Play based pedagogy in pre-school: a meta analysis research

Abstract

Learning through play has been priority in educational activities as it provides opportunities in knowledge exploration and to build meaningful experience in the early stages of a child. National Pre-School Curriculum Standard (2010) states that the pedagogical approach based on play has to be performed in the process of teaching and learning in preschool. Implementation of play based pedagogy is indeed a key parameter that lead to the learning goal of preschool without neglecting the interests of children. When the needs of children to play are met, it will indirectly increase the interest in children to make further learning objectives easier to achieve. Thus, this study aims to identify the elements in play-appropriate pedagogy to be applied and practiced in children in preschool based on previous studies via meta-analysis techniques. After a qualitative analysis, there are four elements that play-based pedagogy can be identified: (1) the appropriateness of the resources and learning materials; (2) the application of interest, creativity and motivation; (3) planning and implementation of educational activities; and (4) stimulation behavior.