Postman states, "This is why I think it accurate to call television a curriculum. As I understand the word, a curriculum is a specially constructed information system whose purpose is to influence, teach, train, or cultivate the mind and character of youth." While watching a television show the student is not held to the same rules compared to a student learning inside of a classroom and does receive any concept of public decorum. A classroom environment is centered on the development of language, television demands attention to images. Furthermore, students that watch prefer to watch television shows rather than learning inside of a classroom has much more chances of being distracted.
An important aspect that should not be left out is a child's classroom atmosphere. A positive climate enables students to interact amongst each other, whereas watching a television show can limit the amount of interaction. According to Deborah Linebarger, "Not all uses of TV in the classroom are equally beneficial. The effectiveness of any education medium or program depends on the quality of the content and the ways in which it supplements, rather than supplants, high-quality instruction." The primary responsibility of an educator should be to make sure that no child feels like they are not worthy contributors in their classroom. A student may ask a teacher or classmate's questions whereas a student cannot ask a television questions. A classroom is a place of social interaction and the space in front of a television is a private preserve. If a child fears shame and ridicule from their peers and teachers, they will avoid taking risks to protect themselves from embarrassment. Teachers should encourage positive self concepts and include all the students in discussions. For example, the teacher can enforce their rules by displaying a poster but to give the students a feel of belonging and importance the teacher can allow the students to make up their our set of classroom rules as well.