This paper presents the formulated 'play-to-engage' model for indigenous community engagement that incorporates factors in cultural protocols and game design thinking. The hybrid model of the participatory co-creation model was formulated in the study that had been rolled out in two rural primary schools in West Borneo. These schools are located…

In this paper, an Anishnaabe educator and university researcher/former primary teacher make a case for viewing children's dramatic play as multimodal identity texts. Indigenous children in our research study take up an agentic role and construct positive identities in dramatic play, creating narratives that reflect Indigenous cultural practices,…

The educator's personal role in understanding children's play is a key factor in planning organization of educational process in kindergarten. An educator´s personal paradigm is assumed to be an experiential and educational construct. This research examines the possible correlation of educators' personal paradigms (N = 291) and contextual factors…

In this conceptual article, the authors examine the context of early childhood education and care in England and the underpinning predominant ideologies to explore how these impact on the framing of leadership. The English context entails several contradictions (antinomies) at ontological, epistemological and axiological levels, and is heavily…

Parental beliefs about play and learning are part of the "belief-context" of early childhood development and can thus make a key difference for the child. Previous studies have focused on cross-cultural comparisons, and therefore have neglected intra-cultural variations. This study sampled 163 Chinese mothers with children aged two to…

The study investigates parents' perceptions of and engagement with their children's play in the context of Qatar. Quantitative data were collected using a questionnaire that was administered to parents of children aged 4-7 years old in Doha. A total sample of 240 parents responded to the questionnaire. Findings indicated that Qatari parents valued…

Purpose: This study aims to examine the interplay between culturally relevant materials, child racial ethnic classroom composition and positive emotional climate in regard to high levels of peer play in low-income, urban preschools located in African-American and Mexican immigrant/Mexican-American communities in the USA.…

Up to 250 children of different ages can be seen when entering Sekolahku-MySchool (SMS) in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, integrated and happily engaged, indoors or outdoors, in sustainable activities as part of their everyday learning. With ages ranging from 16 months to 13 years, the children engage in learning typical academic skills and techniques…

Although the early behaviors associated with autism spectrum disorder have been well characterized, many behaviors are also commonly observed in young children with other developmental delays and even in those with typical development. Therefore, consideration must be given to whether a child demonstrates sufficient autism spectrum disorder…

Farm- and nature-based early childhood education programs have a unique potential to provide young children with skills and experiences that build a strong foundation for future learning and environmental stewardship, but can also to extend positive impacts to families. In this paper, we work to bridge the gap between research and practice by…

This article aims to discuss the quality of early childhood education and care in Brazil and the process of infants' and toddlers' "Inserimento" to daycare. The theoretical framework of our arguments is based on the notion of quality of child education as a negotiated concept, and by the Italian concept of "Inserimento." The…

This case study examines the policy significance of a partnership between two organizations committed to improving children's learning and well-being through the delivery of a forest and nature school (FNS) program offered in the context of a licensed childcare program in the province of Ontario, Canada. The notion of the Anthropocene is taken as…

Math abilities predict children's academic achievement and outcomes in adulthood such as full-time employment and income. Previous work indicates that parenting factors (i.e., education, parent math ability, frequency of math activities) relate to children's math performance. Further, research demonstrates that both domain-general (i.e., language…

This article draws on a long term ethnographic study which explored the way the home based practices experienced by children in a marginalised community in a large South African city, Port Elizabeth, prepared them for, and supported them in, schooling. The study was informed by the field known as 'New Literacy Studies' and which draws extensively…

In this essay, I argue that the work of Giorgio Agamben provides us with a theory of studious play which cuts across many of the categories that polarize educational thought. Rather than either ritualized testing or constructivist playfulness, Agamben provides a model of what he refers to as studious play--a practice which suspends the logic of…