ERIC Number: EJ1446876
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Dec
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1476-718X
EISSN: EISSN-1741-2927
Playing with Open-Ended Material as Experiences of Democracy: The Waldorf Case
Journal of Early Childhood Research, v22 n4 p515-526 2024
Using participatory observations accompanied by video and audio recordings, this article investigates how negotiations about play scripts evolve during play in two Waldorf kindergartens. In particular, this study aims to examine how child-initiated play can contribute to the development of basic democratic skills in early childhood. The concept of resistance proposed by Gert Biesta has been a theoretical starting point for analysis. Hence, this article investigates how and what kinds of resistance are offered through play negotiations with unprocessed, open-ended play materials typical of Waldorf kindergartens. The analysis reveals that resistance is offered by the play materials, previous play scripts, and play partners. In addition, open-ended play materials seemed to add more complexity to negotiations than industrially processed toys. Consequently, the risk of failure in such negotiations becomes more intrusive.
Descriptors: Kindergarten, Play, Early Childhood Education, Democratic Values, Resistance (Psychology), Peer Relationship, Interaction, Conflict Resolution, Peer Mediation, Child Development, Foreign Countries, Teaching Methods, Child Behavior, Toys, Citizenship Education, Democracy
SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2993
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Elementary Education; Kindergarten; Primary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Norway
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A