Britney Spears applauded as lessons on self-esteem and media given in schools
By Charlotte Fantelli
This week news has spread that pictures of Britney Spears, Matthew McConaughey, Keira Knightly and even the wife of the french president, ex model Carla Bruni, are to be shown to school children as young as 10 in an attempt to expose the 'enhancing' tricks of the media.
Children are to be shown before and after pictures, along with other lessons on the 'tricks of the trade', during the lessons from the 'body confidence teaching pack' as part of the Media Smart literacy programme. These lessons also encourage children to look at what they think makes people beautiful and encourages them to look beyond the unrealistic image of physical 'beauty' the media is so hung up on.
It is sad to see that these lessons have come under scrutiny, with some saying they take time away from more academic pursuits. Of course we should be making sure the three R's are taught as a priority in our classrooms but with eating disorders rising sharply in children and cosmetic surgery in under 25's going through the roof, I think these lessons are essential.
I spoke to The Mental Health Foundation and leading eating disorder charity b-eat to see what they had to say.
Simon Lawton Smith, Head of Policy, at the Mental Health Foundation told us 'it is important that children understand that what they see is not necessarily the reality. Enhanced and idealised images of children’s role models can set unrealistic expectations. A perceived failure to meet these expectations can lead to low self-esteem, anxiety and depression, and concerns about weight and body shape increase the possibility of developing an eating disorder.'
Whilst Emma Bugg, Head of communications for b-eat added 'Our world is increasingly a visual one and body image- how we believe our physical shape represents who and what we are to the world- is not a trivial matter or one of personal vanity. It is a fundamental part of our sense of self. It affects our thoughts, emotions and behaviour.
'A preoccupation with weight and shape is one of the key features of current popular culture globally. The fascination with celebrities, their bodies, clothes and appearance has all increased the pressure that adults as well as young people feel as they seek to establish their own identities - in young people this is typically at a time when their own bodies are growing and changing as they naturally mature and become adult. Celebrities are scrutinised in the media - leading us to look at our own bodies in a critical light too and the recent technological phenomenon of airbrushing and digital manipulation of images is used to create a hyper-real perfection. We compare ourselves to the images that bombard us from advertising and media sources and feel it is our fault that our bodies compare so unfavourably.
'Education in media literacy both in young people and adults alike is crucial and Beat has been working in schools for some time, supported by Dove’s Real Beauty Campaign demonstrating the effect of airbrushing and digital manipulation. A video, shot by world renowned photographer Rankin, shows just how misleading these images can be.
'We are calling on the advertising industry in particular to take this issue seriously and act responsibly by showing diversity in shape and size and those in a mentoring position to encourage people to challenge the current aesthetic that shows only the tall and very slender as an aspirational ideal of beauty.'
