Benefits of Outdoor Play: An Analysis of the Prevailing Theory, Policy, and Practice - Coursework Example

Every kind of play has an important place in the development of minors. It is the looking glass through which they encounter their world as well as that of others. The immediate benefits of play include physical fitness while more long-term advantages are the development of a sense of morality. There is also considerable mental development that occurs during play, and it has been found to be an effectual instructional module, both in and out of school (Mann, 1996). The Welsh Assembly asserted that the community should take every opportunity to support play (Welsh Assembly Government Play Policy, 2002).

According to the American Psychological Association, a popular theory has it that juveniles use play to practice the skills they will need to gain their majority. However, more contemporary opinion has it that play has more immediate benefits such as aerobic habituation and improvement of motor dexterity as well as more long term benefits like training them to prepare for the unforeseen and a sense of morality. This is done by participating in rough and tumble play which forges communal ties; establishes social hierarchies, and gets to know which behavior is acceptable viz, how far they can go when scratching and biting, and how to come to a resolution of these conflicts.

Parameters of ‘right and wrong’ are set (Azar, 2002) According to Brian Sutton-Smith (1997), mental capacity is a gift of nature, which if not used, will atrophy. While at play, children are not only acquiring skills both concrete and abstract in nature but also learning. They learn how to interact, use their physical bodies, and to think abstractly. It is not literal data that is acquired but a way of thinking that facilitates problem-solving in creative ways. This paper will seek to outline the various theories and researches that have been conducted on the benefits of play and the attendant policies that have resulted from such research.

It will then attempt to document the actual practices of these policies in everyday situations.

2.0 Theories and Research We are mostly oblivious to the censorious observations of others as we go about our play, unless it is forcibly brought to our attention via offensive remarks, expurgation, expulsion, or termination. In the academe, the deprecation of play intellectually, is illustrated by the nonexistence of any reference or index to the term from any treatise on human behaviour. while increased importance has been given to play psychologically in the last few decades and biologically in the last century, there is still quite a bit of resistance to the term; more than is warranted given its significance to the human condition.

The frivolity with which play is treated is itself extremely frivolous (Sutton-Smith, 2001). Play is so crucial to the developmental health of a child that it is recognised as a right by the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights (1989). Ability of a child to play is considered to be a primary indicator of mental health and to be able to play creatively is a fundamental activity for healthy minors. Play assists children to make sense of their experiences and allows them to integrate those experiences into their psyche.

It is also a vent for their ingenuity and an integral element of childhood (Almon, 2005). These facts are buoyed by decades of research, some of which will be examined below. 2.1 Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development Jean Piaget has perhaps the most accepted and cited theory on child development in existence. Like most theorists on the subject, his belief was that children undergo certain stages of development that are preset which helps their evolution into independent thinkers. Although the proposed stages of development are static, the age at which each child may complete each phase varies and no two kids are the same. i. Sensory Motor Stage: 0-2 years The developmental milestones that are achieved in this period are substantial.

The child evolves from complete helplessness to a measure of independence physically, cognitively and mentally. Piaget asserts that one of the most significant milestones at this age is ‘object permanency’ that is, the child becomes aware that when an object leaves its line of sight, it does not cease to exist. This enhances the child’s feeling of security as it understands that simply because its mother has left the room, does not mean she will not return. ii. Preoperational Stage: 2-7 years This stage is rife with progress; once object permanency has been achieved, the child rapidly acquires further skills, such as language development.

A child at this stage is egocentric with no room for the perceptions of others. The child believes that his world view is equal to the universal world view – illustrated by such mannerisms as covering one’s eyes on the assumption that inability to see the other person equates the other person’s inability to see you. A characteristic milestone of this stage is the development of conservation, that is the capacity to understand the relationship between quantity and shape; for example, to be able to perceive that the same liquid poured into two different shaped containers, is still of the same quantity.

According to Piaget, the child’s incapacity to comprehend this concept is because the can only hone in on one facet of the conundrum at a time (centration), their propensity to equate an object to its face value (appearance) and their narrow vision which only sees the current condition of an object (state). iii. Concrete Operations Stage: 7-11years The mind develops the ability to consider more than one factor at a time, enabling the solution of complex questions and concepts. For example, at this stage, children can group together objects that are similar, even though they do not look the same such as varieties of fruit.

Another advancement of note is seriation, or the ability to arrange objects in order of size. However, there are still perceptible limitations to their ability to conceptualise, especially if they have not personally encountered the phenomena in question. iv.