Abstract:
This qualitative study focuses on the role of play in primary education, and was
designed to determine and understand the perceptions of play among primary educators
who are teachers in kindergarten and grade one classrooms. In attempting to understand
how primary educators use play in their classrooms, the following findings emerged.
Educators struggle in primary grades to support play in the classroom because of a lack
of a clear understanding of what play is. Further, teachers face several oppositions to
using play in the classroom. Much of the opposition arises from a concern for classroom
management as well as negative parental views towards play. Additionally, the teachers
from this study feel that there is limited support available for them to implement a
curriculum that includes play. Despite support from academic research, indicating that
children, particularly in the primary grades, benefit greatly from play, the place for play
in the curriculum is not secure. In this study, strategies that would assist and support
primary educators in using play in their classrooms are suggested.
