Television is frequently blamed for the problems adults face with some young people. Does television affect their understanding and behaviour? Of course it does. "Sesame Street", the most researched educational programme in the world, gave its pre-school viewers a head start in literacy that was still measurable ten years later. BBC Schools Television had set out to engage and educate and, because independent television later had a similar brief to "entertain, educate and inform", people have enjoyed a rich range of schools broadcasting in this country. This article takes a glance at its history.