Playful Participatory Research: An Emerging Approach

• In Event: 69.023 - Participation in Qualitative Methods: Challenges and Possibilities

Abstract

This conceptual paper introduces a new approach to participatory research called playful participatory research, a collaborative process in which teachers, school administrators, children, and teachers engage together to develop ideas around a significant challenge facing education today: how to incorporate learning through play systemically into schools. First, the paper situates playful participatory research within the field of qualitative research, making connections to participatory action research (e.g. Noffke & Somekh, 2009) and practitioner inquiry (Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 2009). Next, it outlines the research processes involved in the approach. Finally, the paper offers an example of emerging findings from the first year of a playful participatory research partnership with one international school in Northern Europe. Implications for future research directions are discussed.

Author

• Megina Baker, Boston University