JOURNAL

OF

EARLY CHILDHOODASSOCIATION OF

NIGERIA

VOLUME 9NUMBER 1

ISSN 2756-4800

OCTOBER, 2020

JOURNAL OF EARLY CHILDHOODASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (JECAN)

VOLUME 9ISSN 2756-4800

EDITORIAL BOARDEditor-in-Chief: Professor Olusegun AKINBOTE Department of Early Childhood and Educational Foundations University of Ibadan, Ibadan

Associate Editor: Ishola Akindele SALAMI, Ph.D Department of Early Childhood and Educational Foundations University of Ibadan, Ibadan.

Member: Adefunke EKINE, Ph.D. Deputy Director (Research and Innovation) Directorate of Academic Planning, Quality Assurance and Research Tai Solarin University of Education Ijagun, Ijebu-Ode Ogun State, Nigeria

Member: Olufunke O. CHENUBE, Ph.D. Department of Early Childhood and Care Education, College of Education, Agbor, Delta State

Member: Simeon S. FOWOWE Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education Otto-Ijanikin Lagos State.

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EDITORIAL COMMENTS

JECAN, the official journal of Early Childhood Association of Nigeria (ECAN), presents its Volume 9 (2020). Membership of the association is open to students, graduates, practitioners and scholars of early childhood education and/or related fields in Nigeria and abroad.

All the articles that feature in this volume are those presented at the 2019 National Conference of the association held between 29 July

and 2nd of August, 2019 at Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education Otto-ijanikin, Lagos Nigeria, Arrangements are on to make it possible for interested researchers to submit articles directly for publication in the journal.

It is therefore, the expectation of the Editorial Board that readers will not only find this volume a good companion in their continuous search for knowledge but also a reliable source of literature for further research activities.

Prof. Olusegun AkinboteEditor-in-Chief

CONTENTS

Editorial Board iiEditorial Comments iiiThe Dilemma of Quality Control Measures in the Nigeria Early Childhood Education Anero NNAMDI 1

One House, Many Doors … Analogous of Early Childhood Education in NigeriaHannah Olubunmi AJAYI 25

Student-teachers' Level of Preparedness for Teaching Practice Among Undergraduate Students in Teacher Training Institutions in Lagos State

Alade Olayinka SAMSON,Fasoranti AfolabiJOSEPH andIsiani, Uzunma EMELE 39

Implementation of the National Policy on Education in Primary Schools in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State.Tolu O. OKORUWA 51

Assessment of Preschool Educational Qualities in Public Primary Schools in Oyo State, Nigeria

O. T. LAWAL and B. E. BABAJIDE 65

Implementation of Early Childhood Education Programme: The Role of Physical Facilities in Rivers State, NigeriaPrincewill Okechukwu EJEKWU 77

Quality Control in Early Childhood Education; The Realities in NigeriaOlutunde Adewale ADEDOKUN 89

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Mothers' Level of Awareness of Indicators of Quality Child Care in South West NigeriaFelicia Mayokun ODUNTAN 101

Play Strategies and Creativity Development Among Preschoolers in Obio-akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State

Wilhelmina BENEBO –SOLOMON ,Nelly

ENEKWACHI andNkechinyere H. PROMISE-ADELE 117

Influence of Audio-visual Instructional Materials on Teaching Processes in Selected Lower Public Primary Schools in Lagos State, Nigeria

Ezidiugo Joyce OGWAZU,Justina Chinyere AGUH and Katheryn Bright NWAKAIBIE 129

Assessing the Pre-primary Education in Public Primary Schools in Ondo and Oyo States: Implications for Quality ControlIdowu O. MAJEBI, Adetokunboh A. ADEPOJU,

Folayemi J. AKINBOBOYE andIdowu O. ODEBODE 143

Factors Affecting Teachers' use of Technology During Instruction in Lower Public Primary Schools in Lagos Mainland

Ezidiugo Joyce OGWAZU and Modupe Esther OWOJINRIN 162

Compliance to Recruitment Policies as a Quality Control Measure in Early Childhood Education in Nigeria

Vera Chimaobim EGBEH-AKE andIbimina EME-OSIRI 177

Influence of Quality Control on Child's Learning Activities in Early Childhood Education CentersNkechinyere. Modester OKORONKWO,

Perpetua Nkechi UGORJI, I. G. Richard UDOFIA, and Stella Ekpelechi OKEZUE, 196

Quality Control and Child Right Acts in Early Childhood Education; Impediments to Qualitative Implementation.Olukemi O. AKEREDOLU 213

Teachers' Pedagogical Practices, Lower Primary School Pupils' Phonological Awareness and Performance in Reading Fluency in Ondo State, NigeriaAdedayo Albert OLOFINNIKA, Hannah Olubunmi AJAYI and Cecilia Omobola ODEJOBI 228

Investigating Teachers and Parents' Views on Quality of Pre-primary School Physical Environment Safety in Abeokuta, Ogun StateOlufunmilayo O.SORETIRE 241

Pre – Service National Certificate in Education: TeachersPerception of Research Project Writing in Federal College of Education, Pankshin Plateau StateHenry David KATNIYON , Joseph Bako ATUMBA,

and Liyas Techi PIUS 265

Colostrum Intake, Breast Feeding Duration and Performance in Mathematics of Pupils in Ibadan Ishola Akindele SALAMI and Aishat Mojisola RABIU 275

Pre-school Caregivers' Knowledge of and Attitude Towards the use of Local Materials as Improvised Teaching Materials in Delta StateOkpako OTENUDA, Folashade Oluwatoyin OWOLABI and Lawrence Olumide OGUNNIYI 288

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An Overview of Competence Requirements for Assessing Quality in Early Childhood Care and EducationJohnson A. MAFIKUYOMI, Ikechukwu Azunna ADIKURU and Sunday Adetayo OGUNMADE 304

Parental Aid as Predictor of School Readiness of Kindergarten Children in Kogi State, NigeriaAlfred Adedoyin ADENIYI and Monica Ngozi ODINKO 318

An Assessment of Knowledge Gained and Knowledge Lost in Early Childhood Education Teacher Preparation and Professional Practice in Oyo State Ishola Akindele SALAMI, Iyanuoluwa Emmanuel

OLALOWO,Kafayat Temitope SULAIMON and Ademola Oluwasegun OGUNNOIKI 332

The Role of Primary Education on SDGs in Nigeria: The Way ForwardComfort Bissallah EKELE and Mustapha ISAH 349

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PLAY STRATEGIES AND CREATIVITY DEVELOPMENT AMONG PRESCHOOLERS IN OBIO-AKPOR LOCAL

GOVERNMENT AREA OF RIVERS STATE

1 2 Wilhelmina BENEBO –SOLOMON , Nelly ENEKWACHI and

3Nkechinyere H. PROMISE-ADELE1&2

Early Childhood /Primary Education, Ignatius Ajuru University, Port Harcourt. Phone:080377733860,email:abiben006@Yahoo.Com,

Phone:08099456999, email: orisakwenelly@yahoo.com3Primary Education Department (FCT) Omoku, Rivers State

Abstract The creativity of pupils in primary schools has been impeded due to the absence of adequate play strategies employed by caregivers. This study aimed at determining the relationship between play strategies and creativity development among preschool children in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State using the correlational research design. A Simple random technique was used to select 90 Nursery three caregivers from a population of 102 Nursery three caregivers from public preschool school centers which formed the sample size of 90%. Three hypotheses were generated to guide the study. The instrument for the data collection was 25 items, 4point rating scale researcher's structured questionnaire titled “Play Strategies Questionnaires” (PSQ) and “Creativity Developmental Questionnaire” (CDQ)”. Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significant. The result of the Pearson's Product Moment Correlation showed that there was significant relationship between structured play and creativity development among preschoolers (r=.686, df=88 p<.05. There was also a significant relationship between pretend play and creativity development in preschoolers (r=.666, df=88 p<.05,) and that there is significant relationship between unstructured play and creativity development in preschoolers (r=.616, df=88 p<.05). Results showed that there was significant relationship between play strategies and creativity development. Based on the findings, some recommendations were made, that caregivers should use structured play in instructional delivery of the learning process to encourage creativity among preschoolers and educationist and caregivers in

early childhood education centers should embrace the use of unstructured play as an instruction delivery strategy to make learning fun and interesting for the children for creativity development.

Keywords: Creativity, Play, Structured play, Unstructured play, Pretend play

IntroductionEarly childhood education in Nigeria has been recognised as a means of inculcating in the child the spirit of enquiry and creativity through the exploration of nature, the environment, art, music, and playing with toys (FRN, 2013). Development of creativity in children cannot be over emphasized, especially in an active physical environment and fast evolving economy. This is because creativity is vital for their quality of life in meeting with societal demands. Early creative skill needs to be encouraged in children and every opportunity at our disposal of which play strategy is, one should be used to encouraging this development as it will help to promote their later learning in the fast increasingly changing environment. Observations have shown that pupils are not allowed to play as they would really desire due to the fact that parents are busy. Lack of play materials and the idea that precious moments are wasted when pupils play also in turn affect the creativity development of pupils Creativity is defined as what brings into existence new ideas, original ways of doing things and new creation of all kinds (Bruce, 2004). Children can be said to develop creativity when they can think logically through problem-solving, think imaginary things and make new things out of their experiences. Thus pupils require enormous activities that are based on their interests and ideas to give them opportunities for creative play and creative thinking. Experience they say is the best teacher; therefore, when children engage in activities that make them feel free and express themselves openly without judgment, they form the ability to be creating something from their personal feelings and experiences. Furthermore, Echebe (2019) opined that the experiences children have during their first years of life can significantly enhance the development of their creativity. This does not just occur, but comes through concentration on forming original ideas from exploration and discovery during play. Miller (2010) opined that through simple everyday activities and

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play, young children develop physical, social, intellectual, emotional and creative abilities, which are known creativity development. Play is the major activity that gives children the opportunity to interact, socialise and apply their acquired innovative skills. Play strategies from the researcher's perception encompasses all forms of play that children may engage in one way or other and they can be grouped into structured and unstructured (free) play. Based on their implications, Echebe, further classified play into different types such as imaginative play, creative play, and pretend play. Others are construction play, sensory play, messy play, small–world play, creative play (artistic, music, movement, pretend play (make-believes), heuristic play (treasure basket) and lastly reading aloud and story sacks (Gudritz, 2016). These may not necessarily involve expensive toys but build literacy skills and stimulates children's imaginative skill that helps them learn about the world around them (Hundal, 2017). `The understanding of how children use interesting objects in heuristic play without adult intervention, which permits children to explore and make discoveries that help them develop problem-solving skills in turn leads to creativity. This study explored the relationship between play strategies and creativity development among pre-schoolers. In their play, children argue, discuss, encounter problems and solve the problems as well, all by themselves. Pupils indirectly apply creativity while playing through trial and error to solve a problem. The early years are said to be the best opportunity to lay the foundations for the child's future since children are seen as the real embodiment of human creativity according to some expert. In their opinion, Yamohammadian, Aminiroaya & Keshtiaray (2016) opined that the positive and successful outcomes of promotion of creative thinking have been reported in this age. Yamohammadan et al. (2016), stressed that the programs of creativity training can help children in understanding the world around them and building relationship between its components. Studies have also shown that creativity increases children's flexibility, imagination, skills of formulating issues and that when the approach to developing creativity starts from the early childhood it becomes stable during adolescence and can extend until the end of life. Thiessen, Gluth & Corso (2013) stated that in the past, children needed the ability to adapt to a future that would be different to their present. According to them, the decline in the value of creative development for more traditional academic achievement may lead to children being ill equipped to tackle the challenges of the future resulting

from the advancement and they may cease to evolve intellectually. Therefore, rather than a mere conventional educational system that restrict children from being free to explore but rigidly follow the caregivers' instructions and principles, a free (unstructured) play activities that expose children to peer interaction, adaptation to different `situations, exploration, meaningful construction, experimental learning of what they like, expressing their individuality and developing positive self-concept is more welcome. For instance, children playing the block game have no set goal, yet are engrossed in figuring out how to lay the blocks and to bring out a figure. Hundal (2007) make-believe (pretend) play is a simple play that is fundamental to the development of language, intellectual and academic skills along with social and emotional development, which also encourages creativity and problem-solving, leaving children open to wonders and possibilities. When children are involved in creative play such as arts, crafts, dance and movements, they learn a lot, developing essential critical thinking skill involve in such arts as painting. In pretend play, children act roles they have observed in the past and this gives them opportunity to express the ideas they have acquired in a different way. In the same vein, Russ and Wallace (2014) stated that creativity in daily life takes the form of pretend play, where an open-ended event serves as a tool that a child uses for a variety of creative purposes. Constructive play (in structured or unstructured) like blocks building as observed by the researcher open up opportunities for children to develop skills such as problem-solving, spatial skills, hand-eye coordination, divergent thinking and capacity for creativity, to mention but a few. Thiessen, Gluth and Corso (2013) in their observation affirmed that what children do as they play is to explore and experiment within their environment. While Garaigordobil and Berrueco (2011) carried out study on the effect of play programme on creative thinking of preschool children and confirmed the value of cooperative-creative activities with a low structural level in the development of children's creativity. The researcher seeks to investigate how the deploying of effective play strategies relates to creativity development among preschoolers. Creative skills are important in children's learning and development. Children are expected to learn creative skills through play but children's play have declined in recent years due to the regimented tasks encouraged when children begin attendance at a typical school environment. Instead of playful

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activities that will promote creativity and development in children during early childhood. Play is not just pastime activity; it also promotes physical development, cognitive development of social skills. The poor level of creativity among preschools can be attributed to play method employed by the teacher for the preschoolers during their break period/ play time. Children are barely given the opportunity to play in schools and in rare cases when given the privilege, they obey the instructions of the caregivers with no freedom to initiate or explore on their experiences. The same things happen in the homes leaving children with no opportunity to explore. This denial has a lot of adverse effect on creativity development in children. On the basis of this background the researcher seeks to determine if there is relationship between the use of structured play and creativity development in children in early childhood. The researcher seeks to find out the relationship between play strategies and creativity development among preschoolers. Vygotsky (1962/1967) proposed that cognitive development and a variety of intellectual skills are promoted during play especially pretend play, and that objects used in children's play represent ideas and situations which support children's development of thought. It is obvious that through play children are able to develop combinatory imagination which contributes to artistic and scientific creativity. In addition, Vygotsky stated that play is an important activity in the cognitive and affective processes involved in creativity development. Also, Montessori believed that all children possessed tremendous creativity and that if given the chance to develop through appropriate implementation such as play, it will serve the child throughout their educational career and adult life.

Objectives1. To ascertain if there is relationship between structured play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State? 2. To determine if there is relationship between unstructured play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State? 3. To establish if pretend play relates to creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State?

Hypotheses1. There is no significant relationship between structured play a n d creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.2. Unstructured play does not significantly relate to creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State. 3. There is no significant relationship between pretend play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.

MethodologyThe study adopted correlational research design. The choice of the design was based on the fact that the research seeks to establish if play strategies is related to creativity development in early childhood. The population of the study comprised of all 102 Nursery Two caregivers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area. 50 Nursery Two caregivers were randomly selected using pick and drop balloting to form the sample size. The instrument for the data collection was 25 items researcher's structured questionnaire titled “Play Strategies and Creativity Development Questionnaire (PSCDQ)”. It was a 4points Likert scale rating of “Strongly Agreed”, “Agreed”, “Disagreed” and “Strongly Disagreed”, rated - 4points, 3points, 2points and 1point respectively. The questionnaire was made of two parts; 15 items on play strategies and 10 items on creativity development. The Cronbach Alpha was used to establish the reliability of the instrument. The internal constituency of 0.82 was obtained. Data obtained were analyzed using mean, Standard Deviation and Pearson Product Moment Correlational to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. ResultsHypotheses OneThere is no significant relationship between structured play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.

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Table 1 show the summary of Pearson's Product Moment Correlation relationship between structured play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State. The table shows a strong and positive relationship between structured play and creativity development. The R-square value of .236 shows a 23.6% contribution of structured play to creativity development. The result of the Pearson's Product Moment Correlation shows that there is significant relationship between structured play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State (r=.686, df=88 p<.05). The null hypothesis was rejected at 0.05 alpha levels.

Hypotheses TwoUnstructured play does not significantly relate to creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State? Table 2: Summary of Pearson's Product Moment Correlation on the Relationship between Unstructured Play and Creativity Development among Preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State

Table 1: Summary of Pearson's Product Moment Correlation on the Relationship between Structured Play and Creativity Development among Preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State

Table 2 shows the summary of Pearson's Product Moment Correlation relationship between unstructured play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State. The table shows a strong and positive relationship between unstructured play and creativity development. The R-square value of .173 shows a 17.3% contribution of unstructured play to creativity development. The result of the Pearson's Product Moment Correlation shows that there is significant relationship between unstructured play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State (r=.616, df=88 p<.05). The null hypothesis was rejected at 0.05 alpha levels.

Hypotheses ThreeThere is no significant relationship between pretend play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State. Table 3: Summary of Pearson's Product Moment Correlation the Relationship between Pretend Play and Creativity Development among Preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State

Table 3 shows the summary of Pearson's Product Moment Correlation in the relationship between pretends play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State. The table shows a strong and positive relationship between pretend play and creativity development. The R-square value of .217 shows a 21.7% contribution of pretend play to creativity development. The result of the Pearson's Product Moment Correlation shows that there is significant relationship between pretend play and creativity development among preschoolers in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State (r=.666, df=88 p<.05). The null hypothesis was rejected at 0.05 alpha levels.

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DiscussionsThe findings of the study revealed that play strategies are very important in the enhancement of creativity development in early childhood. In line with the National Policy on Education that plays should be the medium of learning at this stage of education. The hypothesis one was interested in whether structured play has significant relationship on the creativity development among preschoolers. The table shows a strong and positive relationship between structured play and creativity development. The R-square value of .236 shows a 23.6% contribution of structured play to creativity development. The result of the Pearson's Product Moment Correlation shows that there is significant relationship between structured play and creativity development among preschoolers. The null hypothesis was rejected. Therefore, there is significant relationship between structured play and creativity development among children in preschool(r=.686, df=88 p<.05). The hypothesis two (2) states that unstructured play has no significant relationship between creativity developments among preschoolers. The table shows a strong and positive relationship between unstructured play and creativity development. The R-square value of .173 shows a 17.3% contribution of unstructured play to creativity development. The result of the Pearson's Product Moment Correlation shows that there is significant relationship between unstructured play and creativity development among preschoolers (r=.666, df=88 p<.05). The null hypothesis was rejected at 0.05 alpha levels. Therefore, there is significant relationship between unstructured play and creativity development in preschool children. This is in line with the observation made by Thiessen, Gluth& Corso, (2013) on unstructured play and creativity development in classroom.Finally, hypothesis three (3) sort to establish the relationship between pretend play and the creativity development among preschoolers. The table shows a strong and positive relationship between pretend play on creativity development. The R-square value of .217 shows a 21.7% contribution of pretend play to creativity development. The result of the Pearson's Product Moment Correlation shows that there is significant relationship between pretend play and creativity development among preschoolers. The result of the PPMC shows that there is significant relationship between pretend play and the creativity development. The null hypothesis was rejected at 0.05 alpha levels. Therefore, there is significant relationship between pretend play

and creativity development in preschoolers (r=.666, df 88 p<.05). This is in line with the result obtained by Russ & Wallace (2014) on their research on pretend play and creativity process, which concluded that the correlation evidence was strong. Pretend play help children to develop creativity and that play has a role in creative development. They believe that pretend play is a tool children carry with them regardless of their circumstances and if their ability to play is enhanced, it will give them advantage in creative problem solving and creative expression as they grow older and become adults.

Conclusion Creativity is linked to ability to explore, take risk, persevere, be willing to experiment and make mistakes which children are exposed to when they engage in their play and can lead to the development of a positive self-image in general. It is important to note that these skills are related to creative development, that children naturally engaged with them, nurtured, and seen as necessary to development as children become adults. Observation has shown that plenty of behavior is linked to creative development especially in children. As children related with each other in their play or specific games, they set their own rules and they readily engaged in exploratory and experimental behavior.

Recommendations Based on the findings, the following suggestions were made by the researchers:1. Caregivers should use structured play in instructional delivery of the learning process to encourage creativity among preschoolers. 2. Educationist and caregivers in early childhood education centers should embrace the use of unstructured play as an instruction delivery strategy to make learning fun and interesting for the children for creativity development.3. Caregivers should encourage preschoolers to use pretend play in class to demonstrate what they have seen and acquired in their learning for creativity development.4. More awareness on the importance of play should be organized to inform parents and caregivers to make adequate provision for children's play in the homes and schools.

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5. The classroom should have adequate space to accommodate indoor games for structured play.

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Yamohammadian, M., Aminiroaya, S. & Keshtiaray, N. (2016). Method of nurturing creativity during preschool term: An integrative study. Journal of educational research review. Vol 11(6). Retrieved. 13/01/19. hppt://www.academicjournals.org/ERR.