Giving children TV in bedroom 'turns them into Vicky Pollards'

PARENTS who allow children to watch television in their bedrooms are breaking up family life and creating a generation of "Vicky Pollards", teachers warned today.

Growing numbers of children begin primary school unable to hold a conversation because they have been allowed to watch TV alone for several hours a day, according to the Association of Teachers and Lecturers.

The union warned that the influence of programmes such as Big Brother and Little Britain was fuelling back-chat and unruly behaviour in class.

General secretary Mary Bousted called on parents to supervise their children's viewing. "I don't think that children should have televisions in their bedrooms. Bedrooms should be where children sleep," she said.

"This notion of television everywhere breaks up families. You're actually living separate lives."

Ms Bousted spoke as the union released a survey of 800 school staff which suggested that TV led to rudeness and aggressive behaviour in schools. The worst programmes were Big Brother, EastEnders and Little Britain, which features teenage delinquent character Vicky Pollard.

Teachers judged that TV had a greater negative influence on children than video games by reinforcing the idea that bad behaviour was acceptable.

Ms Bousted said the presence of a television in every bedroom undermined family life, with family members living an "isolated" existence as children ate TV dinners on their own in separate rooms.

"Children start to lack social skills," she said. "Teachers are concerned with children starting school at four or five and they don't know how to have a conversation. Their speaking skills are increasingly poor.

"Programme makers do have some responsibility to think about the effect of these programmes on children and young people but the bigger responsibility is for the parents.

"Too often children are watching these programmes on their own and not understanding how they should be interpreting what's on the screen.

"If the television is on downstairs it's much more likely that parents have some idea of what's being watched and how much is being watched."