Work Hard and Play Hard: Perceptions of Play in Early Childhood Programs

• In Event: Conceptions of Play in Early Childhood Classrooms

Abstract

This qualitative study explored principals and teachers perceptions concerning the role of play in early childhood programs during an ethos of high stakes accountability. All early childhood participants identified play as a learning tool but noted it was being eliminated from the curriculum due to high stake accountability. Viewed differently between administrators and early childhood educators was the purpose of play. Revealed were implications for administrators, teachers, and policymakers.

Authors

• Patricia White, Independence Public School District

• Barbara Nell Martin, University of Central Missouri