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An Exploration of Play in Kindergarten: A Phenomenological Study

Gibbs, Angela M.
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1426180802

Abstract Details

2015, Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, Curriculum and Instruction (Education).
Play as pedagogy is waning in kindergarten classrooms as state mandated educational reforms are shifting emphasis from developmentally appropriate practices that emphasize play and child-centered learning to standards-based instruction, heavily reliant on standardized measures of assessment and teacher directed instruction. This phenomenological study investigated the lived experience of two kindergarten classrooms, with emphasis on teachers and students perceptions of play and how play was experienced in each classroom. Outcomes demonstrate that the teachers’ perceptions of educational reforms and accountability measures have the greatest impact on the experience of play in each classroom. Each classroom experiences play differently, with one classroom experiencing an average of 60 minutes of play a day, and the second classroom experiencing 5 hours and 45 minutes of play each day. Student perceptions of play demonstrate that kindergarten children view play as a fun experience that is an open- ended and child-directed, allowing them to make decisions about both with whom and what they play. Further, kindergarten students shared their perceptions about work in kindergarten. Work was overwhelmingly described as a teacher-directed activity that was required by the teacher and elicited some type of formal learning.
Eugene Geist, PhD (Committee Chair)
Machtmes Krisanna, PhD (Committee Member)
Jung Jeesun , PhD (Committee Member)
Janson Greg, PhD (Committee Member)
246 p.
Early Childhood Education
Kindergarten; Play; Educational Reform; Teacher Perspectives; Student Perspectives; Phenomenology

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Gibbs, A. M. (2015). An Exploration of Play in Kindergarten: A Phenomenological Study [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1426180802

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Gibbs, Angela. An Exploration of Play in Kindergarten: A Phenomenological Study. 2015. Ohio University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1426180802.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Gibbs, Angela. "An Exploration of Play in Kindergarten: A Phenomenological Study." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University, 2015. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1426180802

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ohiou1426180802
858
© 2015, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Ohio University and OhioLINK.