Written by Shreya Sharma
Interested in learning about how your toddler can develop their skills for success? Read this article on how playtime has implications on the social, physical, and emotional development of students, which can be seen through to adulthood.
Play: The Work of Children
It is often said that play is the “work” of children. The United Nations High Commission for Human Rights has deemed it an essential right of all children due to its importance in child development. While external forces such as child exploitation, war, famine, and poverty have devastated many children’s rights, even those with an abundance of support and resources are often not experiencing all of the advantages of childhood play. As lifestyles become busier with added pressures, child-driven activity no longer offers the same protective benefits as it did years ago.
Through play, children use creativity and imaginative activities to develop their dexterity and physical, cognitive, and emotional strength. A healthy developmental trajectory is also influenced by activity, as play is the primary way a young child can interact with the world, adults, and other children. Furthermore, children can develop competency, confidence and resilience as they experience new situations and apply their learned skills to future challenges. Unguided play enables children to learn how to negotiate, self-advocate, and make decisions, especially when working in groups.
In an ideal situation, adult caregivers should play an active role in their children’s activities to strengthen relationships, improve communication and teach by example.
Still, they should leave maximum autonomy with the child. Children who are not primarily verbal communicators can express themselves through various activities with others, allowing insight into their emotions and experiences.
Unstructured physical play, such as rough-and-tumble play, is attributed to be an effective strategy in battling the childhood obesity epidemic.
The academic environment also benefits from play, as it allows the school setting to adjust to the students’ emotional, cognitive, and social development trajectories.
Studies have also shown that willingness to learn is enhanced by play in school.
At present, children are given less free time and opportunities for physical activity, especially as schools and parents place more emphasis on literacy skills. However, the decrease in undirected play and an increase in sedentary lifestyles may harm cognitive effort and decrease the ability to retain new information. Exploration is discouraged as children are rushed into maturing and preparing for their futures. Parents are regularly reminded to help their child excel, starting as early as infancy with specialized books, toys, and computer programs. Many communities offer and heavily market specialized enrichment programs. Continuous exposure to these services has lead parents to believe that they are an absolute requirement for good parenting and child development. However, the result is that parents spend more time and money arranging and transporting their children to various activities, while missing out on valuable opportunities to spend time together, encouraging social, moral, and emotional development.
Several explanations have been presented by experts as to why there is an obvious decrease in play across generations. As stated previously, various sources remind parents that it is essential to instill their child with every skill imaginable, as early as possible. This puts undue pressure on the child and the family to meet social expectations and overburdens them, straining their schedules. Additionally, admissions processes to schools, from elite preschools to colleges, are becoming increasingly rigorous. Fearing that their children will be left behind, parents shape their children to believe that everything they do must be somehow advantageous to their applications. Academic excellence and well-roundedness are so heavily emphasized that there is no room for undirected activities and play, which are essential for developmental success. National trends and initiatives focusing on academic strengths such as mathematics and literacy also serve to decrease the time schools allot for recess, physical education, and the arts. While improving fundamental skills is important, there are notable implications on the social, physical, and emotional development of students, which can be seen through to adulthood. Furthermore, many after-school programs prioritize extending academic learning rather than free or organized activities.
The rapid increase of passive entertainment sources, such as television and video games, also hinders access to the health and developmental benefits of active and creative play.
Moreover, there is abundant evidence suggesting that passive entertainment is often harmful.
Paediatricians, social workers, and human rights advocates are working hard to create productive, impactful solutions for this growing concern. However, there is no single method that will work for all children. For example, for those living in economically disadvantaged areas, a possible strategy is the encouragement of creative and physical activities at home, or the funding and implementation of community-based childcare services. To respond to the plight of children in today’s world, child advocates must acknowledge all of the factors that prevent children’s optimal development and promote environments that will allow children worldwide to experience the benefits that play can offer.
References
Ginsburg, K. (2007, January 01). The Importance of Play in Promoting Healthy Child
Development and Maintaining Strong Parent-Child Bonds. Retrieved August 18, 2020,
from https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/119/1/182
Shafer, L. (2018, June 12). Summertime, Playtime. Retrieved August 18, 2020, from
https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/uk/18/06/summertime-playtime
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