Perception of formal and informal institutions involved in the civic education of children

Abstract

School and Television are formal and informal institutions that contribute to the civic education of girls and boys. This analysis shows that school and television provide education.  Although this is not what is expected, this is exposed as important because children represent the active capital of a society, they are responsible for maintaining order, customs and traditions of their country. These institutions, as opinion makers, are decisive for achieving a more equitable society that helps to create a better society. This work resorted to the Cognitive Development theory, to determine the age of the sample group and to understand the decision making process of the infants; we used the crop theory to analyze the effects of television; a mixed, descriptive, exploratory, transverse method was used in the field work for the survey technique that was handled with the questionnaire as a tool. In order to determine the sample, two sources were consulted: INEGI (2010) presented 92 562 minors, while Secretary of Education showed data of 157, 105 infants; the sample comprised 384 girls and boys; the final survey applied was 500.

The study showed that girls and boys perceive in their favorite TV show characters, one of the values needed in citizen education, freedom of expression. Minors express their ideas using verbal and non-verbal communication, but also using actions such as: insulting and offending the other characters.