In response to a series of problem symptoms related to the influence of television on students, a team of professors at the Universidad de Playa Ancha de Ciencias de la Educacion in Chile undertook a project designed to train television viewers to become critical viewers of the medium. Specific objectives of the project included: (1) to design a methodology to teach students to critically interpret television commercials; (2) to develop a curriculum to promote active viewing for use in both primary and secondary education; and (3) to develop a program of family education aimed at modifying family practices that might promote excessive and indiscriminate television viewing. It was decided that the audience of the project would include primary and secondary school teachers and pre-service teachers and that the program would be field tested in a local primary school using pre-service teachers from the developers' institution. To investigate the influence of family conditions on students' perception of television messages, a descriptive investigation was conducted in the same primary school. This investigation resulted in the development of low cost learning units for use in a future program for training parents to promote critical viewing on the part of their children. Future directions for this project include a focus on the family's influence, the development of critical viewing programs for broadcast on educational television, and further emphasis on improving the preparation of teachers in this area. (16 references) (GL)