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This program focuses on how a brain grows from a fertilized egg and how our brains change, even after birth, right up to old age. The establishment of connections between brain cells occurs not only in the womb, but also after birth. These connections can be modified, or even abolished, in accordance with certain changes in the environment. Hence, the development of the brain is a little like sculpting, where a pattern is formed by removing unwanted...
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The human nerve center never rests-even during sleep, it works diligently to process and build on the information gathered by our senses. Of course, healthy sleep is only one of many vital ingredients the brain needs to develop and thrive, as this film illustrates in detail. Other factors discussed in the program include ongoing contact with negative (deterring) and positive (dopamine-triggering) stimuli, an environment that offers pattern repetition...
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The pressures of high-flying scholarship mixed with churning hormones can prove overwhelming to young geniuses. This program catches up with several child prodigies as they become teenagers, examining the forces, both positive and negative, shaping their development. Aimee's star is rising, including a win at a high-profile music competition, but her relationship with her parents is undergoing severe strains. Michael is writing his fourth novel and...
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Historically, student progress has been gauged by success in subjects that tap the verbal/linguistic and logical/mathematical talents of students, inevitably leading to the disenfranchisement of learners weak in these areas. In this program, David Lazear, author of Seven Ways of Knowing and Seven Ways of Teaching and founder of New Dimensions of Learning, contends that educators must ensure the success of all students by teaching for the five nontraditional...
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This documentary tells how the popular science show QED transformed the life of one young autistic boy. The astonishing talents of Stephen Wiltshire, one of three idiots savants featured in The Foolish Wise Ones, brought him fame and fortune. Since the age of six, Stephen could draw buildings in perspective. By the age of 12, he was acclaimed as probably the best child artist in Britain. Stephen's brilliant drawings have been published around the...
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Why do boys underachieve? How does celebrity culture influence the self-esteem of young girls? In an atmosphere dominated by sex and consumerism, are children growing up too quickly? This program addresses those issues, reporting on a group of 25 eight-year-olds as they adjust to gender roles and expectations. Nathan's parents have gone all out to make sure he grows up without stereotypes-but real life isn't that simple. Rhianna's mother is the breadwinner...
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Extremely gifted children are the envy of many parents-but no childhood, least of all that of the young prodigy, is without stress and frustration. This program visits several such children in the midst of lightning-quick development and progress toward puberty. Peter, at 11, is a chess champion. Adam, now eight and a half, is heading off to a prestigious boarding school, while math wonder Mikhail, still in elementary school, is now a spelling star....
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This classic program focuses on the savant syndrome, telling the story of three severely mentally handicapped people. Each possesses an extraordinary talent - for playing music, creating art, or remembering dates. Noel Patterson is autistic and requires constant care, yet he is an exceptional pianist and can reproduce almost any music effortlessly. David Kidd has an IQ of only 68, but he is an expert in the recondite mathematics of calculating the...
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A child prodigy usually displays high intelligence very early in life. But what makes such a child exceptional? Is it simply his or her IQ, or are other, less definable factors involved? This program enters the lives of several child prodigies, documenting their early growth and development as well as their family lives. Three-year-old Mikhail is the youngest-ever member of Mensa, able to multiply five-figure numbers before most kids can count to...
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The problems faced by teenagers considering running away usually seem totally unique and insurmountable. Children of the Night begins by showing viewers that they aren't alone and encouraging them to find other methods to work out their problems. Visit Hollywood - a haven for teenage runaways from all over the country who are hoping to be "discovered." Learn what they discovered the hard way - which is usually far from what they expected when venturing...
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Although children 7 to 12 still need their physical safety and health protected, they also require strong role models, boundaries, and positive feedback to develop fully. This video will take the viewer through two stages: (1) middle childhood, when children build on what they learned in early childhood, and (2) early adolescence, when children begin to undergo the changes associated with puberty. During these years, children typically pull away from...
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What are the consequences of bullying, high-stakes testing, homework overload, and family turmoil? Do these experiences prepare kids for an uncertain life ahead or are they too much, too young? This program explores what happens under the stressful conditions that children often face at home and school. Tracking a group of 25 eight-year-olds, the program follows young subjects through academic, domestic, and medical challenges. Featured children include...
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The aim of this program is to examine Piaget's theory and to critically evaluate it in light of modern research. The study of child development in the 20th century revolved around Jean Piaget's theories, and the program clearly describes their central themes, covering the cognitive stages of development from birth to twelve years old, giving illustrations of children's behavior at each level. Recent research is examined in relation to each stage and...
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Experts agree that the ways in which we develop in childhood have a strong effect on our later lives. This video depicts child development from the ages of 4 to 6, the years in which a child practices and fine-tunes motor skills and coordination, tests physical abilities, and experiences the onset of demanding physical, emotional, and social changes and challenges. Included is the first year of school, in which children must adjust to a new environment...
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Starting Over focuses on the future to help kids who cannot go home realize and consider their options. Viewers hear advice from runaways who have dropped out of school and are struggling to get off the streets, off drugs, and out of prostitution. Residents and counselors at homeless shelters paint a vivid picture of life at the shelter - the rules they enforce, the assistance they provide, and the success they have in helping teens overcome their...
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Why would 300-year-old educational theories be of interest to teachers of young children today? This program features the ideas of early researchers and philosophers, showing how these pioneers laid the groundwork for modern concepts of elementary school instruction. Locke's opposition to rote memorization, Rousseau's belief in self-direction, the recognition of each child's individuality by Pestalozzi, and Froebel's creative preschool techniques...
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Forty years ago autism was an obscure disorder that was thought to affect only two to four children in every 10,000, but now some British teachers are claiming to see it in one out of every 86 children. What has happened? Is there an epidemic of autism? If so, what's causing it? Or is it that awareness has grown and the definition of autism has changed over the years since 1943 when the term was first coined? This documentary looks at the history...
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Combining clear, matter-of-fact narration and poignant interviews with abuse survivors, this sensitive and powerful video defines abuse and goes on to examine the coping strategies abuse victims often develop. This program also explores the immediate and long-term effects of abuse, as well as reasons why victims are often reluctant to "blow the whistle" on the abuser.
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From the high chair to high school, parents have little impact on their children's development-or so says Judith Harris, author of The Nurture Assumption. In this program, Ms. Harris talks with ABC News correspondent Sylvia Chase about her controversial theory of child development through adaptation to peer groups. Steven Pinker, director of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at MIT, supports her hypothesis, while Harvard child psychologist Jerome...
100) Attachment Theory
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An excellent resource for courses in both academic and applied psychology, this comprehensive program explores several models of attachment behavior as well as current and historical research methods in the field. The video focuses on John Bowlby's "44 juvenile thieves" study and the effects of separation, patterns of attachment, behaviorism, nurturance and security, and insecure-resistant and insecure- avoidant children. The skin-to-skin hypothesis,...