Jedward are just a bit of fun, right?

Of course they are. And good luck to John and Edward Grimes as they scramble on to the celebrity bandwagon. If they survive the next few months, they'll probably make a fortune presenting TV shows. That's what it's all about, isn't it? Fun, fame, success, loadsamoney?

At least, that's what more and more of our children think. In a recent survey, over a third of preteens said their ambition was to be famous -- as pop stars, actors or sporting heroes. They genuinely think it will happen.

After all, they see it night after night on TV -- fame falls from the sky, and if Jedward can do it, anyone can.

Twenty-five years ago, children's ambitions were more realistic. Surveys back then show they opted for teaching, banking, medicine, science -- the focus on career rather than celebrity. At home and school, they learned that success has to be earned, through effort and application -- preferably in an area that interested them.

Of course, children in the 80s had fun too. In their spare time, they went out to play with their friends. They made dens, kicked balls about, explored the local neighbourhood, disappeared for hours on their bikes -- the sort of everyday adventures that children have enjoyed for millennia, in every time and every culture.

And through playing out, they learned how to get along in the real world, with real people.

Basic lessons like how to make friends, deal with fallings-out, solve problems and assess risks (in real time and real space, with real consequences if they got it wrong).

There was TV to watch, including the odd talent show, but first-hand fun came first because youngsters enjoyed it.

It's natural for children to play, and it's healthy too -- helping build self-respect, resilience, social skills, creativity and other human qualities they need to make their way in the world.

But in the past couple of decades, all that has changed. We've become a culture swamped by screens -- endless TV channels available 24 hours a day, DVD, computer games, social networking and the internet. And instead of letting our offspring out to play, we've decided it's safer to keep them indoors, and in front of the screens.

According to research, preteens now spend between five and six hours a day on screen-based entertainment, much of it alone in their bedrooms.

Robbed of the opportunity to play, many have practically forgotten how to do so.

Not surprisingly for children growing up in an electronic village, the stars and celebrities who pack the screens have become their role models.

On TV, they don't see the effort and sacrifice involved in becoming a genuine sporting hero or singing star, just the glory of performance and the glamour of the attendant lifestyle.

But they do see lesser mortals swept to stardom through appearing on reality shows such as Big Brother or, in the case of Jedward, showing off mercilessly on X Factor. And they learn that the only things that matter in life are fame, fortune ... and the endless status-symbols fortune can buy.

So it's about time the responsible adults in children's lives got together and put the record straight. Children need to hear the message that there isn't room at the top for more than a smattering of Jedwards.

They also need to know that the cult of celebrity is a market concoction, aimed at selling us lots of stuff we don't really need -- and that fame isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Our children still need real play, for the sheer fun of it, but also to learn human skills they'll need in the future. And they also need to develop worthwhile ambitions that'll help them keep control of their lives.

Yes, Jedward are just a bit of fun. A pathetically small bit.

Sue Palmer is the author of Toxic Childhood and 21st Century Boys

- Sue Palmer