I don�t have an issue with these types of DVDs. I think the consumer with the money to purchase this product is likely intelligent enough to evaluate the claims before purchasing. I also doubt this demographic would use this as a substitute for actual reading.
I have not seen the newest commercials, but I remember the old advertisements in which the professor used his own children and colleagues� children in the original product. (I would suspect that most professors� offspring are above average in intelligence.)
I have also viewed a DVD. It is a child�s video with sing- along and read- along. What is the difference between this and turning on DVD captions with a voice? Little really, except for size and the fact that the program is marketed for reading. There is also little difference between this and Leap Frog cartridges except for the method of delivery. I also don�t see a huge difference between this and Starfall, which is also aimed at early reading. Though Starfall is slightly more active because it uses a mouse rather than finger pointing to words, or singing along with a DVD. The DVDs are for profit, but I think Starfall sells products to go along with their sequence as well.
So what if somebody�s kid learns earlier. One of my kid�s teachers said that many parents think their kid is reading, but when evaluated they are not fluent. The school evaluates the child; they don�t take the parents� word.
My kid read at 2. Our child was exposed to some educational videos, but the main thing we did was read. When tested the evaluator said early prodigious reading, age 3 and below, was a more likely predictor of potential math ability.
