From the Tri-City Tribune (February 18, 2004)
Article by Samantha Martin
“The school board was asked to make a decision about the use of Channel One in the classroom. Channel One is a newscast program in which teenaged anchors bring present news targeted toward their peers. The program is broadcast 12 minutes per day during first period through equipment provided by the free service. After a visit from an educational standards committee, the school was asked to extend their school day 12 minutes to accommodate for the class time consumed by the viewing of Channel One. The school board voted to remove the service and equipment rather than extend the school day.”
In Alabama, as in many states, a school cannot show Channel One News during the instructional school day. In our state, each day, 360 minutes must be related to true educational endeavors. Channel One’s TV show must be shown in “non-instructional” time periods, such as homeroom.
This Arkansas school was caught showing the program during class time. The state told them if they wanted to continue to do that, they must add more time to the school day. The school board made a smart decision. They threw Channel One News on the trash heap and reclaimed that lost hour a week of school time. Nobody can repay the students for all the lost time, but at least the waste has stopped.
If your school is showing Channel One during a class, get it stopped.
