Making sense of the image of TV in Greek preschoolers’ drawings

Abstract

This research illustrates how young children conceptualize the image and role of television in their lives. Building upon Kress and Van Leeuwen’s theoretical framework of Visual Grammar, 70 drawings of children from kindergartens of Thessaloniki were analyzed both qualitative and quantitative. The research found that children sketch a rich and varied profile of TV. Children’s open–ended construction of meaning surfaced content that reflected themes such as: the profile of the journalist, emotions connected to television, the use of TV, TV as an object, TV as a children’s program or an adult program. Future research should also address the challenge of investigating the diverse and rapidly changing media landscape to which the current generation of children experience.