Violent Television programmes and video games have been consistently found to have negative impact on children’s education and behaviour. Past and current research on the attitudes of children watching violent television and video games show that children who watch violence in television and video games imitate the violent behaviours of the actors they watch in the television and video games. In Tanzania the influence of violent movies and video games on the education of children is an issue of great concern to parents, pediatricians, educators, researchers, and policymakers. However, very few studies have been undertaken to assess the debilitating effects of violent television programmes and video games on children’s education and attitudinal behaviour. This paper presents the findings of a study undertaken to assess the effects of violence in television and video games on children’s education and attitudinal behaviour. The study’s setting was Isenge Primary School, Pasiansi Ward, in the city of Mwanza. A total of 1,183 pupils were involved where 133 were randomly interviewed. The attitudes of the pupils were assessed by the Child and Adolescent Social Perception Measure (CASP). Results showed that the pupils’ attitudinal behaviours were substantially influenced by violent Television programmes and video games.

Keywords : Violent Television Programmes, Video Games, Influence, Child Education, Protection