Early Childhood Education and the Importance of Play in the Development of Children Between 1 to 6 Years; Case Study Gashua in Yobe State
Chapter One
Objective of the study
The objectives of the study are;
- To ascertain the functions of play in the early childhood education
- To ascertain the importance of play for children’s intellectual, emotional and social growth
- To as ascertain the body of knowledge of developmental and cognitive theories pertaining to play in early childhood education
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Play
Play should be personally motivating by the satisfaction embedded in the chosen activity. The chosen activity should not be governed by basic needs or social demands. Individual players should be more concerned about the chosen activity than the goals of the activity. Goals should be self-imposed and the behavior of the player is spontaneous. Play should occur with familiar objects or if objects are new or unfamiliar, players shall be given an opportunity to explore new unfamiliar objects. Players shall be able to apply their own meaning of play activities as well as being able to control the activities themselves. Play activities can be non-literal. Play is free from the rules imposed from the outside and all rules that do exist can be modified by the players. Play requires active engagement from all players (Saracho & Spodek, 1998, p. 3-4). Play should be an experience, which brings joy to the individuals. According to Education Sciences Journal, when asked to define play, children ages 3 and 4 described play as an activity that involved their participation in doing something, being with peers, and having agency and ownership of ideas. Play is a universally known concept and observed as a fundamental requirement for children’s development. Many young children associate play as a recognizable activity that extends over their lifespan, from early childhood experiences into adulthood, and across a variety of cultures (Theobaldet, 2015). Play is most often associated within an educational setting, fostering the development of cognition, social development. Play is a critical element of early childhood curriculum standards. Play influences growth in social emotional, physical, and cognitive development. Allowing children to play encourages students to gain communication skills that allow them to communicate needs and emotions, as well as sharing prior knowledge of the world around them while gaining new experiences. Play is motivating and free of expectations.
Benefits of Play
The benefits of play are complex and indirect. Play contributes to the development of a diverse array of capacitates in the young child. From ages 2.5 until age 5, social dramatic play and make believe play emerges and evolves (Berk, 1994). As the child ages, the play also changes. The interactions begin to last longer, they show more involvement, and tend to interact with a variety of peers and become more cooperative. Children who are involved in social dramatic experiences are more advanced in general intellectual development, as well as an enhanced ability to understand the feelings of others (Berk, 1994).The list of benefits of makebelieve play is extensive. The known benefits include strengthened mental abilities, improved memory, as well as promotes language and storytelling skills. In addition, make believe play allows the child to expand their vocabulary. Make believe play also allows children an opportunity to reason through seemingly impossible situations, which enhances their problem solving skills and allows them to gain confidence in their decision-making skills. All of these benefits combined have proven to lead to higher test scores compared to children who did not participate in make believe play experiences (Berk, 1994) Play is an essential part of early childhood development. Play contributes to cognitive, physical, social and emotional well being of young children. Allowing children time to play provides an opportunity for parents to engage with their child. Unfortunately, due to family’s hectic lifestyles, young children are experiencing a reduction in the amount of playtime allowed. According to the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights, play should be a daily occurrence and is right for every child. Many children are being raised in an increasingly hurried and high-pressure lifestyle that limits child-driven play. Every child deserves the opportunity to develop to their own unique potential, and the opportunity to play is an integral role in reaching that potential (Ginsburg, 2007). Children, who are provided opportunities to play, tend to use their creativity while continuing to develop their imagination, dexterity, as well as physical, cognitive, and emotional strength. Play is essential to brain development. It is through play that children begin to engage and interact with the world around them, while being able to create and explore the world they are able to master and conquer their fears (Ginsburg, 2007). As children begin to master the world around them, they begin to develop new competencies that can lead to enhanced confidence and resiliencies that they will need to face future challenges (Ginsburg, 2007). When young children have the opportunity for undirected play, this opportunity allows children to learn how to work in a group together, to share, negotiate, resolve conflicts, and learn self-advocacy skills (Ginsburg, 2007). When the play is allowed to be child driven, children practice decision-making skills, move at their own pace, discover their own areas of interest and are able to ultimately engage fully in the passions of their choice. “Perhaps above all, play is a simple joy that is a cherished part of childhood” (Ginsburg, 2007, p. 183). Play also helps young children build active, healthy bodies and lifestyles A survey conducted by the National Association of Elementary Principals found that 96% of surveyed school systems had at least one recess period, but nearly a decade later around 70% of students had one recess period. Currently, many school age children are given less free time and fewer physical outlets throughout the school day (Ginsburg, 2007). Because students have experienced a decrease in free time, implications on the child’s ability to store new information has also decrease. Reduced time for daily physical activity is a major contributing factor to the disconnect occurring in academic abilities especially between boys and girls (Ginsburg, 2007). This drastic decrease is in response to the No Child Left behind Act of 2001, by reducing time committed to recess, the creative arts and even physical education teachers have more time to focus on reading and mathematics (Ginsburg, 2007). This extreme change has shown many implications on children’s ability to store new information. Children’s cognitive capacity is enhanced by clear-cut significant change in activities. Between 1981 and 1997, the amount of time children spent playing had dropped by 25%. During this same time period, children ages 3- 11 lost twelve hours a week of free time and spent more time at school, completing homework, and shopping with parents (Pathways, 2017)
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research design
The researcher used descriptive research survey design in building up this project work the choice of this research design was considered appropriate because of its advantages of identifying attributes of a large population from a group of individuals. The design was suitable for the study as the study sought early childhood education and the importance of play in the development of children between 1 to 6 years
Sources of data collection
Data were collected from two main sources namely:
(i)Primary source and
(ii)Secondary source
Primary source:
These are materials of statistical investigation which were collected by the research for a particular purpose. They can be obtained through a survey, observation questionnaire or as experiment; the researcher has adopted the questionnaire method for this study.
Secondary source:
These are data from textbook Journal handset etc. they arise as byproducts of the same other purposes. Example administration, various other unpublished works and write ups were also used.
Population of the study
Population of a study is a group of persons or aggregate items, things the researcher is interested in getting information early childhood education and the importance of play in the development of children between 1 to 6 years. 200 staff of selected nursery schools, Gashua in Yobe state was selected randomly by the researcher as the population of the study.
CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION ANALYSIS INTERPRETATION OF DATA
Introduction
Efforts will be made at this stage to present, analyze and interpret the data collected during the field survey. This presentation will be based on the responses from the completed questionnaires. The result of this exercise will be summarized in tabular forms for easy references and analysis. It will also show answers to questions relating to the research questions for this research study. The researcher employed simple percentage in the analysis.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was to ascertain Early childhood education and the importance of play in the development of children between 1 to 6 years case study Gashua in Yobe state. In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing challenges of Early childhood education and the importance of play in the development of children between 1 to 6 years
Summary
This study was on Early childhood education and the importance of play in the development of children between 1 to 6 years case study Gashua in Yobe state. Three objectives were raised which included:To ascertain the functions of play in the early childhood education, to ascertain the importance of play for children’s intellectual, emotional and social growth and to as ascertain the body of knowledge of developmental and cognitive theories pertaining to play in early childhood education. In line with these objectives, two research hypotheses were formulated and two null hypotheses were posited. The total population for the study is 200 staff of selected nursery schools, Gashua in Yobe state. The researcher used questionnaires as the instrument for the data collection. Descriptive Survey research design was adopted for this study. A total of 133 respondents made head teachers, class teachers, senior staffs and junior officers were used for the study. The data collected were presented in tables and analyzed using simple percentages and frequencies
Conclusion
Play is an essential and critical part of all children’s development. Play starts in the child’s infancy and ideally, continues throughout his or her life. Play is how children learn to socialize, to think, to solve problems, to mature and most importantly, to have fun. Play connects children with their imagination, their environment, their parents and family and the world. Parental involvement in a child’s world of play is not only beneficial for the child but is extremely beneficial to the parent. Playing with children establishes and strengthens bonds that will last forever. Parent-child play opens doors for the sharing of values, increases communication, allows for teachable moments and assists in problem solving. Playtime provides opportunities for the parent and child to confront and resolve individual divergences, as well as family related concerns and issues. Finally, it allows the parent to view the world through the eyes of a child once again
Recommendation
Additional research is needed to explore the appropriate balance of play, academic enrichment, and organized activities for children with different temperaments and social, emotional, intellectual, and environmental needs
References
- Anderson, G., Spainhower, A., & Sharp, A. (2014). Preschool: “Where do the bears go?” The value of child-directed play. YC Young Children, 69(2), 8-15. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/ycyoungchildren.69.2.8
- Berk, L. (1994). Vygotsky’s Theory: The importance of make-believe play. Young Children, 50(1), 30-38. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/42728322
- Bickart, T. S., Berke, K., Burts, K. C., & Heroman, C. (2010a). Teaching strategies GOLD objectives for development and learning birth through kindergarten. Bethesda, MD: Teaching Strategies, LLC.
- Bickart, T. S., Colker, L. J., Dodge, D. T., & Heroman, C. (2010b). Teaching strategies creative curriculum for preschool: The foundation. Washington, DC: Teaching Strategies, LLC.
- Bowdon, J. (2015, May). The common core’s first casualty: Playful learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 96(8), 33-37.
- Bornstein, M., Haynes, O., O’Reilly, A., & Painter, K. (1996). Solitary and collaborative pretense play in early childhood: Sources of individual variation in the development of representational competence. Child Development, 67(6), 2910-2929. doi:10.2307/1131759
