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The ‘Player’ Role of the Teacher in Playworld Creates New Conditions for Children’s Learning and Development

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Abstract

This paper examines how teachers in the Indonesian context create motivating conditions for children’s learning and development. Sixteen hours of digital visual observations on 38 children (mean age 4.4 years) were selected from a larger dataset of video observations, focus group discussions, and teacher interviews. Using the cultural-historical conception of play as the frame, the findings reveal that in the Playworld, the teachers’ ‘player’ role creates motivating conditions for learning by being inside the play together with children to unify imagination, cognition, and emotion in the play. Imaginary play transforms into experiences where children can learn mathematical concepts and develop self-regulation. This takes place within imaginary play. The teachers’ ‘player’ role creates dynamic interactions for supporting children’s learning and development. Therefore, it should be promoted as a new play pedagogy that can encourage degrees of freedom for players and support children’s play and learning.

Résumé

Ce portfolio examine comment les enseignants, dans l’environnement indonésien, créent des conditions stimulantes pour l'apprentissage et le développement des enfants. A partir d'un ensemble de données dont des observations vidéo, de discussions de groupe et d'entretiens avec des enseignants, seize heures d'observations visuelles numériques sur 38 enfants (âge moyen 4,4 ans) ont été sélectionnées. Avec le concept du jeu culturel et historique, il s’est avéré que dans le Playworld, le rôle des « enseignants-joueurs » est de créer des conditions stimulantes pour l'apprentissage en étant également dans le jeu. Cela a pour but de relier leur imagination, cognition, et émotion. Le jeu imaginaire se transforme en expériences où les enfants peuvent apprendre des concepts mathématiques et développer l'autorégulation. Le rôle « des enseignants joueurs» est aussi de créer des interactions dynamiques pour soutenir l'apprentissage et le développement des enfants. Par conséquent, il convient de promouvoir cette nouvelle pédagogie, puisqu’elle permettrait aux joueurs d’avoir un degré de liberté et de soutenir le jeu et l'apprentissage des enfants.

Resumen

Este articulo examina cómo los profesores en Indonesia crean condiciones motivadoras para el aprendizaje y el desarrollo de los niños. Se seleccionaron 16 horas de observaciones visuales digitales de 38 niños (con edad promedio de 4,4 años) de un conjunto mayor de datos que incluían observaciones en video, discusiones de grupos focales y entrevistas con profesores. Utilizando la concepción cultural-histórica del juego como marco, los hallazgos revelan que en Playworld, el rol de “jugador” de los maestros crea condiciones motivadoras para el aprendizaje al estar dentro del juego junto con los niños para unificar la imaginación, la cognición y la emoción en dicho juego. El juego imaginario se transforma en experiencias donde los niños pueden aprender conceptos matemáticos y desarrollar la autorregulación. Lo anterior tiene lugar dentro del juego imaginario. El papel de "jugador" de los profesores crea interacciones dinámicas para apoyar el aprendizaje y el desarrollo de los niños. Por lo tanto, debe promoverse como una nueva pedagogía del juego, que pueda fomentar grados de libertad para los jugadores y apoyar el juego y el aprendizaje de los niños.

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Correspondence to Ade Dwi Utami.

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Utami, A.D., Fleer, M. & Li, L. The ‘Player’ Role of the Teacher in Playworld Creates New Conditions for Children’s Learning and Development. IJEC 55, 169–186 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13158-022-00333-y

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