Recent Article: Pants-wearing sponge blamed for kids' poor attention spans

 I've mentioned a few times here my concern about relying too heavily on language TV or DVD programs as a source of language immersion for kids . This msn article highlights a research study that shows that the rapid pace of cartoons like SpongeBob are too much for pre-schoolers whether it be for educational (language) purpose or simply for enjoyment.

Kids who watched a cartoon of SpongeBob had worse attention spans than those who watched a PBS cartoon for the same amount of time, a new study shows.

 These are the few take-home tidbits I got from the article:

• Fast paced cartoons like SpongeBob affected preschoolers (4yr olds) attention span while realistic educational programs like PBS' cartoons did not. 
• American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that kids under 2 should not watch TV.  Older kids should be limited to 1-2 hours per day of educational programs.
• The quality of the programs that children watch are just as important as the quantity
• Age-appropriate! SpongeBob is actually targeted toward kids 6+. So, 4 yr old kids should be watching things like Dora the Explorer.  But parents complained it was too slow paced (for who!?).

I'm not sure how ubiquitous (am I using the word correctly?) SpongeBob is, but Pororo is EVERYWHERE. I met a young Korean mother of a 4 year old boy, who answered in English at his mother's questions.  Although it has been difficult to get him practice and learn Korean, she said that due to Pororo, he is willing to learn more Korean.  Can't get away from that penguin.

  So I wonder how 4 year olds attention span would do on this research study after watching Pororo?  Perhaps its not as fast paced.  Well, it does say about Pororo:

A Korean educational TV program suitable for children aged 4 to 7, Pororo the Little Penguin helps kids to learn the values and knowledge shared by children and parents alike - not only in Korea but all over the world! Dialogue is minimal and visuals play an important role in educating children, through amusing short stories in 3D CGI animation

 So Pororo is for 4 to 7 year old, but if dialogue is limited then would it provide the Korean language exposure I want? But you can't forget that Pororo = fun; Pororo = Korean; therefore, Korean = fun.  Would that logic motivate a 4-year olds Korean-American to find the Korean language appealing?