The Power & Importance of (Free) Play

“Play is the highest form of research” ~ Albert Einstein

As editor of The Learning Team (a publication that goes out to 25 000 Alberta parents), I have focused the next edition exclusively on the importance and benefits of “play”. 

The articles in this new collection have been drawn together to explore the relationship between play (both free and guided) and learning, and indeed how we can encourage more outdoor play or create welcoming indoor play spaces for children.

Other articles in this November 2015 edition represent unique contributions on play from world renowned Harvard scholars that have just completed a major research study for Hasbro on the topic of play.

To frame this entire collection, below are some of my own perspectives on how “free play” can powerfully (re)shape our considerations of human learning and development.

Free Play is Fun

Close your eyes and think back to a time when you were engaged in some kind of playful activity.  When I do this, what first comes to mind is how much fun it was to be fully immersed in the often spontaneous moments.  Play at its essence is really about having fun. It is also truly ‘free’ when there are no parents or guardians hovering alongside, coaches intervening, umpires adjudicating, teachers directing or rule books guiding the activity.

Dr. Rachel White (2012) outlined six distinct characteristics of play for children in her research summary “The Power of Play”, and in doing so provides some deeper insights to what defines play:

1.       Play is Pleasurable. Children must enjoy the activity or it is not play.

2.       Play is Intrinsically Motivated. Children engage in play simply for the satisfaction the behavior itself brings.

3.       Play is Process Oriented.  When children play, the means are more important than the ends.

4.       Play is Freely Chosen.  It is spontaneous and voluntary.  If a child is pressured [she/he] will likely not think of the activity as play.

5.       Play is Actively Engaged.  Players must be physically and/or mentally involved in the activity.

6.       Play is Non-Literal.  It involves make-believe.

According to White (2012), these six characteristics of play are to be found on a continuum.  The more of the above six conditions of (free) play that can be met, the more playful (and fun) the activity becomes for the child.

The lesson here is that as parents and guardians we need to remember that the manner in which children play may not be as we envision it should be; however, as the research would suggest, adults should let play be freely chosen, intrinsically motivated, actively engaged and often make-believe if we want it to be truly pleasurable for children.

Free Play is Learning

Play is learning. Many of life’s lessons are acquired through play, like problem solving strategies, getting along with others through negotiation, cooperation and compromise, or even the early sparks of creativity when a sock becomes a puppet or a stick becomes a magic wand recreating the world with whatever the mind can imagine. Play especially helps to nurture creativity in children and youth, so that they can meet the world inside and outside of school with their own unique curiosities and imagination.

White’s (2012) research summary also supports the notion that play is learning: “In the short and long term, play benefits cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development…When play is fun and child-directed, children are motivated to engage in opportunities to learn”. Whether you are a child, youth or adult, we learn how to be more resilient, flexible, persistent, and independent through play.  As Alberta Einstein identified, play is indeed the highest form of research. 

Some scientists even suggest that play builds better brains. Dr. Sergio Pellis, a researcher at the University of Lethbridge claims that the "experience of play changes the connections of the neurons at the front end of your brain…And without play experience, those neurons aren't changed” (NPR, 2014).

Yet, despite this knowledge of the impact of play on learning, far too seldom are the conversations in K-12 education about play and its ability to foster creativity, the arts, talent diversity, or interpersonal communicative competencies for children and youth. Unfortunately, as Sahlberg (2014) would suggest, the trajectory of education reform has for too long been sacrificing play for increased standardization, more frequent testing, competition, and an increasingly obsessive focus on the disciplines of science, technology and math.

Free Play is Under Siege

While we are aware of the clear benefits that develop from play, time for free play has been markedly reduced over the last three decades. Since the late 1970s, children have lost 12 hours per week of free time, including a 25% decrease in play and a 50% decrease in unstructured outdoor activities. (Juster et al., 2004). Albertans are working longer hours and families are spending less time with their children (Parkland Institute, 2012). Digital technologies, often sold as virtual tutors, have sadly becoming convenient digital baby rattles, and this has resulted in some dramatic consequences for childhood.

As Carl Honore (2008) says, “It is not just kids who are under pressure now; it’s parents too. We feel we have to push, polish and protect our offspring with superhuman zeal - or else we’re somehow falling down on the job. We start from the noble and natural instinct to do the best for our kids but end up going too far. Social and cultural pressure drives a lot of this”.  Hyper-parents are investing more time, money and energy in their offspring than in previous generations, and reducing time for play in order to focus on academics or skill development at younger ages may be seen as one more strategy to give offspring a competitive edge over the pack.

Early learning researchers are now asking if kindergarten is in fact becoming the new first grade as parents and policymakers look to start formal education at increasingly younger and younger ages. A 2015 working paper entitled “Is Kindergarten the New First Grade” illustrates the concerns of a shift in early learning experiences to more academic pursuits at the expense of play. As stated in this paper: “accountability pressures have trickled down into the early elementary grades and that kindergarten today is characterized by a heightened focus on academic skills and a reduction in opportunities for play.” (Bassok, Latham, and Rorem, 2015, p. 1)

For parents, the reduction in play is also being reflected in the growth in the out of school tutoring movement and the intensification of childhood. It is estimated that one third of Alberta parents now pay for private tutors (Alberta Teachers’ Association, 2014). As the Canadian Council on Learning (2007) found in their national survey, “most parents who hire tutors (73%) estimate that their children's overall academic performance is in the A or B range”. This is a global obsession, and in 2010 74% of all South Korean students were engaged in some form of private after-school instruction, at an average cost of $2,600 per student for the year (Ripley, 2011).

Free Play is Essential

The Council of Ministers of Education Canada (CMEC), which represents all of the provincial Education Ministers, does not intend to separate play from learning but in fact has endorsed brining it together with learning to promote creativity in our future generations of children and youth. As CMEC reminds us in their statement on play within this November edition, “it is considered to be so essential to healthy development that the United Nations has recognized it as a specific right for all children”.

Let’s pause in our increasingly distracted, full and busy lives and consider for a moment the power and importance of (free) play for our children and youth. Remember that play should be fun, it unquestionably contributes to learning, is increasingly being put under siege and will need collective attention if we want it to be universally recognized (and practiced) as an essential part of human development and learning. I hope you will have an opportunity to enjoy (and find useful) this November 2015 edition of The Learning Team.

References

Alberta Teachers’ Association (2014). Changing Landscapes: Shaping Our Preferred Future. Edmonton, AB: Barnett House. Retrieved from: http://www.teachers.ab.ca/SiteCollectionDocuments/ATA/Publications/Albertas-Education-System/ChangingLandscapes_Reader_Web%20Nov%202013.pdf

Bassok, D., Latham, S. and Rorem, A. (2015). Working paper: Is kindergarten the new first grade? EdPolicyWorks, University of Virginia. VA: Charlottesville

Canadian Council on Learning (2007). Survey of Canadian Attitudes toward Learning: Canadian attitudes toward tutoring. Vancouver, BC: Canadian Council on Learning. Retrieved from: http://www.ccl-cca.ca/ccl/Reports/SCAL/2007Archive/SCALStructuredTutoring.html  

Juster, F.T., Ono, H., & Stafford, F. (2004). Changing times of American youth: 1981-2003. Ann Arbor, MI: Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan. Retrieved from: http://www.umich.edu/news/Releases/2004/Nov04/teen_time_report.pdf

NPR (2014). Scientists say child’s play builds better a brain. National Public Radio (NPR). Retrieved from: http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2014/08/06/336361277/scientists-say-childs-play-helps-build-a-better-brain

Parkland Institute (2012). Family day on the treadmill: Alberta families at risk of too much stress. Edmonton, AB: Retrieved from: http://parklandinstitute.ca/research/summary/family_day_on_the_treadmill

Ripley, A. (2011 September 25). Teacher, leave those kids alone. Time Magazine. New York, NY: Time Inc. Retrieved from: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2094427,00.html

White, R. E. (2012). The power of play: A research summary on play and learning. Minnesota Children’s Museum. Retrieved from: https://www.mcm.org/uploads/MCMResearchSummary.pdf