MAUREEN WATT, the Scottish education secretary, has criticised television talent shows such as the X Factor for peddling unrealistic “red carpet dreams” to teenagers.

Watt also said the constant media exposure of teenage celebrities such as Emma Watson, Pixie Geldof and Miley Cyrus, is fuelling unrealistic expectations of instant stardom among impressionable girls.

She said schools had a responsibility to instill in young people more grounded values such as the importance of education and responsibility to counter the bombardment of media images glamorising drug-taking, binge drinking and the sexualisation of teenagers.

Writing in today's Sunday Times, Watt, who will next week unveil new health and wellbeing guidelines for youngsters, said: “Stories about Pixie Geldof (under 18 but not averse to attending glitzy events where the champagne flows) and the many “boyfriends” of teenager Emma Watson, star of the Harry Potter films, provide escapism from exams, parents and peer pressure. But they also send out a confusing message.

“Drugs, sex and alcohol are as much part of the celebrity lifestyle today as designer handbags and miniature dogs - but the celebrities have a much younger audience than before. As celebrities become younger, so does their fan base and so even pre-teens are being exposed to lifestyles which used to be the preserve of adults.”

Earlier this month, Vanity Fair, the celebrity magazine, published semi-naked photographs of Cyrus, the 15-year-old actress who plays the Disney character Hannah Montana, taken by photographer Annie Leibovitz.

“Cyrus claimed she had been ‘manipulated' and did not mean to alienate her young fans by appearing in such a grown-up pose. But it's too late now,” said Watt. “Girls have seen their idol go from wholesome girl to pin-up girl overnight.”

The minister said young people's hunger for instant celebrity is reflected in the thousands of youngsters who attended auditions for the ITV reality show the X Factor at Glasgow's Hampden Park last week, the day before the start of the Standard Grade English exams.

“How many of them would have been willing to buckle down to revision after an afternoon spent dreaming that their Hollywood break was just around the corner?” she said.

“The reality is that while, for a tiny proportion of teens, their red carpet dream will come true; for the remainder, a fulfilling life will depend on finding a career and attempting to be all they can be. Never before has it been so important for our young people to be guided, engaged and trusted.”

Watt's comments come on the eve of the publication of Learning and Teaching Scotland's draft outcomes for health and well-being under the Curriculum for Excellence, the new curriculum being devised for Scotland's schools.

The draft outcomes are subject-by-subject guides for teachers on what pupils are expected to learn from the age of three to 15. They are designed to support staff and raise standards of education.

Watt urged teachers to do more to promote the need for commitment, trust and respect in loving relationships and to foster a sense of self-worth among children.

“No child should grow up believing that domestic violence is a part of ordinary family life, no child should grow up under the impression that having a baby will make them feel better about themselves and no child should believe that they should bow to peer pressure when making choices about sex, drugs and alcohol,” she said. “They all deserve better and longer lasting futures than the stars in teen magazines.”

The most recent official statistics reveal that sustained attempts to reduce the teenage pregnancy rate in Scotland have failed. In 2005, there were 9,040, compared with 8,891 the previous year, the largest number since 1995.

Watt said many young girls were deliberately falling pregnant in the belief that “a baby will be someone for me to love and someone to love me”.

“It is sad that someone who is little more than a child feels that the only person capable of loving them is another child,” she added.

Last night Watt's comments were welcomed by the charity Children 1st, which said parents should be more open to discussing sex and drug-taking with their children.

Tom Roberts, head of policy at the charity, added: “Children are under a lot of pressure to live up to some of the role models that they see on shows such as X Factor. While having ambition is no bad thing, it is also important that children have realistic expectations.”

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