Dora the Explorer: Multicultural or Stereotypical? (ISCORE Conference)

I attended the Iowa State Conference on Race and Ethnicity (ISCORE), and at the conference they had a session called "Dora the Explorer: Multicultural or Stereotypical?" At the session they proceeded to provide us with information about the show in general. However it was up to us to decide whether we believed that the show provided a positive or negative feedback to children. Some of the statistics they provided were that every day 8.8 million viewers watch Dora the Explorer, and the show is featured in 15 different languages around the world. Out of all the children's parents in the United States who supported the show, 80% of the the support came from white families. What ages though of children are attracted to this television show? The majority of children watching Dora the Explorer are between the ages of 2-5 years old.

After hearing a bit of information about Dora and the show, I had to make my decision. Was the show stereotypical or multicultural? I believe that Dora the Explorer is a great impact on all children in the world. Dora is not only an adventurous young Hispanic girl, but she is also very intelligent and kind. With the help of her backpack, Dora is able to solve many problems in her environment. She teaches kids not only Spanish words, but she also teaches them how to solve problems. Dora the Explorer represents all the underrepresented Hispanics in the United States. She is the diversity that young children need to see. In the earlier creation of Dora the Explorer, Tiko was once a Hispanic character who just slept under a tree. However, because this showed a negative stereotype, the creators of Dora the Explorer changed Tiko's role. By revising the show, we are able to see that the purpose of Dora the Explorer is not to provide stereotypes, but instead to show the different diversities of people in our world. Dora's outgoing interactive nature causes many children to be engaged in the show. Dora the Explorer is not stereotypical in my opinion. I believe that the show has positively impacted all children throughout the world.