Public Broadcasting Service Mission Statement
PBS History
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is “a membership organization that, with its member stations, serves the American public with programming and services of the highest quality, using media to educate, inspire, entertain and express the diversity of perspectives. PBS empowers individuals to achieve their potential and strengthens the social, democratic and cultural health of the U.S.” As it is clearly stated in their mission statement, PBS’s goal is to inform, educate, and entertain people of all ages. Its online repository varies from historic videos and primary source documents, in the subject areas of History, Geography, and Science and Nature, all of which is rich in content.
With the inception of Web 2.0, PBS largely remains
a number of platforms committed to providing a common resource and a common knowledge for an integrated public experience. Conversely, they do not offer any opportunity for users to articulate their own voices or generate their own content, as they could on other sites for example, social media, H-Net.org, or TeachingHistory.org. However, on a positive note, they have gone to great lengths to keep up with the developing digital environment. PBS online has a mixed and diverse web exhibits which includes recurring and nonrecurring episodes, audio interviews, images, a timeline, a glossary, and links to relevant and educational resources sites.
The historical content is rich and varies from ancient history to modern history. The contents definitely adds depth to learning however, with the overwhelming amount of information on the site it is best to go on with some form of intended direction or purpose to avoid being overwhelmed with so much information that the time spent online ends up becoming meaningless. Everything is of a learning approach, presented to the audience without any form of analytical or peer reviews. The teacher’s resources include lesson plans and activities that teach historical thinking skills.
Most of the content is in the form of documentary or bibliographical videos. There are additional access points to various online resources including history websites, resources for history teachers, and video analyses of historical essays. The content emphasis on historical documents connects well with the Common Core standards for history education; however, it would have been nice to see written works on current research in the teaching and learning of history. There were no written articles from leading educational journals, or individual studies in the teaching and learning of history. There was no opportunity for discussion or collaboration.
PBS offers free, accessible, unrestricted, and publicly available tools that allow anyone with internet technology, access to shared cultural resources. The information on the site is extremely educational and engaging, and it is ready to be explored. The research-based content is openly available digitally for use in the classroom. Navigation through the site is simple, and from the home page user can get access to countless other online resources. This site is an innovative visual education and history site.
In general, PBS is multimedia audio and video based learning resource with thought-provoking content for the classroom and beyond. PBS brings thousands of reliable digital educational videos, podcasts, and maps geared towards the elementary and secondary classrooms, as well as programming for people of all ages. Since the materials are digital, it brings the information to life for the students triggering their imagination, and additionally aligning with the national core standards. More importantly, they are engaging true stories that had major impacts on American and World History, as well as bibliographical experiences of key individuals that help shaped history. Overall, the entire site is useful for doing research.
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is “a membership organization that, with its member stations, serves the American public with programming and services of the highest quality, using media to educate, inspire, entertain and express the diversity of perspectives. PBS empowers individuals to achieve their potential and strengthens the social, democratic and cultural health of the U.S.” As it is clearly stated in their mission statement, PBS’s goal is to inform, educate, and entertain people of all ages. Its online repository varies from historic videos and primary source documents, in the subject areas of History, Geography, and Science and Nature, all of which is rich in content.
With the inception of Web 2.0, PBS largely remains
a number of platforms committed to providing a common resource and a common knowledge for an integrated public experience. Conversely, they do not offer any opportunity for users to articulate their own voices or generate their own content, as they could on other sites for example, social media, H-Net.org, or TeachingHistory.org. However, on a positive note, they have gone to great lengths to keep up with the developing digital environment. PBS online has a mixed and diverse web exhibits which includes recurring and nonrecurring episodes, audio interviews, images, a timeline, a glossary, and links to relevant and educational resources sites.
The historical content is rich and varies from ancient history to modern history. The contents definitely adds depth to learning however, with the overwhelming amount of information on the site it is best to go on with some form of intended direction or purpose to avoid being overwhelmed with so much information that the time spent online ends up becoming meaningless. Everything is of a learning approach, presented to the audience without any form of analytical or peer reviews. The teacher’s resources include lesson plans and activities that teach historical thinking skills.
Most of the content is in the form of documentary or bibliographical videos. There are additional access points to various online resources including history websites, resources for history teachers, and video analyses of historical essays. The content emphasis on historical documents connects well with the Common Core standards for history education; however, it would have been nice to see written works on current research in the teaching and learning of history. There were no written articles from leading educational journals, or individual studies in the teaching and learning of history. There was no opportunity for discussion or collaboration.
PBS offers free, accessible, unrestricted, and publicly available tools that allow anyone with internet technology, access to shared cultural resources. The information on the site is extremely educational and engaging, and it is ready to be explored. The research-based content is openly available digitally for use in the classroom. Navigation through the site is simple, and from the home page user can get access to countless other online resources. This site is an innovative visual education and history site.
In general, PBS is multimedia audio and video based learning resource with thought-provoking content for the classroom and beyond. PBS brings thousands of reliable digital educational videos, podcasts, and maps geared towards the elementary and secondary classrooms, as well as programming for people of all ages. Since the materials are digital, it brings the information to life for the students triggering their imagination, and additionally aligning with the national core standards. More importantly, they are engaging true stories that had major impacts on American and World History, as well as bibliographical experiences of key individuals that help shaped history. Overall, the entire site is useful for doing research.