April 1, 2023

Autism Acceptance Month

From PBS KIDS for Parents

 

Media can positively impact children's perceptions of Autism

As a parent of two preschoolers, I often wonder how I can do my part in raising children who are aware, accepting, and embracing of others. We know that it’s important to talk to our kids about our differences and how they make us special and unique. But, how do we begin these conversations? And will it make a difference to talk about these things with young children? These are huge, complex topics—it’s hard to know where to start!

In the U.S., 1 in 54 children is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. That means at least one child in my son’s grade has autism, but research shows that young children don’t really know about it. And as they grow older, they're exposed to negative perceptions and may also start to form their own negative ideas about autism (Greenwood, Carroll, Crowter, et al., 2016).

While characters like George in Arthur and Julia in Sesame Street have paved the way to introducing kids to those with autism, I was curious about the impact that media could have on shaping children’s perceptions of autism before they potentially get negative ideas.

We were excited to find that this is possible! We saw that media has the power to positively shape children’s understanding and views about autism.

We worked with researcher Eunice Chow at WestEd, an independent, non-profit education research and development agency, who showed a Hero Elementary episode called “AJ’s Extra Superpower” to kids 5-8. The episode draws direct attention to AJ Gadget's autism. After watching the episode, researchers asked the children questions about their attitudes around and understanding of autism.

Here is what the study revealed:

• Most children at this age have not heard of autism or they had a misunderstanding of what it really was.
• After watching the show, children’s understanding of autism grew, and, most interestingly, their views of autism changed positively.
• What’s even more exciting is that some kids started listing AJ as their favorite because of his autism. A first-grader in the study said that his favorite character was “AJ because he has the extra autism power!”

As a parent and researcher, I am hopeful to see that a television show like Hero Elementary, have the power to teach young children to learn about and appreciate people with autism. It’s amazing that children as young as 5 and 6 can watch an episode, understand that AJ has autism, and also see his differences as strengths. I’m encouraged, knowing that watching these shows with my kids could actually be making a difference in how they see and interact with the people around them. It supports me in raising my children to be aware, accepting, and compassionate towards people’s differences.

The great thing is, we don’t need to look far to find these shows. PBS KIDS offers many options to expose children to people that look and act differently from themselves. And if you’re not sure where to begin—you can always start with “AJ’s Extra Superpower” on Hero Elementary.