Television makes kids smarter or dumber??

Kids like watching television specially their favorite cartoons, don't they? TV has become one of the inseparable part of childhood. And parents are always scolding their kids, asking them to switch off the "Idiot box" and open the "holy" school books. Parents are completely convinced in their mind that their child would have scored higher grades if there was no TV. Have you ever mulled otherwise? Many parents would be astounded to know that their investment in buying TV was the best ever decision they made. A study has found evidence that exposure to TV when in preschool may increase average adolescent test scores. However, the overall effects are small and effects are largest for children from households where English is not the primary language, for children whose mothers have less than a high school education, and for nonwhite children. Moreover, certain TV shows educate children about moral conduct and culture of their society, thus relaxing the task of their parents and teachers.

But wait guys, before merrily giving the TV remote in your child's hand, you should go through the counter argument as well. Watching excessive television can make your child autistic. Another study has revealed that there is a direct correlation between watching TV and autistic cases among kids. The alarming rise in autism in the U.S. and some other developed nations is one of the most anguishing mysteries of modern medicine. In 1970, it's incidence was thought to be just 1 in 2500; today about 1 in 170 kids born in U.S. fall somewhere on the autism spectrum (which includes Asperger's Syndrome) according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have been medical evidences supporting that Television is one of the major factor contributing to the increase cases of autism. Approximately 17% of the growth in autism in California, Pennsylvania and Washington during the 1970s and 1980s was due to the growth of cable television," and "just under 40% of autism diagnoses in the three states studied is the result of television watching due to precipitation. Increased violent nature in children and suicides in efforts to emulate their super hero are other side effects.

To conclude, I would like to say that everything done within limits bear juicy fruits similarly limited watching of television by kids can contribute to their overall development and is likely to make them smarter and more aware. Excessive watching, on the other hand, can do irreparable damage to their brains and their childhood innocence might be lost in the process. It goes without saying that it's in parent's benefit to keep a check on television watching by their kids for "a child's innocence is the best gift God has bestowed upon them".

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Divorces: Urban v/s Rural !!

Divorces are higher in urban areas than in rural areas. Why is this? Is it due to availability of greater number of potential partners in urban areas or is it the lifestyle of urban crowd that distances them from their spouse. A research has suggested that that the proportion of people getting divorced in urban areas is almost 25% higher than in rural areas, country being the same. Now that's startling considering the fact that these people were natives of the same country, they followed the same traditions and shared similar beliefs, and the fact that either they or their ancestors once resided in the rural areas. But again this data can vary across continents, if not across countries. In some countries getting divorce is not a cakewalk while in some you can divorce your spouse by just reciting the term "Divorce" three times.

Urban areas are densely populated and cities are spread across hundreds of kilometers, such that people have to travel plenty for their work. On the contrary, 10 villages combined might not have roads more than 40-50 kilometers long. The lack of transportation facilities in rural areas keeps people confined within their respective areas. Thus, the urban people interact with greater number of potential partners than their counterparts in rural areas. Moreover, urban crowd is outspoken and believe in continuously experimenting in terms of partners, until they are convinced to have found a real "soul mate". More so in developed American and European Countries. Developing Asian nations have a plethora of social and legal restrictions to even think about experimenting. For instance, in some parts of rural India, people still practice "Honor Killing", of a couple if they belong to different castes. Changing partners within one's caste is also considered a blot on the family's reputation.

I know it is out-of-the -context of this topic but let me take some time to say: Though it is one's right to get divorced, but divorces benefit no body. Especially, not the children of the divorced couple. It might have a long term negative psychological impact on the children, seeing their parents fight, when they should be nourishing them "together" and with love and care. Considering this, certain law-makers are lobbying to make divorces difficult to get, but at the same time, living with someone you don't like "anymore" can be suicidal. Can we have a middle path? The only solution to reduce the instances of divorce would be to cultivate a sense of "one-partner" into the teenagers right from puberty. Parents should themselves set an example by being loyal to each other.
Children of every divorced couple must have thought this: "Mom hates dad, Dad hates mom, it all makes you feel so sad ".