The Importance of Play and Its Role in the Growth and Development of Children - Essay Example

Many researchers and educationist have highlighted the importance of play and its role into the growth and development of children. This report analyses the responses of two parents regarding the importance of play. Their responses has been matched or contrasted with the work of various researchers and with the classical and contemporary theories about children’s play 1. Introduction: Sutton-Smith (1997), while defining play says that it is a means of checking theories, exploring options, testing limits and fostering social and relational skills. It is characterized by common features, including pleasure, spontaneity and intrinsic motivation, and is a natural form of learning. The early years of children, the period of immaturity, is an important time to develop behaviors (Bateson, 2005). And through play many key skills and desired behaviors can be developed. With the effective utilization of play, many social skills and problem-solving strategies can be nurture(Smith, 1986).However, in past, the influence of the play and its role in child development and growth was not understood (Bruner et al, 1976). In the following I will present my findings about the perceptions of parents regarding play and its pedagogical value. I interviewed two ladies. First is Mrs, Hubert , a housewife and mother of Nany a 5 year old girl. Second lady is Ms.Tina mother of Ted –a 4 year old boy. 2. Overall views about play Both of the parents viewed play as a ‘natural’ need of the children. Their views matched that play helps in better growth and development of the body and mind. One parent, Nany’s mother, said that play involves such a diversified processes which help in naturally acquiring many key skills including ‘imagination, creativity, better expression and interpersonal skills’. Their views about play are well developed. Many researchers like Moyles( 1994), Glickman( 1981) similar kind of expression about play. In their opinion play is an informal way of developing children’s skills and behavior. . 3. The value of play in child growth and development Ms. Tina , mother of 5 year old Ted, said that there must be a balance between study and play. Her point of view is that, if child get more involved in play, her studies would suffer. As she emphasized ‘balance’ is the key word On the other hand, Nany’s mother, Mrs Hubert , is of the view that play till the age of 5 or 6 year is more important than studying at school. She said that play will teach them a lot in a natural environment. For instance , she said that playing in teams or pairs teach them tolerance and teamwork. There is a slight difference in the point of view of Mrs. Hubert and Ms.Tina. The former values play more that study. This difference is rooted in the difference of life style. Ms. Tina is a working lady where as Mrs. Hubert is a house wife. However, both the ladies agree to the following points about the value of the play. 3.1. Develop Mutual Respect Both the parents pointed out that games help in treat each other with respect and understanding others view point. An Innate demand of play is co-existence. Bateson (2005) has said that play samples whole life and children learn and practice behaviors adaptive to that environment. 3.2. Principled Life Both the parents agree that children learn to follow the rules and principles in playing games. This makes them more principled and disciplined. “Perhaps socially responsible”, Ms Tina said, “you don’t have force them to follow your opinions, likes or dislikes, just offer them ‘rules of game ’ and life will be easy”. This concept of play as preparation for life was presented by Groos in 1898(Play Theories, 2008). Thus play will teach them the thing that will make them more law abiding and more responsible citizen. 3.3. Fostering Freedom and Responsibility Ladies are agree that play fosters sense of responsibility in children. As they learn to respect each other and follow the ‘rules of game’, they become more responsible. Mrs. Hubert put it in this way: you don’t have to preach them responsibility. They become in charge of their own deeds. Garvey (1990) has also pointed out that play can is the process in which children have the opportunity to exercise freedom of choice. 3.4. Learning From mistakes The freedom of choice may lead them to make some mistakes. However, mistakes are essential to learn in life. Both parents agree in this regard. They said that during the play, factors such as peer pressure will help the child growing mature. They said that “hard times and tender moments” lead them to learn from their mistakes. 3.5. Relax Mind "Spending a lot of time together makes children fresh and relax”, said Mrs. Hubert. The parents agree that one output of the play is happy and relax children. This view point of the mothers matches with the classical theory of play by Lazarus 1883. This theory presents play as a mean of relaxition and refresher(Play Theories, 2008). 3.6. Physical Growth Outdoor play helps in the development and growth of body. The plays which involve physical activity, say running, jumping, hide and seek ets., refine a child's gross motor skills. Both the parents said that play not only helps but is necessary in the proper physical development of the child. Many physical moments help in the development of different academic skills . For example, cross-lateral movements are significant in the development of reading and writing ability of child in later life. Thus play helps not only in physical growth but also in cognitive development as well (Singer, Golinkoff, & Hirsh-Pasek, 2006). 3.7. Cognitive Development Piaget’s cognitive development theory nurtured the view that play may be of crucial importance in children's cognitive development. His learning theories proposed the need for children to explore and experiment. He suggested that through play children could develop and refine concepts even before the abstract thinking ability (Singer, Golinkoff, & Hirsh-Pasek, 2006). In this regard parents discussed relatively simpler views. They said that only a healthy body can have a healthy mind.from this point our discussion turned to the question why children play. Do they have specific phsiological, psychological, or social need? 4. Why children play? From this point our discussion turned to the questions, why children play. The parents give a variety of views that in my opinion, is hotchpotch of various classical and contemporary theories. As discussed in 3.5, the parents think that the play keeps them relaxed. Further, the expressed following reasons for the children play: Passing the available time Getting Physical exercise Express Life Purpose and their future will Spending time with their friends Express their Freedom I have rearranged the ideas from classic to contemporary. Interestingly the parents’ comments share many important theoretical models about play. For instance, Mrs.Hubert Said that, “some times children play because they have nothing other to do. ”. Ms.Tina said, “children have energy. They need to get it released in order to stay calm. They naturally do it with physical games ”. Both of these comments reflect the classical views about play. For example, Spencer presented the theory of surplus energy about play. He said that play is a mean to release of extra energy. In his views , play is just an aimless activity to get rid of that energy. (Play Theories, 2008) However, the parents I interviewed, seemed partially agree with the theory. Both of the parents were of the view that most of the time play is a meaningful activity. One parent said, “through play , children try to express their will and freedom that they may not have in real life”. These comments instantly reminded me of the psycho –analytic theory of Sigmund Freud. He insisted that children play for their catharsis and to get rid of inner depression they have to face because of the adults around. So in the play children can obtain the desired in the world of fantasy(Play Theories, 2008) . However, as we can see from parents discussion as well that it is just one aspect of the whole story. Children play, sometimes to the fulfillment of their suppressed needs, but they do not do it all the time. “Most of the time, they play with their family and friends”, said Mrs. Hubert, which, in my opinion shows there need to be secure and being loved. Vygotsky proposed that play is a mean of social and cognitive development. Some of the plays express search of meaning and identity of the child ren. As Ms.Tina said, “many a time I observed that children’s play express a certain kind of will---their future hope—they would be a teacher, or a father…” . Erikson’s theory of meta-communicative says that till the age of 8, child search for purpose and role(Play Theories, 2008) . And Ms. Tina’s views match with the theory. Mrs. Hubert added that we ourselves used to play such games to express our liking and disliking. 5. Parents’ own experience of play While sharing their own experience of childhood the parents discussed that in their times, focus was more on outdoor games. Such game Bandy-balls, angles and devils, skipping etc., helped in both the mental as well as physical growth. 5.1. Their Parents Views Interestingly, the parents of Ms. Tina provided her open opportunity to play. She said that her parents wanted her to be relaxed. On the other hand, Mrs. Hebert who herself is more fond of play expressed: My mother usually do not let me play freely. She was(her mother) of the opinion that more play will spoil my studies. However, both the ladies agree that their parents always acknowledge the importance of play. 5.2. Types of Games they played Mostly, they themselves and children of their own age played a mixture of games—indoors and outdoors; mental and physical. Mrs. Hebert told that she was fond of hide and seek, and .Ms. Tina herself was fond of more mental games like riddles. However, both the ladies played with dolls at their early ages 5.3. Their exposure to technology based games Both the ladies said that computer was very rare and mobiles—no way. The only technology base game was with play stations. 6. Their comparison with their children 'Bored wasn't in our vocabulary!' both the parents said that they used to Spend more time outdoors than their children do. One parent said that today, parents are more ‘hands on’. Parents view compared their own views 6.1. Types of games compared between the two generations The two generations are very different in their access and use of technology. Generation Z, the children born around 2000 and before 2010, prefer texting than talk. They have more friends online and rarely meet them. They don’t spend much time outdoors (Meet Generation z, 2010). Such is the difference between the generation I talked with and the generation we talked about. So this generation plays online and least involve in physical activities. 7. The conclusion Both of the parents considered play a valuable activity. Major assumptions and beliefs about the value of the play are same . However, one parent was of the view that there must be a study-play balance whereas the other lady believes that in early stages of child growth and development, play has far more importance than formal study. I personally value and appreciate the views of both the parents. An important point to be noted is that both of them discussed a range of assumption on the question why children play. Their responses reflect a border understanding of the psychological, social and physiological needs of the children. Another strong point is that neither of both the ladies assumed play as a wasteful activity. The views of the parents revealed the emerging trends of Generation Z. Children of this generation are more technology oriented and tend to spend more time on technology. In this regard, I would say that parents need to be conscious that children may have exposure to the technology but they may not be obsessed by it. And they shall be involved in outdoor and indoor activities with a balance schedule. Works Cited Bateson, P. P. G. (2005). Play and its role in the development of great apes and humans. In A. D. Pellegrini & P. K. Smith (Eds.), The nature of play: Great apes and humans (pp. 13–26). New York: Guilford. Bruner, J., Jolly, A. and Sylva, K. (eds.) (1976) Play: Its Role in Development and Evolution. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. Garvey, C. (1990) Play. London: Fontana Glickman, C. D. (1981). Play and the school curriculum: The historical context. Journal of Research and Development in Education, 14, 1–10. McArdle, J. (2001) ‘Children's Play’, Child: Care. Health and Development, Vol. 27, No. 6, pp. 509-14. Meet Generation z. (2010, February ). Retrieved April 28, 2011, from California Teachers Association : http://www.cta.org/Professional-Development/Publications/Educator-Feb- 10/Meet-Generation-Z.aspx Moyles, J. (1994) The Excellence of Play. Buckingham: Open University Press. Singer, D. G., Golinkoff, R. M., & Hirsh-Pasek, K. (. (Eds.). (2006). Play = learning: How play motivates and enhances children's cognitive and social-emotional growth. American Psychological Association , 277. Smith, P.K. (1986) Children’s play: Research, development and practical application. New York: Gordon & Breach. Sutton-Smith, B. (1997) The Ambiguity of Play. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Play Theories. (2008, April 30). Retrieved April 28, 2011, from More Than Just Early Childhood: http://casadelbambino.blogspot.com/2008/04/play-theories-classical-contemporary.html Annex: Interview Questions Q.1. What are your views about child play? Q.2. How do you value the child play in their growth and development? Q.3. What is your childhood experience about play? Q.4. How did your parents viewed children playing? Q.5. How do you differentiate your parents’ perspective about their children playing and your own perspective about your children playing? Q.6 .How would you compare your play experience with that of your child’s one? Q.7. What is your opinion of outdoor games vs indoor games? Q.8. Do you see any purpose behind children’s play among themselves? Read More