How are children dealing with Schloss Einstein?

In the frame of the study "The significance of soap operas in everyday life of children and young people" a partial study was carried out concerning the children's weekly Schloss Einstein (The Einstein Castle). The series was discussed during group discussions with 392 elementary school children, while 40 frequent Schloss Einstein viewers were interrogated in individual interviews. From this empirical material a qualitative statement can be framed regarding what children like about Schloss Einstein, what it means to them on a more than superficial level and the ways in which this programme is being discussed in peer group and families.

Currently, the favourite programme of elementary school children is Pokémon, followed by Schloss Einstein, which lags far behind
Pokémon (RTL2) is definitely the favourite programme. In all grades (school class levels) girls as well as boys name Pokémon as their favourite programme. Lagging far behind, although ahead of Gute Zeiten, schlechte Zeiten (Good times, bad times) and Big Brother, is Schloss Einstein.

High acceptance of Schloss Einstein by children and parents
For elementary school children and their parents, Schloss Einstein has an avowed high acceptance. During group discussions, nearly all children expressed a positive view of the programme. In individual interviews all children stated that their parents liked Schloss Einstein and approved of them watching it. Therefore the acceptance (of the series) is decisively different from other daily soaps and Big Brother.

The decisive element of Schloss Einstein: children play the lead parts
Children perceive Schloss Einstein as a programme exclusively produced for them. The decisive element is that they are seen to play the lead part. Individual interviews showed that the mostly favoured characters are Nadine and Oliver, followed by Alexandra and Budhi.

Schloss Einstein is fun
Children perceive Schloss Einstein as a programme where they can laugh a lot. This means that they mostly like the funny elements in the series. Surprisingly, this refers not only to the comic strands, but also to some relatively non-spectacular scenes and small stories, such as, for example, when Katharina kisses Budhi right in front of her father. For hours after the programme children laughed about the "funny face" he was making.

First love is exciting, but only in childlike forms that children can understand
According to the children, concrete information about sexuality does not fit with Schloss Einstein
The adventure strand dealing with first love is very attractive for girls and boys. Here the childlike approach towards sexuality and erotic topics predominates. They talk mainly about scenes and small stories with romantic tension and about exciting moments of their first interest in each other.

Critical remarks
It is not concrete topics (such as French kissing or contraception) which move children. If they are interested (in those topics) they can extract them from other media (reviews like in English Sugar, smash-hits, j-14 and bop). Younger viewers feel particularly embarrassed.

The adventure strand is important, but not really central
The adventure strand is one of the basics in reception. This means it is important and that the excitement, when a bomb or a treasure is found, is an obvious motive for watching the programme. At a deeper level these adventures only predominate for some elementary school children (9 to 10 years old).

Individual characters are important, but only for a few viewers are they the main reason for watching the programme
It is important for all children that children and young people are playing the lead parts. Only for a few of them was a particular character the reason for watching the programme frequently. In these cases it is Nadine (girls 9 to10 years old) and Oliver (boys 10 to 12 years old), whom children identify with and take as role models.

Critical remarks
The characters in Schloss Einstein are undoubtedly well presented, and typify a broader scope of characters, as is usual in children's programmes. However, an extension of classical stereotypes would be desirable, e.g. the scientist (Alexandra), the socially competent and attractive (Nadine). Children become aware of these stereotypes and use them in the manner that they are given. From an educational perspective, it would be desirable to endow these characters with more varied characteristics in order to extend or better overcome (gender) stereotypes.

Schloss Einstein is something individual, a world not associated with adults, but still not purely a children's programme
For some older elementary schoolchildren (10 to 11 years old) Schloss Einstein is significant particularly because it provides them with a world of their own. Parents support their viewing, but do not necessarily join them in doing so. Children enjoy the fact that Schloss Einstein is not a series for "little children" (such as Teletubbies), not a pure comedy (named: various cartoons) and not purely an adventure programme (e.g. Pfefferkörner). It is a series perceived by the children as being produced exclusively for their age group, providing "a space for themselves". Embedded in the reliable context of the world of children's media, they have something where they can watch their current actual or potential daily problems with parental consent.
The aesthetic style of the programme provides something for rather "unobtrusive" children (Kinderwelten 2000). The others (mainly girls) rather find themselves in Gute Zeiten, schlechte Zeiten and name this daily soap as their favourite programme; nevertheless they additionally like watching Schloss Einstein.

For most of the children, the basic setting, "boarding school", is the main reason for being enthusiastic about the series
For most of the children (from 6 to 14 years old) the main motive for watching the series is the "basic setting boarding school". Here children are amongst themselves, have to solve problems and set up their everyday life together. The exciting school day, in particular, with its small scenes of jokes and funny situations, is the underlying element why children (mainly 1st to 4th graders) are enthusiastic about the programme. Most welcome are stories where children team up and a discreet approach to the different genders is possible. Other scenes that children are fond of are sequences where children show special competence (e.g. Internet, sports). The boarding school setting is partly put in the context of Harry Potter and Hanni and Nanni by the children and symbolises the basic feelings of schoolchildren's everyday life. The focus is no more on the family, but on arrangements with children the same age. In doing so children have to cope with their problems and adventures independently. Adults only form the framework and often cause problems; however, most important of all, they ensure that no real violations are possible.

What fantasies and dreams is Schloss Einstein creating?
Friendship that works
For many of them Schloss Einstein creates a dream of friendship and community feeling inside the classroom that works. It is important that the children "not only start fighting", but "somehow manage argument in a positive way" and "the class is keeping together". For the children Schloss Einstein is a media programme where friendship that works is displayed. Their statements make obvious that the programme creates feelings and fantasies of security and integration.

In the end everything turns out well
It is important that the programme doesn't show anything really horrible. From a child's perspective, Schloss Einstein is a programme not dealing with "drama and drug addiction" or "horror or so". In fantasies it becomes clear that Schloss Einstein is connected with positive pictures of an exciting, but still manageable everyday life.

Critical remarks
The scene in which the boy Aram was injured, and blood could be seen, crossed the line for younger viewers. The children from Schloss Einstein are supposed to experience adventure, and also be in danger sometimes. However, blood and visible injury can frighten younger elementary schoolchildren.

Problems and fears can be worked on
Several children stated they often dreamt about Schloss Einstein. Moving scenes from the series were here connected with individual fears. In their dreams Schloss Einstein is no isolated room for retreat, but a place where children can take their problems, and - at least in dreams - solve them in a positive way. However, often dreams remain without a solution. Here it would be desirable to offer children more strategies to solve problems deriving from being together with other children (being threatened by other boys, being excluded, etc.).

Schloss Einstein applies to the themes of children
In summary, it can be noted that Schloss Einstein is relevant to the concrete interests of children. Mostly, certain scenes (e.g. when Oliver rides his bike and breaks) and small stories (children secretly join the school lesson already started, via the loft) are important to children. In certain strands of action, like the story of a boy or Katharina being abandoned by her father, the series succeeds in symbolising children's concrete concerns. Insofar as it does this, Schloss Einstein is not only fun, but also provides scopes for fantasies and provides ways of approaching problems actively.

Summary
For children it is most important that in Schloss Einstein children play the lead parts. They perceive Schloss Einstein as a series produced exclusively for them. They experience adventures and everyday school life together with the schoolchildren in Schloss Einstein. The funny elements in the series are particularly popular. In Schloss Einstein, children find their concerns reflected, feel emotionally secure and have the feeling of a positive gain for their everyday life. While the reception of Gute Zeiten, schelchte Zeiten for children and young people is rather about models of life-styles, and Marienhof deals primarily with ideals, Schloss Einstein reflects concrete concerns. This opens up scope for children's fantasies - here it is mainly adventure and fun in everyday life - as well as friendship that works. In this respect, and according to the significance it has for children, it is closer to a children's movie than to daily soap.

Project
The summary is the result of a partial study from the research project
The significance of Daily Soaps in the everyday life of children and young people
This study is based on 401 interviews with children and young people who watch Gute Zeiten, schlechte Zeiten, Marienhof, Verbotene Liebe, Unter Uns , Schloss Einstein and Big Brother frequently. In addition to characters, the content of the series and the social embedding of reception within the everyday life of families, questionnaire topics also investigated subsequent communication as well as the fantasies and dreams connected to the programmes. The questions are deliberately kept open, and supposedly give scope to children and young people to articulate their preferences and perspectives. While young people (14 to 19 years old) completed the questionnaire independently, for children (6 to 9 years old) and pre-teens (10 to14 years old), face-to-face interviews were conducted. Although the evaluation of this interview was done in a quantitative way, the main focus point is rather located qualitatively. In addition to evaluation comparing the answers, the individual constitution of meaning, showing typical patterns of media appropriation and functions of the series, is worked out. The investigation is completed with group discussions in elementary schools and individual case studies as well as media analyses and investigations in soap fan-clubs.

The results of the overall study were introduced in Munich on December 12th 2000 at the IZI conference "Somewhere between Marienhof, GZSZ and Schloss Einstein: Television for 10 to 15-year-olds," and summarised in the review TelevIZIon 13/2000/2 (only available in German); a German book publication followed in German Language 2002.

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