play-based learning: a qualitative report on how teachers

CUeJAR Volume 3 | Issue 2 | 2021

City University eJournal of Academic Research (CUeJAR)

e-ISSN : 2682-910X

CUeJAR Homepage: https://www.city.edu.my/CUeJAR

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Copyright © City University Press.

Play-based Learning: A Qualitative Report on How Teachers Integrate Play

in the Classroom

Tai Mooi Heang1, Norela Mohamed Shah1, Nabilla Waheda Hashim1, Nurul Aliah

Mustafa2

1 Faculty of Education and Liberal Studies, City University, Malaysia

([email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]) 2 School of Education, Humanities and Social Sciences, Wawasan Open University, Malaysia

([email protected])

Abstract

Purpose: Children learn best when they play. The Curriculum and Assessment Standard

Document (DSKP) 2017 encourages play activities to be implemented in daily schedule

for each kindergarten as one of the approaches in teaching (Ministry of Education

Malaysia, 2016). Play-based learning provides the opportunities for children to develop a

sense of the world around them through the inquiry, exploration, interaction as well as

problem solving. Children also develop content knowledge and be given the opportunity to

grasp the social skills, competencies and disposition to learn during play. This paper

focused on how teachers integrate play in the preschool classroom.

Methodology: This qualitative study was based on three data sources: (i) interviews, (ii)

classroom observations, and (iii) reflective journals of teacher-participants

Result and Discussion: The findings revealed that all teacher-participants believed that

play has contributed to learning and development. Four categories emerged from the

data analysis. They were: (1) cognitive development (2) social development (3) emotional

development, and (4) physical growth and development and their roles in promoting

learning through play, such as participation, observation, planning, guiding, selecting

materials and resources, setting up learning corners, and working in partnership with

parents. This study also indicated that structured constraints; classroom management;

and attitudinal constraints as challenges in the promoting of play in preschool settings

also were noticed.

Conclusion and Recommendation: These findings highlighted that teacher have

integrated play as a part of the larger curriculum in the classroom. The study

recommended that future research to use bigger sample size from the group of teachers

and parents, provides survey between structured play and unstructured play among the

children including parents’ role in their child development in regards to play.

Keywords: play-based learning, teachers, children, development, integrate, preschool,

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Heang et al., 2021 63

1.0 Introduction

The Curriculum and Assessment Standard Document (DSKP) 2017 encourages

play activities to be implemented in daily schedule for each kindergarten as one of

the approaches in teaching (Ministry of Education Malaysia, 2016). This research

focused on how teachers integrate play in the classroom or what is commonly

known as play-based learning. Play-based learning provides the opportunities for

children to develop a sense of the world around them through inquiry, exploration,

interaction and also problem solving. Play contributes to children’s learning and

development in their holistic development which involves the cognitive, social,

emotional and physical domains. (Kejo, 2017). A play-based curriculum highlights

the use of play in stimulating various areas of children’s development and learning

(Danniels 2018).

2 Literature review

Four aspects of literature were reviewed relating to: i) Theoretical perspectives

about how children learn, ii) Types of play, iii) Benefits of play, and iv) The role

of teachers in play.

2.1 Theoretical perspectives about how children learn

Vygotsky (1966) addresses the significance of play in the development of

symbolic thinking as a cornerstone of cognition. He argues that play contains all

the developmental tendencies (cognitive, physical, social and emotional) and thus

creates a zone of proximal development that pulls the child forward. For this

reason, play activities are essential in the preschool years because it leads to

development, giving rise to abstract thinking, self- awareness and self-regulation

(Vygotsky, 1966).

Froebel’s approach to early childhood teaching emphasises the inherent nature

of children’s learning that unfolds through their play activities. He sees play

activities as a pure and natural mode of learning through which children achieves

harmony (Essa, 2007). Psychoanalytical theorists, such as Freud, believed that

children’s play is primarily emotional (Santer et al., 2007). Through enacting real

scenarios in their play, children work out their emotional conflicts in play such as a

visit to a dentist (Hughes, 1999; Dockette & Fleer, 2003; Santer et al., 2007).

Emphasising the affective aspects of play, both Freud and Erikson position

play as a tool for emotional development and a medium for children to cope with

difficult experiences and to work out their problem (Hughes, 1999) and learning is

an individual endeavour (Frost et al., 2005). According to Montessori (1965),

when children engage in play, they learn about the world and reality of how things

work. Bruner’s constructivist theory (1966) views learning as an active process in

which learners construct new ideas or concepts based upon their current/past

knowledge (Khalifa et al. 2021).


Play-based Learning

64

Piaget emphasises the importance of young children constructing knowledge

(understanding concepts) through their own activities. He sees the child as the

source of action, actively constructing knowledge through a process of meaning-

making through connection with prior knowledge and the real world (Berk, 2006;

Hendrick and Weissman, 2007; Alharthi et al. 2020; Agwa, et al., 2018; Husin, et

al., 2013). Piaget asserts that children acquire physical, logic-mathematical and

social knowledge when they explore their environment.

2.2 Types of Play

Piaget (1962) has described different types of play with objects, and these include

functional play, symbolic play and games with rules and constructions. According

to Piaget (1962), functional play or practice play involves the repetition of an act

for pleasure or skill practice. It refers to play activities in which children explore

the possibilities of materials through physical manipulation (Brewer, 2004; Santer

et al., 2007). Object play has also been extensively studied. McLoyd (1983),

studied thirty-six children from ages three to five years when they played in groups

of three with high-structured toys (for example, a tea set) or low-structured toys

(for example, blocks). Power et. al., (1985) noted that by observing children while

they engaged in object manipulation and pretend play, it provides vital information

about children's social, problem-solving and creative skills.

Piaget (1962) articulated that symbolic play is a form of make-believe play,

which involves the representation of absent objects. Symbolic play is also referred

to as ‘make-believe’ or ‘imaginative’ play (Singer, 1973); ‘socio-dramatic’ play

(Smilansky, 1968) and ‘thematic’ play (Feitelson & Ross, 1973). Studies have

found that children who engage in more symbolic/pretend play have greater

conversational success, emotional understanding and increased performance on

problem-solving and divergent thinking (Vygotsky, 1978; Spodek & Saracho,

2006; Dickinson & Tabors, 2001; Tsao, 2002).

According to Brewer (2004), children develop or use rules to establish how

the play is supposed to go on. Games with rules differ from pretend play in that

the rules have been established in advance and determine how the play is to go on

(Piaget, 1962) and the players must agree upon any alterations in the rules

beforehand.

2.3 Benefits of Play

According to Melissa Irvin (2017), further research and investigation into what is

considered best instructional practices in an early childhood setting with a focus on

play- based instruction is needed. She believes that as an educator, it is important

to share with colleagues, administration, superintendents, and state level decision

makers the educational impact that play has on early childhood development.

Discussions need to include how required standards and curriculum can be altered

and adjusted to include time for free play. The benefits of play for children are

benefits that will follow them into adulthood. As educators, parents, and



administrators we must advocate for the need of play for children in all early

educational settings. It is important that all educators understand that when

children are playing, they are learning to become well-rounded individuals.

Lynch (2015) conducted a study on a kindergarten teacher’s views on play-

based instruction. This study compares findings from an ethnographic study of

seventy-eight discussions boards about play in kindergarten. The results of this

study support previous research that kindergarten teachers feel pressured to solely

focus on academic goals which has led many kindergarten classrooms to limit and

eliminate play. Another study by Kavitha (2016) indicated that outdoor kitchen

(outdoor play) is effective in helping children’s social emotional development.

Outdoor kitchen has provided a medium for children to develop positive

relationship with peers and practice their “insufficient” social skills (Binnawas, et

al., 2019).

The significant of play in early childhood education is recognised

internationally in young children’s development and well-being. This is also to

promote readiness and continued learning in young children through providing

them with effective play-based Early Childhood Education curriculum and

Instructions. Contemporary research supports the importance of play during the

early years in numerous areas of growth and development including: a) self-

regulations, social competence and early academics; b) physical well-being and

fitness, and c) problem solving and creativity. (James E, Johnson, Serap Sevimli-

Celik and Monirah Almansour, 2012).

Advocates of play frequently claim that play contributes to the development of

problem-solving capabilities and creative thinking in children (Pellegrini, 1982;

Rubin et al., 1983; Smilansky & Shefatya, 1990; Brewer, 2004). Children need to

organise tasks, assign characters to assume the play roles, engage in problem-

solving behaviours such as looking for props and materials to meet the play intent.

A play-based curriculum is said to offer children opportunities to acquire these

positive attributes and dispositions that are considered essential to learning, such as

planning and organisation, concentration, engagement, reflection, involvement

and participation (Katz, 1995; Brewer, 2004; Broadhead, 2004; Wood, 2007).

More specifically in the area of literacy, studies by Bergen and Mauer (2000),

found that four-year olds play (in the form of rhyming games, making shopping

lists and “reading” story books to stuffed toys) enhanced both language and

reading readiness (including phonological awareness) after the children had

entered kindergarten. Play lays the foundation for logical mathematical thinking

and stimulates “early math” in children’s everyday experiences (Ginsburg et al.,

2008). Children come to know of informal ideas of more and less, taking away,

shape, size, location, pattern and measurement (Ginsburg et al., 2008). The

mathematical knowledge gained through every day play activities seems to occur

as a natural component of cognitive development, often without any adult

instruction (Ginsburg et al., 2008; Alharthi, et al., 2019).


Play-based Learning

66

When children play, their development moves along paths of increasing

cognitive, social, emotional and physical complexity through the use of signs and

symbols; creating rules; changing roles and play scenarios; and through controlling

their behaviour and actions (Wood, 2007; Binnawas, et al., 2020). Children's

expression in play activities like scribbling, drawing, painting, or sculpture is

considered to be an important part of ego formation because it encourages the

expression of each child's individual emotions and creativity. Thus, the activities

are very important in helping them with their ability to express themselves through

play (Hino, 2003)

2.4 The Role of Teacher in Play

According to Altun (2018), her research findings suggested that fun is the most

distinguished feature of play. The other attributes of play mentioned by

participants were relaxation/energy release, freedom, cooperation and rules. Pre-

service teachers have different perspectives on teachers’ verbal and physical

participation in ongoing play activity. Their thoughts led three different

subcategories of teachers’ participation in play which are partial-participation,

non-participation, and full-participation. And finally, the findings revealed four

different teachers’ roles as Planner/Organizer, Observer/Guider, Play Partner, and

Non-involver.

Researchers have revealed that participants perceived their roles to include

engagement with children (guiding behaviours, role model, demonstrating mutual

respect, playmate/friend and as facilitator); as reflective pedagogues (playing the

roles of an observer, planner and evaluator) and working in partnership with

parents (as educators) (Chen , 2011). A number of studies have also focused on

the role of the teacher in facilitating children’s learning through play and that the

teacher’s participation in classroom play activities encourage children's

involvement in such activities (Johnson, Christie & Yawkey, 1999; Anning &

Edwards, 2006).

Adult-child interaction during play activities can help children develop and

practise play abilities that they have yet to master or develop (Bondioli, 2001).

Thus, teachers can provide developmentally appropriate resources, ideas, and

practical achievements to children through play interactions, as well as help them

in the development of their own thoughts and interests (Frost et al., 2005).

According to Stirrup et al., (2017), children more or less happily play their lives

away in the progressive play pedagogies of early years education, in the process

learning their position in social and ability hierarchies that help define their future

careers inside and outside schools.

According to other studies, teachers can function as links or connectors

between children and their surroundings by engaging them in play. Teachers can

confirm and challenge children's senses and thoughts through play interactions,

allowing them to focus on awareness, interactions, and intentions (Samuelsson &

Johansson, 2006). Indeed, play necessitates a variety of teacher interactions.



3.0 Methodology

A qualitative research approach to identify the uses of play in the selected

kindergarten was used for this study. Three classrooms from the same kindergarten

were selected which comprise of four, five and six years old children. The three

selected teachers have varied teaching backgrounds and experiences. A face-to-

face interview was used for data collection purposes such as experiences, views,

opinions and perspectives of teachers regarding the benefits of play-based learning

in the classroom.

4.0 Results and Discussion

Over a week period, data was collected through extended classroom observations

complemented by interviews with both teachers and children. The three sources of

data (interviews, classroom observations and reflective journals) yielded rich data

pertaining to a range of issues, including teachers’ definitions of play, their beliefs

about the nature of children as learners, the benefits of play, understanding of their

own roles and responsibilities as teachers and constraints they encountered in

using play as a means to learning. The data has been gathered based on three

research question as follows:

4.1 Research Question 1: What do preschool teachers see as the benefits of

play as a means to learning?

The teachers-participants generally believed that play has contributed to learning

and development. Four categories, with eight themes emerged from the data

analysis.

Category 1: Cognitive Development

Data from this study revealed that all teacher-participants held the views

that play benefitted children in terms of their cognitive development. These

included the child’s ability to identify, classify, predict, draw conclusions

and problem-solve. Two themes within this first category were apparent

after analysing data from this study. They were (i) academic concepts and

(ii) problem-solving.

Category 2: Social Development

Three teacher-participants highlighted that play is related to children’s

social development where they learn to relate to people and situations.

Children learn skills to get along with others, develop attitudes, learn to

collaborate and resolve social conflicts that seem to surface during play

(Saracho, 2003). When playing with peers, children learn a system of

social rules, including ways to control themselves and tolerate their

frustrations in a social setting. Within this category, two themes emerged,

namely, (i) turn-taking and (ii) learning to work with others.

Category 3: Emotional Development

Two teacher-participants described play as supporting children’s emotional

development as children were able to express their emotions, revealed

their inner feelings and came to terms with emotional experiences


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(Santer et al. 2007). Two themes have emerged under this category and

they were: (i) confidence building, and (ii) sense of self-esteem.

Category 4: Physical Development

On the last category of physical development, two teacher-participants

shared their views on the contributions of play to children’s physical

development, which were further sub-categorised into two themes. They

were: (i) gross motor skills, and (ii) fine motor skills.

4.2 Research Question 2: How do preschool teachers see their roles in

promoting learning through play?

The teachers-participants had revealed a wide range of perspectives on their roles

in promoting learning through play. Three categories of teachers’ role emerged

from the data together with the nine themes.

Category 1: Engagement with Children

All teacher-participants brought up varied views on their roles in engaging

children to learn through play. These views were thematically grouped

into five themes. They were: (i) guiding behaviours (ii) role model (iii)

demonstrating mutual respect (iv) be a playmate and friend, and (v)

facilitator.

Category 2: Teachers as Reflective Pedagogues

All teacher-participants said that they reflect and evaluate their own

classroom pedagogies. They observed children and assessed their learning

by evaluating their learning environment such as the variety of materials,

experiences and strategies used to achieve the objectives suitable for the

child’s age and stage. Teacher-participants also shared that they adopted an

array of strategies including direct instruction, asking questions, giving cues,

listening, making suggestions and extending the experiences by offering

new ideas or new materials to achieve their learning goals through playful

interactions. Within this category, three themes ha have emerged, namely

teachers’ roles as (i) observer, (ii) planner and (iii) evaluator.

Category 3: Partnership with Parents

Teacher-participants held the view that they had an obligation to explain to

parents about their child’s learning and development. They said that

they felt accountable for the children’s learning and part of that

responsibility was to be able to provide specific information about the

children. All the three teacher-participants agreed that they interacted with

parents and the role as an educator was a prominent theme that emerged.

To advocate for children’s right to play, teacher-participants shared that

they would gather relevant and appropriate evidence from their classroom

activities and teachings that supported the play curriculum and would

present the child’s portfolio to parents.

4.3 Research Question 3: What do preschool teachers see as obstacles in using

play as a mean to learning?

The teacher-participants acknowledged that they have encountered challenges in

using play to promote learning. Participants discussed the constraints they had



encountered. Based on their responses, three categories together with eleven

themes have emerged from the data.

Category 1: Structured Constraints

In addressing the first category of obstacles to play, two teacher-

participants related structured constraints as a concern associated with play

in their classrooms. Within this category, five themes have emerged from

the data analysis and they were: (i) time, (ii) resources, (iii) budget, (iv)

space and (v) staff training.

Category 2: Classroom Management

In extending their views and experiences on obstacles they encountered

in using play to teach in their classroom, three teacher-participants has

raised their concerns about classroom management. Within this category,

two themes emerged and they were: (i) children’s behaviours and (ii)

classroom composition.

Category 3: Attitudinal Constraints

This category of constraints which is attitudinal constraints to play as

perceived by two teacher-participants is related to the “intangibles” of

attitudes of concerned parties. Four themes emerged from the data and

they were: (i) parental expectations (ii) collegial support (iii)

management support, and (iv) principal’s/supervisor’s expectations.

By using inductive method, the narratives’ interview transcript of teachers and

children were analysed and categorised according to the benefits of play for each

classroom. The analysis revealed three main coding on why play is a part of

children’s daily routine: 1) Educational purposes 2) Purpose of play; and 3)

Enactment of play.

The results of this coding were used to create play profile for each classroom can

be illustrated in Table 1 below.

Table 1 Summary of the play profile

CLASS AGE TEACHER PLAY PROFILE

ONE 4 years

old

Miera Focus on benefits of play and encourage language

skills.

TWO 5 years

old

Sofea Support on pre-literacy skills.

THREE 6 years

old

Fatin Fosters creativity and imagination.

4.4 The more in depth of the play profile are as follows:

4.4.1 Class One: Play encourage language skills

The overall focus in classroom was the development of the language skills

mandated by the curricular standards. From the observation, there are

evidences of the language skills development that was provided by the

children from the participation in learning activities. The examples of

activities are sight word wall, writing samples, phonics with picture and so


Play-based Learning

70

on. Teacher Miera mentioned that kindergarten is a school and it is a place

to learn. She also added that they have a limited play time. In her

perspective, children do really play when they take their break from their

formal activities or so-called academic learning.

During the play time, children were provided with the learning materials.

Teacher Miera mentioned that she gave them the materials to let them

experience with what has been taught to them while learning through play.

“I do not expect they will act out the phonics that I have taught before

during their play. While they pretend play with car toys, one of the children

said like; “This is a car, c has the sound of keh..keh..keh, and he also did

the sound of the car, like vroom vroom”. Then many of them also sang a

phonics song that we sang in this morning”.

4.4.2 Class Two: Play support pre-literacy skills

Based on the communication between Teacher Sofea and her children, it

shows that play supports pre-literacy skills in the classroom. This has

aligned well with Teacher Sofea’s beliefs that the purpose of a play-based

kindergarten programme was to support literacy skills even though it is

contradict with some perceptions from the people. She said that “I think

public perception is that they are just playing but we all know that it is so

much more than that.”

While Teacher Sofea prioritised pre-literacy skills development, she also

mentioned the need for the inclusion of curricular standards, in a

kindergarten classroom. “Standards are still expected, it is not just only

playing all day, but using standardising curriculum is also critical”.

Teacher Sofea stated that play can enhance memorisation skill through

drama play in the classroom where children need to memorise the script

and acting to make it happen. One of the criterias of a developmentally

appropriate kindergarten programme from Teacher Sofea’s perspective was

the inclusion of good play during the day. These play periods provided

support for the development of basic literacy and reading.

4.4.3 Class Three: Play fosters creativity, socialization and imagination

Teacher Fatin and the children discussed play in terms of creativity and

imagination. According to Teacher Fatin, creativity prepares the children

for the learning of the formal learning ; she said, “The purpose of

kindergarten is socialisation. That’s where their learning curve will be; they

started to learn what is a line, what are indoor shoes, how to manage the

snack, and that increases in independence”.

For the learning purpose of kindergarten is socialisation and can develop

curiosity and problem-solvers. While the children play in the classroom

such as building blocks, they would build the ‘house’ and sit in the ‘house’,

they would also take the empty box to pretend play it as a ‘house’. Children

love to play with the empty box as they feel safe and comfortable with it.

From this play, it encourages them to be more creative and to make use of

anything around them.

Teacher Fatin allowed the children to play after the lesson and they had

arranged the chairs and pretended that they are cars or busses picking up



passengers. They pretend played that they were driving around. Teacher Fatin

said, “I did not ask them to imagine that the chair arrangement would turn into

a bus. They had come up with the idea themselves”. They create the situation

by themselves”. One of the students shouted, “Pon pon pon” (make a sound of

horn) and saw a passenger on the road. When the passenger asked the driver, “I

am going to market” and the driver said, “Yes please come in”.

The summary of the play-based learning benefits to children in the early

years are exemplified in Table 2.

Table 2 Summary of three ways play-based learning benefits children in the early years

PLAY

ENCOURAGES

LANGUAGES

SKILLS

PLAY

SUPPORTS

PRE-

LITERACY

SKILLS

PLAY FOSTERS

CREATIVITY

AND

IMAGINATION

LEARNING

PURPOSE OF

KINDERGARTEN

Academic Learning

of All Curriculum

Develop

Vocabulary

Develop

Listening Skills

& Sound

Recognition

Develop

Memorisation

Socialisation

Develop Curiosity

and Problem- Solvers

MAIN PURPOSE OF

PLAY

Encourage

Language Skills

Develop Basic

Literacy and

Reading

Enhance Thinking

Out of The Box

Develop Social Life

Skills

ACTUAL

PERFORMANCES

OF PLAY

Child-Led Play

Teacher Asked

Questions

Child-Led Play

Sing A Song and

Recite Rhymes

Child-Led and

Teacher-Modelled

Play

Co-Constructed

Contexts Play

ROLE OF

TEACHER

Monitor of Attitude

Encourage

Conversation

Participate in

Children’s Play

Develop Their

Ability

Join The Children

Play

Encourage Thinking

Skills

4.5 Discussion

These data provided important insights concerning the purpose of play in an

early learning context and the various ways in which teachers enact and

integrate play as part of the larger curriculum. The three focal teachers

integrated play into their kindergarten classrooms differently. These differing

approaches were informed by the teachers’ diverse understandings of the

purpose of play in student development and learning. Thus, all teachers

identified purpose of play is complementing their understanding of the roles in

children’ play.

Through the interviews, the teachers have described benefits of play as how

they understand. Teacher Miera has described that play can encourage

language skills. Her role as a teacher was to make sure that her children learn

the academic skills by using play-based learning. The purpose of play in


Play-based Learning

72

Teacher Sofea’s classroom was to facilitate children in pre-literacy skills. She

believed that her role was to provide chances for children-directed play. She

also supported children’s interactions during the play. Then, for Teacher Fatin,

she viewed play as a chance for children to promote creativity and imagination

skills. As a result, she filled academic skills into children’s lay constructed

play. Then, she was engaging with children to develop social life skills.

One of the recommendations is for the future research where a future study

on the play issue would be highly recommended with a bigger sample size

from the group of teachers and parents. Sample group represent the diversity of

the parents’ population in some area. It is also worth it to survey among

parents and teachers in order to compare and understand the perceptions and

views between parents and teachers. Moreover, it is recommended that future

research provides survey between structured play and unstructured play among

the children. This will offer deeper understanding into the knowledge parents

hold about the structured and unstructured play. Lastly, the recommendation is

on the parents’ role in child development and how parents can form a support

for infants and toddlers in relation to play.

5.0 Conclusion

The results revealed that teachers believed that play was vital for children’s

learning development. The result also found that the main purpose of play is to

encourage languages skills among children in the kindergarten. The language

skills were supported by developing children listening skills and reading skills.

Teachers’ roles were to encourage children to participate in role play to brush

up their talents, such as singing song or reciting rhymes. Thus, these activities

enhance children’s social and emotional development. Furthermore, play also

allows children to think out of the box and go wild with their imagination and

creativity which would develop curiosity and encourage problem solving.

From the result, it has shown that play-based learning outcomes bring more

benefits to both children and teachers in achieving effective teaching-learning

processes.

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