Journals@UC (University of Cincinnati)
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Children’s Gendered and Non-Gendered Play in Natural Spaces
No full textThis paper concerns gender aspects of children’s play in nature environments. In an ethnographic study, children between 1½ and 6 years in a Swedish outdoor preschool were videotaped during time for free play. Four different play themes were particularly popular among the children: war and superhero play, family play, animal play and physical play. Each one of these themes has been analyzed from two perspectives: how nature resources are used and which gender positions they provide. Within the themes, nature’s affordances are used in various ways. Similarly, a range of gender positions is evident across the themes. The superhero theme includes exclusively gender-stereotyped masculine play positions, while the family theme includes both traditional gender positions and possibilities for transgressions. Further, animal play as well as physical play provides non-gendered play positions. Natural environments are not gender-coded in themselves and they invite certain play activities where girls and boys play together. Thus, nature spaces seem to offer good opportunities to promote gender equity
Bicycling and Spatial Knowledge in Children: An Exploratory Study in Davis, California
No full textThis paper presents results from a study that examines the relationship between travel mode choice and geographic knowledge among third graders in Davis, California. Using methods that include personal interviews and mental mapping, the study explores whether children who primarily use active modes of travel (specifically bicycling) have a different spatial understanding of the community than their peers who rely on passive travel modes (e.g., riding in cars with adults). The findings suggest that children with more bicycling experience are able to recall more details of their community than those with less bicycling experience. Further, the extensive bikers may progress to higher stages of spatial development at a younger age than their peers with less bicycling experience. With this study, we hope to provide community leaders with a broader understanding of the implications of encouraging active travel among children
Designing for Play-Based Learning of Scientific Concepts: Digital Tools for Bridging School and Science Museum Contexts
No full textPlaying and schooling are usually considered as separate activities. In this article, we argue that these activities can be reconciled in order to design learning experiences that are more exploratory and engaging. Taking a socio-cultural perspective on playing and learning, we provide examples that bridge museum experiences with school-based activities in order to facilitate students’ learning of scientific concepts. In the project discussed, different technological devices are used as play-based tools for connecting science learning in the two institutional settings. In this article we discuss the implications of research in different fields of inquiry for designing play-based learning activities. We illustrate this complexity by analyzing how a multi-disciplinary professional group negotiated their understandings of how playing and learning could be combined, and we give a brief presentation of how the actual learning trajectory was operationalized into design
Interactive Humanoid Robots and Androids in Children\u27s Lives
No full textThis paper provides insight into how recent progress in robotics could affect children’s lives in the not-so-distant future. We describe two studies in which robots were presented to children in the context of their daily lives. The results of the first study, which was conducted in an elementary school with a mechanical-looking humanoid robot, showed that the robot affected children’s behaviors, feelings, and even their friendships. The second study is a case study in which children performed daily conversational tasks with a geminoid, a teleoperated android robot that resembles a living individual. The results showed that children gradually adapted to conversations with the geminoid and developed an awareness of the personality or presence of the person controlling the geminoid. These studies provide clues to the process of children’s adaptation to interactions with robots and particularly how they start treating robots as intelligent beings
The Place of Outdoor Play in a School Community: A Case Study of Recess Values
No full textChildren’s outdoor play in school may forge meaningful, lasting environmental and community connections, yet it has rarely been explored as a component of placebased education. This article describes an ethnographic case study of recess play values in a small, independent school for dyslexic children that offers multiple choices for recess play, including traditional playground equipment and a wooded area. Ecological psychology provided the theoretical framework to describe the values observed over several years of children’s recess play, as well as those expressed in interviews with parents, teachers, administrators and alumni. Results suggest that the strong preference for “woods play” areas during the elementary grades is linked to the diversity of affordances (“action possibilities”) present, as well as the opportunity to participate in a dynamic, creative children’s culture. The dual use of the woods for teaching and play further enhanced students’ sense of connection with and competence in selected play settings
Underwater Explorers: Using Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) to Engage Youth with Underwater Environments
No full textIn 2007, 270 youth (10-15 years of age) participated in our study designed to assess kids’ perceptions about using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to explore underwater habitats and how the ROV could facilitate engagement with the environment. The three programs we conducted were vessel-based and integrated an ROV component into existing environmental education programs. Two were conducted in the Chesapeake Bay near Northeast, Maryland, and one was conducted offshore near Fort Pierce, Florida. Using a mixed-methods approach, respondents indicated significantly more positive perceptions than negative perceptions of the ROV. Content analysis of non-directed perceptions about the ROV, in terms of challenges and opportunities associated with using robotics technology in outdoor non-formal education settings, revealed a range of responses. Young people identified opportunities for increased education, excitement, and engagement, as well as challenges associated with protection of underwater habitats and limitations due to cost of the equipment
Integrative, Mobile Work with Children and Youth: Its Contribution to Community Development in Slovakia
No full textThis report explores the role of mobile youth work for community development in one of the most deprived neighborhoods of the Slovak capital, Bratislava. Two youth programs are reviewed: an educational program for pre-school age children and a participatory video project by youth between 15 and 20. In both cases, we focus on how the programs reflected and reacted to the needs of the community, how they drew from local resources, their politics of participation, and their noticeable impact on the community. In the final section, we focus on integregation in community work—i.e., the integrative involvement of children and youth of all ages in projects that are sensitive to the young people’s individual needs and capacities—and on the role of place in this process
Review of the film Lessons from the Real World (2011) by Gregory Smith
No full textReviewed Work: Review of the film Lessons from the Real World (2011) by Gregory Smit
Mother Nature\u27s Child (2010) by Louise Chawla
No full textMother Nature\u27s Child (2010) by Louise Chawl
“I’m about to really bring it!”: Access Points between Youth Activists and Adult Community Leaders
No full textWorking-class and low-income youth of color rarely have opportunities to participate in policy-making settings, such as school boards, city councils, or newsrooms. Those encounters between youth activists and adult community leaders that do occur represent access points for youth, in which young people advocate for their collective interests. In this article we analyze access points as learning environments for youth. First, employing cultural-historical activity theory, we identify participants’ goals, the tools and artifacts they appropriate in the service of those goals, and the behavioral norms and divisions of labor common to access points. Second, we argue that access points provide opportunities for youth to learn skills for persuasive speech and deliberation, which are critical for robust civic engagement. We conclude by offering recommendations for how to support novice youths’ participation in policymaking domains