This study explores, through observations and interviews. the rough and tumble play of young children in early childhood settings. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how early childhood educators, parents, and young children interpret rough and tumble play. The study also identified the extent to which rough and tumble play is included or not included within early childhood settings.
Participants in this study included 11 educators, 16 parents, and 16 children from four settings. Observations of the play of children and the responses of the educators to rough and tumble play were made at two settings. During 30:25 hours of observation, 110 incidents of rough and tumble play were recorded.
Twenty-seven distinct rough and tumble play behaviours were exhibited during the observation period. Behaviours included components that had been identified as rough and tumble play in previous research and also additional behaviours that were not previously identified as elements of rough and tumble play.
Results of the interviews of adults indicate that there is perceived value in rough and tumble play: the play needs to be supervised; the play is more acceptable at home rather than at daycare: adults are unaware of formal policies or guidelines for the play: and adults reject the notion that the play may be linked to aggressive behaviour. Results of the interviews with children indicate that adults place restrictions on the play; it is important that no one is hurt; there are gender differences: and while all the children were observed engaged in the play, 60% of the children stated that they do not engage in rough and tumble play at daycare.
The results of this study will have implications for the understanding of child development. It may be that rough and tumble play evolves as children age; that children move into more, or less, complex play behaviours as they mature. This study might also have implications for early childhood education. The parents and educators conceded a lack of knowledge about rough and tumble play. This finding highlights the need for the development of teacher and parent education resources.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uvic.ca/oai:dspace.library.uvic.ca:1828/1975 |
| Date | 14 December 2009 |
| Creators | Tannock, Michelle Thérèse |
| Contributors | Mayfield, Maggie |
| Source Sets | University of Victoria |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | Available to the World Wide Web |
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