myself, but it did, at least in our case, succeed in hammering in simple concepts for a two-year-old. Also, it's more structured than the SS of our day - so all the letter clips are arranged in a group, all the numbers, all the sharing, etc. - it may seem like there was more when these things appeared throughout the show.

I think this year is far better than the last two in this aspect.

 

[mikebennidict]

well if it's audience is younger it's because the producers are aiming it at younger kids. of course the earliest memory i have is at age 2 and always remembered watching SS Mr. Rogers and i'm sure i wasn't the only 1 of my time to watch at such a young age.

 

[timrikthegorf]

Kids are learning things at ealier ages these days. There is so much stuff aimed at teaching kids. So, older kids move on to other things faster. I think that is why SS is now aimed at pre-school kids. Plus puppets are seen as young kids entertainment now. Puppets use to be for all ages put now they have this stigma about them. Animation has the same stigma. I think the only kind of animation that adults will watch is the cgi stuff and now that is starting to take on the same kiddy stigma. There is no escaping it.

 

[mupitz]

My complaint is this, if they are aimed toward younger children now...wouldn't concentrating on the fundamental basic skills of letter and number recognition of the older sesame be of more benefit, than teaching advanced social skills and environmental awareness to preschoolers?

Wow, that's a run on sentence! My mom likes to tell people that the DAY I came home from the hospital then put me in front of sesame street. It wasn't too adult for me then. And most pre-schoolers I know are bored with the Sesame of today.

 

[Docnzhoss]

Yeah, I'm not buying that. My parents had me watching Sesame Street way before pre-school. The quality was just so much better then than it is now. There was a greater diversity in characters and content. Who was the main character of SS in the early 80's? Big Bird? Bert and Ernie? Grover? There wasn't one. Ask a kid who the leader of SS is today, and I'm betting they'll say Elmo without hesitation. My problem with that is, he's a loopy prima donna who's utilized more as an entertainer with nothing educational to offer. One character, no matter how adorable he is, is way more boring than a large cast of wacky, fun characters in many different settings and scenarios(for a more "adult" example, see NBC's "Joey").

As for puppetry and animation, it seems to me that shows such as Crank Yankers, The Simpsons, and others are doing quite well for themselves among adults. I have a lot of conversations with people my age about the greatness of shows like Family Guy, The Critic and Futurama. Also, anime is becoming more and more popular as its own genre. The problem is, in short, Spongebob Squarepants. Actually, I blame Ren and Stimpy. That show seemed to precede the course, kind of sick sense of humor that cartoons seem to rely on these days (Huh, let's show a close up of this character's butt! Huh huh!) The other problem is showing off. People are so impressed with themselves and the technology they possess that they go out and make extravagantly expensive shows and movies using CGI and there's all this talk about the realism of CGI and it means that classic animation is just being shoved aside.

Ugh. I really didn't mean to rant for a third time. Maybe that will be all from me.

 

[mupitz]

One of the things I've always loved was that Sesame didn't condescend to kids. It was a matter of fact fun with a foundation of education. Now a days it seems like it talks down to kids, and tries to slip information in amoungst the zaniness from time to time.

I agree with you Doc, I can't stand the potty humor of tv and won't let my kids watch it. I'm not saying that cartoons aren't appropriate entertainment for adults, but air during adult viewing hours on adult stations. Fart jokes are not funny, especially when coming out of a 3 year olds mouth.