We can conclude that a student who spends a lot of time watching television is more likely to have poor grades.
According to a 2010 report published by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, nearly half of all heavy media users receive fair or poor grades.
This is thought to be due to "displacement," or students watching TV instead of doing homework or studying. Students' grades suffer when they watch too much television on school nights. TV viewing can also replace needed sleep hours, making a child less likely to perform well in school.
Students can benefit from educational and informative shows. Educational programming, when used as a supplement to traditional education, can actually improve grades. Many students learn a lot from television shows because visual stimulation is a more effective way of teaching for those students.
This is especially true when it comes to learning complex processes like tornado formation or chemical bonding. Adult-oriented shows and shows with violent content, on the other hand, tend to lower academic performance. Boys who were allowed to watch adult-oriented programming were 60% more likely to "do worse in school" and have lower overall grades, according to Pediatrics for Parents.
