According to a recent study by researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Indonesian children who were exposed to Jalan Sesama over a 14-week period had significantly improved literacy, mathematics, early cognitive skills, safety knowledge and social awareness than those children with no or lesser exposure to the Indonesian Sesame Street program. The study appears in the International Journal of Behavioral Development’s OnlineFirst collection for December 5, 2010 in anticipation of its upcoming print publication.
Jalan Sesama, Indonesia’s version of Sesame Street, is funded via the United States Agency for International Developmental via the Sesame Workshop. The television program employs live action, puppetry and animation to teach lessons on mathematics, literacy, culture, safety, environment and more in a culturally-sensitive manner utilizing visuals and characters which children can find in their local environment. Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago and fourth most populous country in the world. Its 17,508 islands are strewn across the Indian and Pacific Oceans, straddling the Australian and Asian continents. This unique geographical situation has often presented a challenge to the creation of a common national voice. The creation of Jalan Sesama,which translates to “Togetherness Street” reflects this mentality as does the country’s national motto,“Bhinneka tunggal ika,” which translates loosely to “unity in diversity,” and more literally to “Although in pieces, yet one.”
Photographs from the Sesame Workshop Website
The authors of the current study, Dina L.G. Borzekowski, EdD, associate professor in the Bloomberg School’s Department of Health, Behavior and Society and Holly K. Henry, a current doctoral student at the school, carried out a randomized research study examining the effect of a 14-week intervention on 160 children ages 3 to 6 years in the Pandeglang District of Indonesia’s Banten Province. The children were questioned regarding their skills and knowledge at the start and conclusion of the 14-week intervention. The authors found that the children with the greatest exposure to the television program performed better than those with less exposure when evaluating their literacy, early cognitive and mathematics skills even after adjusting for baseline scores, age, gender, parents’ education and exposure to other media.
This study’s lead author, Dr. Borzekowski, previously carried out a similar study which was published in July 2010 investigating the Tanzanian version of Sesame Street, Kilimani Sesame. Similar to the current study in Indonesia, this study concluded that Tanzanian children with the greatest exposure to the Sesame Street inspired television program showed the greatest gains in social, cognitive and health outcomes.
