Lately, TV networks have been airing exciting shows that my fellow teens find most interesting. These shows are “HawthoRNe,” “Law and Order,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “Law & Order,” “House,” “NCIS,” “Royal Pains,” “ER,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” and “Lincoln Heights.”
Most parents and teachers say that we teens watch too much TV. Little do they know, watching shows like these can inspire us to choose a career path, enhance our vocabularies, and teach logic.
The dramas listed above are a leading reason why teens want to become doctors, nurses, criminologists, detectives, lawyers, or even forensic scientists. We may not have doctors or lawyers in our family but we see that the characters in the shows are good at and dedicated to what they do and we admire them for that. Most dramas are based on a career that can be of interest to someone.
Shows like these also build our vocabularies, which can help us on our tests and SATs. These dramas also use logic, which is needed in our everyday lives. They also enhance our survival skills, which would be very useful in an emergency.
In one of Fox’s most suspenseful dramas, “House,” the main character is a genius diagnostician who loves the challenge of medical puzzles he must solve in order to save lives. When you watch the show you can put yourself in his shoes and see how you would do things differently than the characters themselves. That’s when you can start to envision yourself doing that career.
“HawthoRNe,” starring Jada Pinkett Smith as Christina Hawthorne, shows a smart, determined African-American single mother and chief nurse who will do anything and everything for her patients’ well-being. This show makes you think, “I can” and “I will rise up and reach out.”
One of ABC Family’s series is “Lincoln Heights,” which is about a family of five living in a struggling neighborhood of crime, drugs and gang affiliation. The family’s father is a police officer, the mother is a doctor, and all of the children are in high school with the exception of one. Yet they are still making it day by day, one step at a time. From this we learn that no matter what you’re going through, you’ll make it with faith in God, persistence, resilience and effort.
Adults want teens to be involved in books and extra-curricular activities rather than watching TV all day. However, TV is not only entertaining but informative. Just imagine: you may find your dream career just watching an episode of “House” or “Law & Order.”
So if you’re having career trouble, look no further! Tune in to the television! Next time someone tells you to stop wasting your time watching television, tell them, “Television is just another door full of career options. Are you going to stop me from opening it?”