A Mandate for Playful Learning in Preschool: Presenting the Evidence - Softcover

Hirsh-Pasek, Kathy; Michnick Golinkoff, Roberta; Berk, Laura E.; Singer, Dorothy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0195382714 ISBN 13: 9780195382716

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2008

Synopsis

We are robbing young children of play time at home and school in an effort to give them a head start on academic skills like reading and mathematics. Yet the scientific evidence suggests that eliminating play from the lives of children is taking preschool education in the wrong direction. This brief but compelling book provides a strong counterargument to the rising tide of didactic instruction on preschool classrooms. The authors present scientific evidence in support of three points: 1) children need both unstructured free time and playful learning under the gentle guidance of adults to best prepare for entrance into formal school; 2) academic and social development are inextricably intertwined, so academic learning must not trump attention to social development; and 3) learning and play are not incompatible. Rather, playful learning captivates children's minds in ways that support better academic and social outcomes as well as strategies for lifelong learning. Written in clear and expressive language, this book offers a comprehensive review of research supporting playful learning along with succinct policy and practice recommendations that derive from this research. A Mandate for Playful Learning in Preschool is a must read for teachers, policy makers, and parents interested in educating a generation of life-long learners who are ready for school and ready to compete in the knowledge-based economy of the 21st century.

About this title

About the Author

Kathy Hirsh-Pasek is the Stanley and Debra Lefkowitz Professor in the Department of Psychology at Temple University, where she serves as Director of the Infant Language Laboratory. She received her bachelor's degree from the University of Pittsburgh and her Ph.D. from University of
Pennsylvania. Her research in the areas of early language development and infant cognition has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health and Human Development, resulting in 9 books and numerous publications. She is a Fellow of the American Psychological
Association and the American Psychological Society, serves as the Associate Editor of Child Development, and is treasurer of the International Association for Infant Studies. Roberta Michnick Golinkoff obtained her doctorate from Cornell University. After a postdoctoral fellowship at the University
of Pittsburgh's Learning Research and Development Center, she joined the University of Delaware. She holds an H. Rodney Sharp Chair in the School of Education, with joint appointments in Psychology and Linguistics. A Guggenheim Fellow and a James McKeen Cattell award winner, she has written dozens
of journal articles, chapters, and academic books.

Review

"This brief, convincing book is a valuable read for several audiences...Teacher educators and trainers as well as curriculum developers will find strong support for bringing play back to the classrooms. Lastly, parents will find it an eye-opener to the value of play and the critical role that make-believe play has in developing a child's competencies, both academic and social-emotional."--Preschool Matters

"Amid the increasing emphasis on standards and assessment in preschool education, are policymakers losing sight of the value of play? This book, by four distinguished investigators in the field, suggests that they are. After reviewing decades of research, the authors conclude that 'children need both unstructured free play and playful learning under the gentle guidance of adults to best prepare them for entrance into formal school.'"--Fairfax Futures

"A Mandate for Playful Learning in the Preschool: Presenting the Evidence offers strong new ammunition desperately needed to halt the forces that devalue play...the fact that this book gets right to the points that it so compellingly makes may, in itself, attract busy readers as well as give believers resource material for framing their own approaches...I highly recommend this book. It articulates the beliefs of play specialists and scholars beautifully in an evidence-based context."--Karen VanderVen as reviewed in American Journal of Play

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0195382714
• ISBN 13: 9780195382716
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 121