Research through Play: Participatory Methods in Early Childhood

by Lorna Arnott (Editor), Kate Wall (Editor)

Overview

Doing research with young children can be challenging for many reasons, but this book provides clear guidance on how to engage in appropriate methods. Focusing on researching through play, careful consideration is given to:

· the founding principles of playful research

· understanding young children’s perspectives

· prioritising the rights of the child and the voice of the child

· examples of innovative research methods

Real life examples and research projects are presented, to enable common challenges to be anticipated and to showcase successful creative approaches, and to inspire new paths in research.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781526493545
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	09/29/2021
Edition description:	First
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.69(w) x 9.53(h) x (d)

About the Author

Lorna Arnott is a Senior Lecturer and Director of Early Years in the School of Education, University of Strathclyde. Lorna’s main area of interest is in children’s early play experiences particularly in relation to technologies, social and creative play. She also has a keen interest in research methodologies, with a specialist focus on consulting with children and methods derived from pedagogy. Lorna is the convener for the Digital Childhoods, STEM and Multimodality Special Interest Group as part of the European Early Childhood Educational Research Association and is the Deputy Editor for the International Journal of Early Years Education and Assistant Editor for the Journal of Early Childhood Research.

Kate Wall is Professor of Education at the University of Strathclyde. A primary teacher by background, her work is characterised by enquiry-based partnership with children and practitioners of all ages and stages.

Table of Contents

Part I: Founding Principles to Playful Research Approaches
Chapter 1: Framing and Defining Play in Early Childhood - Elizabeth Wood & Liz Chesworth
Chapter 2: Young Children’s Play, Voices and Rights in Research - Jane Murray
Chapter 3: Ethical considerations: Play for fun and play for data collection - Sue Dockett
Part II: Theoretical and Conceptual Frameworks for Playful Research
Chapter 4: Practitioner-enquiry: A Reflexive Method for Playful Pedagogy - Kate Wall, Lorna Arnott & Elaine Hall
Chapter 5: Pedagogical Documentation as a Thinking Companion - Alma Fleet & Jane Merewether
Chapter 6: Analysing and Interpreting Data from Research with Young Children: Faithfulness, Integrity and Trustworthiness in Eliciting Meaning - Cathy Nutbrown
Part III: Adapting Play-based Pedagogies as a Research Method
Chapter 7: Approaches to informed consent with young children - Lorna Arnott, Kate Wall, Loreain Martinez, Caralyn Blaisdell & Shannon Ludgate
Chapter 8: Using drawing as a playful research encounter with young children - Pauline Duncan
Chapter 9: Observing and interpreting embodied interactions: Interpreting Voice from Birth to 3 years - Lorna Arnott, Jonathan Delafield-Butt & Timothy J Mc Gowen
Chapter 10: The use of pedagogical documentation and artistic languages in research with young children - Ioanna Palaiologou, Elisabetta Biffi & Franca Zuccoli
Chapter 11: Frame, explain and theorise: Using an App as a tool to interpret imaginary play with children and teachers - Marilyn Fleer
Chapter 12: Using playful methods to understand children’s digital literacies - Pekka Mertala
Part IV: Research Resources from Early Childhood Education
Introduction to Part IV - Kate Wall & Lorna Arnott
Project 1 : Facilitating voice with our youngest children - Rhona Matheson, Starcatchers
Project 2: Being an Investigator in Our Learning Environment - Heidi Sairanen
Research Proposal 1: Investigating the perceptions of young children in school-based pretend play - Triona Stokes
Research Proposal 2: Playing and Being, Here and Now: adults using improvisation to join children aged 0 – 5 in free-play - Maddie Broad

Editorial Reviews

Research about children’s lives should always include the child’s own voice. This book encourages students to think about what they can do to ensure a child is enabled to tell their story and how they view the world, offering valuable insights into what it means to be that child.

Dr Caroline Leeson