University Study Finds Infants Can Learn From Brainy Baby DVDs

ATLANTA, GA (February, 2010) --- The Brainy Baby Company today announced the results of a study conducted at the University of Texas, Austin, which found that infants/toddlers under the age of two can learn from DVDs designed to teach young children shapes. The peer reviewed study was conducted using Brainy Baby’s® Shapes & Colors DVD and will be published in The Journal of Children and Media, (JOCAM), Fall 2010 (Vol.4, Issue 4).

This study was conducted specifically to experimentally manipulate commercially available video content and to assess the ability of a toddler to learn from a video. It also represents one of the first studies to examine the transfer of learning from video to another 2D symbolic medium such as a book.

Using excerpts from Brainy Baby’s® Shapes & Colors DVD, two leading research scientists in the field of children’s media studies, Dr. Elizabeth Vandewater (RTI International) and Dr. Rachel Barr (Georgetown University) exposed  two groups of children to a series of shapes commonly familiar to the young participants. In addition, the children in the experimental group were exposed to a novel shape, a crescent, using the identical teaching style used in commercially available Brainy Baby DVDs.

The results showed that toddlers between 18 and 24 months, in the experimental group, were 22 times more successful identifying the crescent shape in a book after being exposed to the crescent in the DVD. The test also confirmed that after exposure to the DVD, the crescent could be recognized in other traditional 2-dimensional media.

“All Brainy Baby DVDs were developed using a methodology widely accepted by educators and the special needs community. We use this same methodology in all of our DVDs, which rely on verbal cues and real-life relatable objects to teach children to preschool concepts,” said Dennis Fedoruk, president and CEO of The Brainy Baby Co.  “We have always been confident that our DVDs have solid educational value. We’re ecstatic to share the results of the study, which in our opinion, support the many parent testimonials that we have received for the past 15 years and Brainy Baby’s learning potential.”

The University of Texas study concluded that content, and in particular the repetitive style in which the content is presented (such as those demonstrated in the Brainy Baby® Shapes & Colours DVD) is a critical factor to consider when examining the ability for toddlers to learn from television.  

“We believe that this is a landmark study and the emerging message is that content matters when teaching young children”, added Fedoruk.

The Brainy Baby Co. has always been a strong advocate for using early learning DVDs in balance and moderation as you would with any teaching tool.  The Brainy Baby DVDs are designed for parents to interact with their child by reviewing and discussing the content and to augment the lesson though the use of complementary flashcards, books, music CDs and educational toys.

“We hope that parents will feel confident that their children are benefiting when they watch a Brainy Baby DVD together,” said Fedoruk.