User:Michelle13712/Early childhood education

My chosen article is relevant. Much of the writing is done neutrally, however not all claims are backed by citations.All of my edits are currently in BOLD in the text of the section I am working on below my bibliography.

Bibliography


 * 1) Alharabi, Manal ObedAullaah, & Alzahrani, Mona Mohsen, (2020). The importance of learning

through play in early childhood education: Reflection on The Bold Beginnings Report.

International Journal of the Whole Child, 5(2). https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1286551

2. Bodrova, Elena & Leong, Deborah J. (2018). Making play smarter, stronger, and kinder: lessons

from tools of the mind. American Journal of Play, 12(1), 37-51.

http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.uno.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewervid=3&sid=a40142b

b-0e5a-41c7-9f38-3e7959dee47f%40pdc-v-sessmgr02

3. Guirguis, Ruth, (2018). Should we let them play? three key benefits of play to improve early

childhood programs. International Journal of Education and Practice, 6(1), 43-49.

https://doi:10.18488/journal.61.2018.61.43.49

4. Lee, Regina Lai Tong, et al. (2020). Effects of an unstructured free play and mindfulness

intervention on wellbeing in kindergarten students. International Journal of Environmental

Research and Public Health, 17(5382). https://doi:10.3390/ijerph17155382

5. Macia-Gual, Aida, & Domingo-Penafiel, Laura, (2021). Demands in early childhood education:

Montessori pedagogy, prepared environment, and teacher training. International Journal of

Research in Education and Science (IJRES), 7(0), 144-162.

https://doi.org/10.46328/ijres.1272

6. Obee, Patricia., et al. (2020). Lessons learned from Norway on risky play in early childhood

education and care (ECEC). Early Childhood Education Journal (2021), 49:99-109.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-020-01044-6

Learning through play[edit]
A child exploring comfortably due to having a secure attachment with caregiver Early childhood education often focuses on learning through play, based on the research and philosophy of Jean Piaget, which posits that play meets the physical, intellectual, language, emotional, and social needs (PILES) of children. Children's curiosity and imagination naturally evoke learning when unfettered. Learning through play will allow a child to develop cognitively. This is the earliest form of collaboration among children. In this, children learn through their interactions with others. Thus, children learn more efficiently and gain more knowledge through activities such as dramatic play, art, and social games. '''According to a study by Alharabi and Alzahrani (2020), "the epistemology in children's play, learning, and development is that young children grow quickly, and as they adapt, play experiences provide a natural and developmentally appropriate pathway for authentic learning".  There is much evidence driving a worldwide awareness that in the first six years of life, young children developmentally take in every part of their surroundings and their playful explorations actually form their biological neuronal mass.  Children at these early ages are most engaged, and therefore learning at a higher rate, during unstructured free play. '''

Tassoni suggests that "some play opportunities will develop specific individual areas of development, but many will develop several areas." Thus, it is important that practitioners promote children's development through play by using various types of play on a daily basis. Allowing children to help get snacks ready helps develop math skills (one-to-one ratio, patterns, etc.), leadership, and communication. Key guidelines for creating a play-based learning environment include providing a safe space, correct supervision, and culturally aware, trained teachers who are knowledgeable about the Early Years Foundation.

Davy states that the British Children's Act of 1989 links to play-work as the act works with play workers and sets the standards for the setting such as security, quality and staff ratios. Learning through play has been seen regularly in practice as the most versatile way a child can learn. Margaret McMillan (1860-1931) suggested that children should be given free school meals, fruit and milk, and plenty of exercise to keep them physically and emotionally healthy. Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925) believed that play time allows children to talk, socially interact, use their imagination and intellectual skills. Maria Montessori (1870–1952) believed that children learn through movement and their senses and after doing an activity using their senses. The benefits of being active for young children include physical benefits (healthy weight, bone strength, cardiovascular fitness), stress relief, improved social skills and improved sleep. When young students have group play time it also helps them to be more empathetic towards each other.

'''In a 2021 article, Montessori researchers and trainers Aida Macia-Gual and Laura Domingo-Penafiel sought to identify societal demands on children in early childhood education brought on by the ever increasing push for academic achievement at an earlier age. The authors use the established Montessori principles in early childhood education in their study with established early childhood goals of acquisitions of emotional-regulation and child centered investigations to identify societal demands and concluded that "When children are in a prepared environment that stimulates them, they can develop their abilities with no barriers and this means that higher goals can be achieved" and they will be stronger academically as a result. They argue that the established Montessori principles of a carefully educator constructed environment provides experiences and learning opportunities for the young child to process the world around them and to find their own fit. '''

'''Allowing children to learn through play is integral to early childhood development allowing them to develop language skills, improve social skills, solidify emotional regulation, and increase their cognitive skills in preparation for their future upcoming academic challenges. The opportunity for unstructured free play is most important in early childhood education settings due to the availability of peers for playmates and having access to teacher prepared environments rich in exploratory materials. '''

In a more contemporary approach, organizations such as the National Association of the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) promote child-guided learning experiences, individualized learning, and developmentally appropriate learning as tenets of early childhood education. A study by the Ohio State University also analyzed the effects of implementing board games in elementary classrooms. This study found that implementing board games in the classroom "helped students develop social skills that transferred to other areas." Specific outcomes included students being more helpful, cooperative and thoughtful with other students. Negative outcomes included children feeling excluded and showing frustration with game rules.

'''A study conducted In Norway analyzed the benefits of risky unstructured free play in early childhood education. This study suggests important benefits and improvements in several developmental goals including self-regulation and improved motor skills. The authors of the study argue that the implementation of opportunities for outdoor unstructured free and risky play increases children's interactions with the physical environment encouraging development vital to future success. They claim that their research shows that including the opportunity for risky play is beneficial, but that the beliefs of parents and teachers about risk complicate the implementation in the early childhood educational setting. Their observations led them to conclude that the risk factors in unstructured free play, especially outdoors, can increase the positive effects of the play. '''

Piaget provides an explanation for why learning through play is such a crucial aspect of learning as a child. However, due to the advancement of technology, the art of play has started to dissolve and has transformed into "playing" through technology. Greenfield, quoted by the author, Stuart Wolpert, in the article "Is Technology Producing a Decline in Critical Thinking and Analysis?", states, "No media is good for everything. If we want to develop a variety of skills, we need a balanced media diet. Each medium has costs and benefits in terms of what skills each develops." Technology is beginning to invade the art of play and a balance needs to be found.

Many oppose the theory of learning through play because they think children are not gaining new knowledge. In reality, play is the first way children learn to make sense of the world at a young age.

'''The recent movement in the US toward Common Core State Standards being imposed on early childhood education programs is reducing the amount of unstructured free play time. In her 2018 study, Guirguis argues that enforcing strong academic requirements on early childhood education has led to a decrease in both quality and quantity of play time. She emphasizes three key benefits of play being social development, emergent literacy skills, and self-regulation as being the most important pillars of early childhood education. Guriguis concluded that her described key benefits of play are more effective in preparing young children for future academic success than early academic standards via Common Core. '''

'''These pressures to implement more stringent early structured curriculum are evident in the UK as well. In their 2017 report titled, Bold Beginnings, Ofsted, the Office for Standards in Education, argued for less free play and more reading in math in the Readiness Year for 4-5 year olds equivalent to US kindergarten.  Ofsted's report pushed for a stronger academic curriculum in Reception Year with more standardized testing, systematic synthetic phonics instruction, and increased direct teaching time every day in writing and mathematics. The report went so far as to say that "Some headteachers did not believe in the notion of 'free play'". Those teachers seemed to view free play as too "rosy" and with an unrealistic view of childhood. '''

'''In opposition to the Bold Beginnings report, Beard (2018) published a report on a Cambridge study that compared two groups of children. One group began formal reading lessons with phonics emphasis at age five and the other group did not begin until age seven. The study found that there was no difference at all in the reading ability of the two groups of children by age eleven. However, the study did conclude that "the children who started at five developed less positive atitudes to reading and showed poorer text comprehension than those who started later." '''

Research suggests that the way children play and interact with concepts at a young age could help explain the differences in social and cognitive interactions later. When learning what behavior to associate with a set action can help lead children on to a more capable future. As children watch adults interact around them, they pick up on their slight nuances, from facial expressions to their tone of voice. They are exploring different roles, learning how things work, and learning to communicate and work with others. These things cannot be taught by a standard curriculum, but have to be developed through the method of play. Many preschools understand the importance of play and have designed their curriculum around that to allow children to have more freedom. Once these basics are learned at a young age, it sets children up for success throughout their schooling and their life.[citation needed]

'''Based on their Tools of the Mind curriculum for early childhood education centers and Sesame Workshop, Bodrova and Leong (2019) argue for including more play in early childhood education, but increasing guided play experiences to encourage academic development. They argue that instead of more unstructured free play, children should be guided through the full span of developmental play by qualified educators to be successful in future academic settings. Instead of replacing all unstructured free play, Bodrova and Leong advocate for supplementing play time with these guided experiences that can be sued to bring children success in early education skills such as building background knowledge while developing emotional control and self-regulation based on Vygotsky's theories of play. '''

'''Another supplement to unstructured free play is Mindfulness Intervention as proposed by Regina Lai Tong Lee, et al. in their 2020 study. The authors argue that while unstructured free play is vital to early childhood education, it becomes more beneficial when paired with guided mindfulness intervention with a well trained educator. Their mindfulness intervention solution is offered as a way to make unstructured free play more beneficial and to possibly decrease the pattern of disruptive behavior that often follows periods of unstructured free play in transition to other activities. '''

Many[who?] say that those who succeed in kindergarten know when and how to control their impulses. They can follow through when a task is difficult and listen to directions for a few minutes. These skills are linked to self-control, which is within the social and emotional development that is learned over time through play among other things.[citation needed]