1-196 - Recess Research: Historical, Sociological, and Anthropological Perspectives on Play at School

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

Psychology as a discipline has been the champion of children’s play, documenting the dangers of childhoods without it, piecing together the complexity of play as a process of understanding. Yet we are at a point in history where schools have been reducing or eliminating recess, and setting policy at random. This panel calls for evidence-based policy, and presents historical trends of recess policy in America, and the inequalities of opportunities for expression in American schools. It presents models from other countries and calls for multidisciplinary advocacy on behalf of play for all children. The first paper examines the shrinking history of recess in American public schools, and the second high lights the inequalities of play opportunities for poor minority children. The two raise questions about the framing of recess as occasional extra when the developmental literature highlights the importance of children’s play for socialization, physical health, and cognitive and emotional resilience. A longitudinal study of recess deprivation in the American south offers new data. The third paper reflects a new study of recess policy across Europe and Asia, suggesting larger philosophical differences between countries and their views of play. A discussant in the field of psychology will tie these diverse but overlapping studies together through the lens of the scientific study of play. Hardly trivial, recess research has the potential to impact children’s health and wellness, school climate, and the vitality of children’s cultures.

Sub Unit

• Education, Schooling

Chair

• Anna Beresin, The University of the Arts

Discussant

• Jennifer M. Zosh, Penn State University - Brandywine

Individual Presentations

• Does the History of School Recess Reveal a Celebrated Past and a Tenuous Future? - Presenting Author: Michael Matthew Patte, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania

• Recess and the arts for All: Current disparities, future trends - Presenting Author: Olga S Jarrett, GSU

• Playing with Time: Towards a Global Survey of Recess Practice - Presenting Author: Anna Beresin, The University of the Arts