Vygotsky's Mind in Society: The Role of Play in Development
"The preschool child enters an imaginary, illusory world in which the unrealizable desires can be realized, and this world is what we call play" (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 93)
Vygotsky sees play as a transitional stage in imagination development of higher mental functions. He viewed play as the leading source of development in preschool. "Play provides a transitional stage in this direction whenever an object (for example, a stick) becomes a pivot for severing the meaning of horse from a real horse" (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 97) Play creates an experience by which children learn meaning, symbols, and roles. When children are at play they use their imagination, they assign meanings to objects, and they make up rules and try abide by them.
According to the book, purpose, as the ultimate goal, determines the child's affective attitude to play. There are a lot of available interactive activities we can use to teach concepts. However, this also poses new problems. In a society where children have endless virtual games to choose from, the challenge for teachers to create a purposeful play in instruction seems enormous. From childhood, most of the children today have been exposed to "educational games" and their concept of play would have been greatly affected by gadgets available to them. There is no need to imagine when scenarios and situations have been virtually created for our children. The skills such as to make internal analysis or use imagination may need to be retaught. How do we reconcile the virtual world the children live in to the developmental play we want them to continue to experience?
Vygotsky sees play as a transitional stage in imagination development of higher mental functions. He viewed play as the leading source of development in preschool. "Play provides a transitional stage in this direction whenever an object (for example, a stick) becomes a pivot for severing the meaning of horse from a real horse" (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 97) Play creates an experience by which children learn meaning, symbols, and roles. When children are at play they use their imagination, they assign meanings to objects, and they make up rules and try abide by them.
According to the book, purpose, as the ultimate goal, determines the child's affective attitude to play. There are a lot of available interactive activities we can use to teach concepts. However, this also poses new problems. In a society where children have endless virtual games to choose from, the challenge for teachers to create a purposeful play in instruction seems enormous. From childhood, most of the children today have been exposed to "educational games" and their concept of play would have been greatly affected by gadgets available to them. There is no need to imagine when scenarios and situations have been virtually created for our children. The skills such as to make internal analysis or use imagination may need to be retaught. How do we reconcile the virtual world the children live in to the developmental play we want them to continue to experience?
I was thinking about the need for balance when we read about the classroom that uses iPads for the majority of the day. There is a lot that kids can gain from technology. They find it enjoyable, which makes it meaningful and reinforcing. However, they need to learn social skills. I have a student with autism who only chooses his iPad or computer as a reward. Now that he's in middle school, iPads are only used for communication, and his WAT class doesn't have computers. He was forced to choose between doing nothing, or playing with one of the toys available. He chose Legos and played with them for the first time. Another student joined him and they were cooperatively playing. It's harder to use imagination than to have information fed to you. I agree that there needs to be time for both.
ReplyDelete"It's harder to use imagination than to have information fed to you." This is really an important point. It's so easy to look at a screen and consume information, but difficult to engage in the imagination process if you're not used to it. How do kids nowadays develop imagination and learn to play, which leads to higher mental functions, in a world of digital screens, apps, and instant gratification?
Delete^^^Forgot to add, I started reading "The Information Diet," our Topic 8 book, and it sounds like this book will address the need for balance.
Delete(forgot to login for that comment.) I think teachers and parents have to stress the need for play off of screens. I can't imagine what kids will be like when they're adults if they're already staring at phones at birthday parties or other engaging activities.
DeleteI wish I had an answer to your concluding question. Schools compete with virtual games and apps, which have little educational value, when it comes to getting and keeping the engagement of students; it is much more desirable to play MarioKart on one's phone than to read Latin. Perhaps that is a part of our job as teacher designers: to create a scenario so engaging that it sates the part of the brain that craves those virtual games.
ReplyDeleteIt's ridiculous that I didn't see it before (even though we talked about it in class), but virtual games can pose a problem when it comes to learning and play!! And how would teacher's monitor that outside of their classrooms? It goes back to teaching Global Citizenship...perhaps to both parents and students :)
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