Attitudes of Arabic language teachers towards the use of learning through play in teaching children with autism spectrum disorder in Amman: اتجاهات معلمي اللغة العربية نحو استخدام التعلم باللعب في تعليم أطفال اضطراب طيف التوحد في عمان

This study aimed to identify the attitudes of Arabic language teachers towards the use of learning through play in teaching children with autism spectrum disorder in Amman and to identify the impact of the following variables (gender, educational qualification, years of experience). It was distributed to (50) teachers of the Arabic language, and its validity and reliability were confirmed by a committee of arbitrators from specialists. The Arabic language teachers towards the use of learning through play in teaching children with autism spectrum disorder was significant, as it was found that there were no statistically significant differences at the level of significance (α ≤ 0.05) between the average responses of the study sample members towards trends. Arabic language teachers towards the use of learning by playing in teaching children autism spectrum disorder due to the gender variable (gender, educational qualification, years of experience) and based on the results of this study, the researcher recommended recommendations, the most important of which is the need to work on integrating autistic children into the family Educational games as it increases their motivation, interest in developing learning through play for children with autism as much as possible, the need to work on using the method of play in developing communication skill for children on the autism spectrum.

Implementation of Digital Games in the Teaching Process

We live in a time of intense social change. Technology is advancing every day and is leading to new ways of solving problems, ways of working, as well as the way of coming to knowledge. Digital games as part of modern technology, in addition to being fun, offer the possibility of a different learning concept. Playing digital games, if properly implemented in the teaching process, can have multiple positive effects. If we want to see the teaching of the future, we cannot do that by looking at the teaching of what it is now. We have to watch the children during they play video games. We will see that they are engaged, excited, active as they learn by crossing one level of the game after another. The digital environment has led to the phenomenon that today's children adopt information in a different way than their parents did. Instead of receiving information passively from beginning to end, which was made possible by previous learning technologies such as books, printed materials, television shows, today's children are in an interactive relationship with learning technologies. The application of digital games in teaching enables the encouragement of creativity in children, which is in contrast to the current way of working in schools in which students are mostly offered ready-made solutions. Learning through play is a controlled process of the personal activity of students through which solutions are found and answers to certain questions. The aim of this paper is to point out the influence of digital games on the effects of learning, on the motivation of students, as well as the ways in which they can be implemented in the teaching process. In this way, students' everyday experience in playing digital games, acquired outside of school, could be used for the purpose of transferring and acquiring new knowledge.

Learning through Play: An Interplay between Early Childhood Teachers' Beliefs and Practices in Aotearoa-New Zealand

<p>This study explores teacher conceptions of play and its relationship to children’s learning. It also explores how this influenced the role teachers took during play and the way they approached assessment. This case study research involved three teachers across three early childhood education centres in Wellington, New Zealand. Data drawn on included teacher interviews, observations, document, and field notes. Piaget’s (1973) and Vygotsky’s (1978) Constructivist theories of learning through play provided the theoretical framework informing both data collection and analysis. Findings suggested that teachers held various conceptions about how learning through play could be practiced and how children learn. These beliefs and assumptions were further influenced by an ad hoc range of contextual factors, including the children’s ages, differing centre philosophies and goals. Teachers revealed that the professional development they had been able to access concerning learning through play and assessment had been limited, largely relying on professional development provided by their own centre, discussions with their head teacher, peers, and their own initiative and understanding. This research suggests there is a need to provide ongoing professional development to assist teachers to engage with the place of learning in play-based activities; strategies to assess learning during play activities; and effective documentation. This might help teachers work through the complex and sometimes contradictory ideas about play and children’s learning they encountered and the inconsistencies there were at times between their espoused beliefs and practices.</p>

Learning through Play: An Interplay between Early Childhood Teachers' Beliefs and Practices in Aotearoa-New Zealand

<p>This study explores teacher conceptions of play and its relationship to children’s learning. It also explores how this influenced the role teachers took during play and the way they approached assessment. This case study research involved three teachers across three early childhood education centres in Wellington, New Zealand. Data drawn on included teacher interviews, observations, document, and field notes. Piaget’s (1973) and Vygotsky’s (1978) Constructivist theories of learning through play provided the theoretical framework informing both data collection and analysis. Findings suggested that teachers held various conceptions about how learning through play could be practiced and how children learn. These beliefs and assumptions were further influenced by an ad hoc range of contextual factors, including the children’s ages, differing centre philosophies and goals. Teachers revealed that the professional development they had been able to access concerning learning through play and assessment had been limited, largely relying on professional development provided by their own centre, discussions with their head teacher, peers, and their own initiative and understanding. This research suggests there is a need to provide ongoing professional development to assist teachers to engage with the place of learning in play-based activities; strategies to assess learning during play activities; and effective documentation. This might help teachers work through the complex and sometimes contradictory ideas about play and children’s learning they encountered and the inconsistencies there were at times between their espoused beliefs and practices.</p>

Learning through Play: A Serious Game as a Tool to Support Circular Economy Education and Business Model Innovation

Despite the increasing attention on circular economy at the policy level, the implementation of circular business models in companies is still limited. Many companies are put off by the apparent complexity to translate the general concepts of a circular economy into their business practice. This paper presents the development and testing of a simulation board game that aimed to address this gap between theory and business practice. The board game, Risk&RACE, was developed with the purpose of enabling students and business executives to experiment with circular economy business models. The gameplay was tested with 120 users, and cognitive learning outcomes as well as learning dynamics were assessed using a survey. The results of the game workshops demonstrated that the game advanced the participants’ awareness of the need for a circular economy, their understanding of basic circular economy principles, and their insight in opportunities and challenges of circular business models at the company level. When reflecting on the game as a learning tool, players highlighted its engaging and realistic nature and praised how it stimulated strategic thinking. Complementing the gameplay with a debriefing discussion afterwards encouraged players to reflect upon their newly gained insights, deepening their learning experience.

Blurring the play–drama boundary: A case study investigating the teaching and learning of a drama-integrated curriculum in a Hong Kong kindergarten

This study aims to conceptualise a drama-integrated curriculum devised from process drama as an approach to play-based pedagogy and curriculum to realise the policy initiative of learning through play. By investigating teachers’ perspectives and practices in relation to the curriculum of a local kindergarten, examples of effective drama-integration strategies and the associated children's learning are identified and organised into four themes – namely, drama teaching and learning through, before, in and after play. The teachers understood that although their curriculum is not based on free play, its not-so-free features may reconcile the play–learning binarism, daring them to navigate the maze of complex relationships between play, drama, teaching and learning in implementing a playful curriculum.

The PLAYground: An Online Summer Camp for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children

The PLAYground summer camp was developed by the Playful Learning Lab (PLL) at the University of St. Thomas, an undergraduate research group with a focus on learning through play. Through a partnership with a local school serving deaf and hard of hearing students, the PLAYground was designed to provide content to the deaf and hard of hearing community. Over the course of 8 weeks, 84 students were provided with materials that correspond with activities on the website. Each activity is accompanied with a lesson plan and video, both of which are available in English, American Sign Language, Spanish, and Arabic. Students participating in the PLAYground also had the option to meet with camp counselors via Zoom weekly to build community and create together.