James F. Christie

The Role of Play in Social-Intellectual Development

The past decade has witnessed growing interest in the role of play in child development, prompting numerous research studies on the effects and correlates of playful behavior. This paper reviews these studies in an attempt to assess the current status of this important area of inquiry. The paper begins with a discussion of the role of play in major developmental theories. Next, a number of experimental and correlational studies are reviewed. These studies are classified in terms of their major correlates or dependent variables: (a) creativity, (b) problem solving, (c) language development, (d) logical skills, and (e) social knowledge. The designs of the studies are critically examined, and problems of internal and external validity are noted. Recommendations are made for future research.

Three decades in: Priming for meta-analysis in play-literacy research

In this literature review, we examined 30 years of play-literacy inquiry through a quantitative lens in order to identify, assemble and summarize studies of sufficient methodological strength to form a corpus of research that encourages meta-analytic thinking. First, a multi-phase search of the literature was conducting yielding 192 studies that addressed pretend play and early literacy variables. Subsequent screening resulted in a total of 16 studies that met inclusion criteria, constituting a corpus of primary research that quantitatively measured play-literacy relationships in early childhood educational settings serving children ages 3—7. Next, several content analyses were used to describe and organize the corpus as a resource for meta-analytic thinking. The first round of analysis focused on developing a survey matrix that organized the particulars of individual studies into categories of information conducive to a meta-analytic approach. The second round probed for the theory of change used to explain the relations between pretend play interventions and early literacy skills. The third round entailed creating an effect size type matrix. Notably, most of the corpus studies showed modest to large effect sizes on a selected set of dependent variables which points to the potential of meta-analysis for better understanding the practical significance of the play-literacy relationship in promoting the acquisition of early literacy skills.

The Effects of Play Tutoring on Young Children’s Cognitive Performance

AbstractSeventeen preschoolers were divided into a play tutoring group and a skills tutoring group. Subjects in the first group received nine 20-minute sessions in which an adult attempted to enhance their make-believe play. The other group received an equal number of skills tutoring sessions. Both groups received a comparable amount of adult contact. The subjects were assessed on measures of play quality, verbal intelligence, and creativity , on three occasions: prior to training, immediately after training, and three months later. Results showed that the play tutoring and skills tutoring treatments both resulted in stable gains in verbal intelligence and ideational fluency. Neither treatment resulted in significant increases in play quality. It was concluded that the play tutoring gains were caused by adult contact rather than by enhanced levels of play.

Play and Digital Media

This article examines how play is affected by computers and digital toys. Research indicates that when computer software targeted at children is problem-solving oriented and open-ended, children tend to engage in creative play and interact with peers in a positive manner. On the other hand, drill-and-practice programs can be quite boring and limit childrens initiative and decision-making. Digital toys with computer chips installed that make the toys talk or act in certain ways also appear to have a mixed impact on play. Digital toys can serve as catalysts for new forms of play and can have a positive influence on the content of more traditional forms of play. Others contend that childrens development can be negatively influenced by playing with digital toys, because they do not encourage creative play. Technological advances in toy manufacture bring significant opportunities and challenges to early childhood education. Parents and teachers need to know how to use technology to promote learning and to enrich childrens play and to protect children from possible negative influences.

English-Language Learners: Implications of Limited Vocabulary for Cross-Language Transfer of Phonemic Awareness With Kindergartners

Research examined the influence of native vocabulary development on cross-language transfer of phonemic awareness. Participants were Spanish-speaking kindergartners learning English in immersion classrooms. Results indicated that limited Spanish vocabulary development negatively influenced cross-language transfer of phonemic awareness to English. The results have clear and profound implications for Spanish-speaking children. Without foundational Spanish vocabulary skills needed to facilitate cross-language transfer of phonemic awareness to English, literacy acquisition difficulties will likely arise. Esta investigación examina la influencia en el desarrollo del vocabulario nativo en la transferencia de lenguaje cruzado con atención fonética. Los participantes fueron niños de preprimaria de habla hispana que estaban aprendiendo inglés en salones de inmersión total. Los resultados indicaron que el desarrollo limitado de vocabulario en español influenció negativamente la transferencia de lenguaje cruzado en atención fonética de inglés. Los resultados tienen implicaciones claras y profundas pare niños de habla hispana. Sin las habilidades fundamentales de vocabulario en español necesarias para facilitar la transferencia del lenguaje cruzado de atención fonética en inglés es posible que se formen dificultades de adquisición literaria.

Collaborative Literacy Learning During Sociodramatic Play in a Multiage (K-2) Primary Classroom

Abstract This study examined the collaborative literacy learning that occurred in a literacy-enriched sociodramatic play center in a multiage classroom (kindergarten through second grade). Fifteen hours of free play were videotaped under the supervision of the classroom teacher and a detailed transcript was made of the action and dialogue that occurred in the play center. Literacy behaviors were identified from the resulting transcript and coded by type and social context. When peer collaboration occurred, categories were identified. The provider, recipient, type of collaboration and outcome were coded. Relationships among the coding variables were then examined. The findings indicate substantial cross-age literacy-based collaboration, with almost half of the interactions involving older children helping younger children. This collaboration was very effective in getting recipients to engage in reading and writing behavior. The results suggest that literacy-enriched play environments combined with mixed-ag...

Collaborative Literacy Activity in Print-Enriched Play Centers: Exploring the “Zone” in Same-Age and Multi-Age Groupings

This study describes the collaborative literacy activity that occurred in one teachers sociodramatic play center in two situations: when she taught a multi-age (k-2) class and a year later when she taught a same-age kindergarten. In each situation, 15 hours of free play were videotaped and a detailed transcript was made of the action and dialogue that occurred. We analyzed the data to compare the collaborative literacy interactions that occurred in the play center under the two grouping arrangements and to test the assumption that collaborative learning always flows from “experts” to “novices,” a basic tenet of the zone of proximal development. Our findings showed that the children in the multi-age group engaged in a larger amount and a broader range of collaborative literacy activities than did the children in the same-age kindergarten. We also found the collaborative interactions that occurred in the play center were more complex than the zone of proximal development would lead one to believe. Many collaborative interactions in both groups were multi-directional in nature, with the “expert” and “novice” roles not firmly set.

Play for Cognitive Growth

The Elementary SchoolJournal Volume 81, Number 2 ? 1980 by The University of Chicago 0013-5984/81/8102-0007

Mindbrain and play-literacy connections

00.88 Symbolic play is a special type of play in which objects, actions, and words are used as substitutes for other objects, actions, and situations. A child might use playdough as a substitute for bread and pretend to eat it. Although this type of behavior appears to be aimless and nonproductive, there is a growing consensus among developmental psychologists that symbolic play has an important role in childrens cognitive growth. Piaget (1) and Vygotsky (2) believe that symbolic play is a prerequisite for the development of abstract, logical thought. There is evidence that symbolic play is often underdeveloped in children from low socioeconomic backgrounds (3-6). The possibility thus arises that a lack of symbolic play may inhibit the mental growth of disadvantaged children. Stepping up the quality of these childrens play may promote their cognitive development. This possibility has led to attempts to increase the amount and the quality of childrens play through direct training. Studies of play training have all used the same basic research design. First, the subjects were divided into matched treatment groups. Second, the subjects were assessed on several dependent variables, usually quality of play and one or more measures of cognitive performance. Third, the experimental group received play training, which typically involved an adult modeling symbolic play behaviors-perhaps using objects as symbols, role-playing, or simulating the voices of others-while the control group received some type of neutral experience. Finally, the subjects were reassessed on the dependent variables to determine whether the training led to any

The Cognitive Significance of Children's Play: A Review of Selected Research.

Research on the relationship between play and early literacy flourished in the 1990s but slowed to a trickle at the start of the new millennium. As we see it, play—literacy research is stuck in a theoretical and methodological rut. Two promising conceptual frameworks — connectionist and dynamic systems theories — can supply the thrust needed to get this important area of research moving forward again. We give examples of how Fischer’s dynamic skill theory provides analytic tools for examining data on play and literacy, including partially ordered scaling of items (POSI), dynamic modeling, and dynamic assessment. These new tools and theoretical lenses have the potential to answer the essential question: Does play make a difference in early literacy development?