Educational Media Reviews Online

This tape, as part of the Planet Parent series on parenting, simply tries to cover too much information in a short period of time (4 segments in 30 minutes). In an attempt to appeal to the general public, this tape reminds me more of a cable television show than a means of providing sound information on parenting.

The first segment, which covers kids and computer use, provides the most valuable information on the tape. Even at that, the segment doesn’t go into great depth. A teacher, a psychologist, a parent and an author of a book on the subject voice their opinions on weather or not it benefits a child to be exposed to computers at a young age. Also discussed are such things as what age kids should start using computers, and drawbacks of early computer use. However, it is done without going into much detail. The segment concludes that more research on kids and computer use is needed.

The remainder of the video consists of “fluff” pieces. The second segment follows a man who is spending the day with his toddler son. They are running errands and visiting shops and museums. “Man on the Street” interviews are conducted with women, who discuss their ideas toward men spending quality time with their sons. Issues such as the importance of a father spending quality time with their children from a psychologist’s perspective, are not addressed. For the third segment, the series host introduces a woman who presents to the audience several new bedding products for babies. Some relevant matters, such as safety issues when choosing a crib, are examined. However, this segment closely resembles something seen on daytime TV. For the fourth segment, we meet a couple that is going through the process of adopting Vietnamese twins. We follow them as they travel to Vietnam, meet the babies for the first time, and spend their first night with the babies. Issues such as how to determine if adoption is right for you, what the adoption process entails, or adopting a child of different race, are not explored.

This video is definitely designed for use in a public library. Funds in a library budget for collection development must be used extremely wisely and every penny spent must be worth the purchase. I believe it would be more advantageous to seek out a video that devotes its’ time to exploring each of these issues separately. This video barely scratches the surface at best, and the caliber of the information presented can be found in an afternoon of channel surfing.