The pros and cons of a TV in your child’s bedroom

A TV in your child’s bedroom – what do you think? Here I will discuss the pros and cons of doing this, alongside some of the latest figures.

I had a TV in my room when I was 16, it had the five channels that existed back then and I loved it. I went off to University when I was 18, so the TV was only something I had in my room at home for the last two years I was there and occasionally when I went home . I didn’t watch loads of television, but I did enjoy having that time away from the rest of my family and the chance to watch something I was specifically interested in. Although I always went to sleep listening to my bedside radio. I’d set a timer on it for 58 minutes and it would automatically switch of after that.

Obviously, these days things are just so different. The number of channels, the amount of on demand television, the massive choice of genres, not to mention things like You Tube. It’s so very different. To add to this. many children have smartphones, laptops and tablets and therefore have access to a wide range of content on a number of devices.

Our children are currently 16,14, 9 and 8 and none of them have a TV in their bedroom. At the present time we have no intention of installing one either. I do however know plenty of families who have put TVs in their children’s bedrooms, and that’s across a broad age range. What are your thoughts? Is this something you have done? Do children need a fancy hd tv in their bedroom? Check out these interesting stats below!

should you put a TV in your child's bedroom?

The Pros

  • Stops fights of the remote and what they watch on TV
  • Gives them greater independence over their viewing choices
  • Can help diffuse difficult situations with older/younger children, giving a clearer distinction between what is considered acceptable at different ages or just giving space to older children to wind down

The Cons

  • In these days of high energy prices, another screen equals another cost!
  • It is harder to monitor both how long they watch and what they watch
  • It has a negative impact on sleep
  • Research shows it promotes bad health habits
  • It reduces family time as children withdraw more to their rooms and become less visible

For me the cons far outweigh the pros, but every family is different. I don’t like the idea of my children being hidden away in their bedrooms as that doesn’t feel like family to me. What have you found to work best in your family? I’d love to hear more in a comment below.

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