The Use of Play as Learning Strategy for Skills Development in Early Childhood Education in Ghana
CHAPTER ONE
Objective of the study
The main objective of this study is examine the use of play as learning strategy for skills development in early childhood education in Ghana. Specifically, this study aims:
- To establish the extent to which teachers used play as a teaching strategy for skills development in pre primary schools.
- To find out whether type of school, teachers’ motivation, teachers’ experience, teachers’ qualification and availability of play materials influenced the use of play as a teaching strategy for skills development.
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Conceptual framework
Overview on Play in Early Childhood Development
It is widely acknowledged that experience in early childhood strongly affect human development. Research evidence from longitudinal and neuroscience studies has shown that children‟s earliest learning experiences are most significant in determining their future progress in education and subsequent success in life (Kwan, 1998). The quality of Early Childhood Education has a significant and long term influence on their educational performance and life chances (Sylva, 2004). For young children‟s optimal development, there is need for consistent and responsive caregivers within stimulating environments where play materials and other opportunities for interaction are abundant. Froebel (1987) argues that play is children‟s natural occupation before cultural restraints and formal schooling takes over. Play is the first means of development of the human mind. It is the first effort to make acquaintance with the outward world, to correct original experiences, to reinforce facts and to exercise the powers of body and mind (Froebel, 1987).
Bruner (1975) argues that play serves as a vehicle for social, emotional and cognitive development. This implies that the negative emotional and serious consequences of errors and setbacks are reduced in play. In play, children talk freely, explore freely and when one is mistaken, he/she is freely corrected causing no ill feelings on both mistaken and corrector part. By discussing and questioning in such a friendly atmosphere, they develop a critical outlook on issues, which is in itself, prerequisite for academic autonomy. Erikson (1963) agrees with the idea that children use play to make up from defeat, suffering and frustration. Play has a therapeutic value in that, it takes away the attention from the objective worries about self and focuses on an interesting objective pursuit (Bruner, 1975). In addition, Bruner contends that when children play in a rich environment, they can exercise judgment, mastery and competence, and if they are unable to experience power and satisfaction that comes through play, their holistic development is likely to be jeopardized. Thus Early Childhood Education program is supposed to translate the theories and principles related to early childhood development in to practice. This involves concentrating on the use of child-centered teaching and learning methods specifically emphasizing on the use of play as a teaching strategy.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Introduction
This chapter presents the design employed by the study. It also gives a description of the target population and sampling techniques. The section also focuses on pilot study and the procedures used to ascertain validity and reliability. Finally, the chapter describes data collection and analysis techniques.
Research Design
Research designs are perceived to be an overall strategy adopted by the researcher whereby different components of the study are integrated in a logical manner to effectively address a research problem. In this study, the researcher employed the survey research design. This is due to the nature of the study whereby the opinion and views of people are sampled. According to Singleton & Straits, (2009), Survey research can use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items), qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e., mixed methods). As it is often used to describe and explore human behaviour, surveys are therefore frequently used in social and psychological research
Population of the study
According to Udoyen (2019), a study population is a group of elements or individuals as the case may be, who share similar characteristics. These similar features can include location, gender, age, sex or specific interest. The emphasis on study population is that it constitute of individuals or elements that are homogeneous in description.
The target population of the study consisted of all pre-primary school teachers teaching in Osu, Accra region, Ghana.
The population of the study is comprised of a total of 83 pre-primary schools and about 95 pre-primary school teachers. Unlike the private schools, very few teachers in public schools have Early Childhood Education training. In most public schools, the pre-primary classes were taught by the teachers who had never attended any Early Childhood Education training. Apparently, Early Childhood Education was accorded little meaning, a situation which made teachers appointed to teach in these classes feel demotivated. Further worsening the situation is most school managers and teachers lacked experience and fundamental Early Childhood Education training.
CHAPTER FOUR
Validity and Reliability of the study
VALIDITY OF THE STUDY
Validity referred here is the degree or extent to which an instrument actually measures what is intended to measure. An instrument is valid to the extent that is tailored to achieve the research objectives. The researcher constructed the questionnaire for the study and submitted to the project supervisor who used his intellectual knowledge to critically, analytically and logically examine the instruments relevance of the contents and statements and then made the instrument valid for the study.
RELIABILITY OF THE STUDY
The reliability of the research instrument was determined. The Pearson Correlation Coefficient was used to determine the reliability of the instrument. A co-efficient value of 0.68 indicated that the research instrument was relatively reliable. According to (Taber, 2017) the range of a reasonable reliability is between 0.67 and 0.87.
ETHICAL CONSIDERATION
The study was approved by the Project Committee of the Department. Informed consent was obtained from all study participants before they were enrolled in the study. Permission was sought from the relevant authorities to carry out the study. Date to visit the place of study for questionnaire distribution was put in place in advance.
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