Walsh, G. (2019) ‘What’s all the fuss about play’? Expanding student teachers’ beliefs and understandings of play as pedagogy in practice

In an attempt to resolve some of the lingering tensions involved in understanding play as learning in practice, a group of Irish student teachers in the final years of their degree programme participated in an intervention known as ‘PLAI’ (Playful Learning Across Ireland). This paper reports on the impact of such an intervention on student teachers’ beliefs and practices about playful learning, drawing on evidence gleaned from a pre- and post-questionnaire survey and qualitatively rich reflective practice diaries. The findings highlight how the student teachers shifted their perceptions from a mere acceptance that all play has value to a greater critical and more expansive appreciation of playing as learning and teaching. In addition, they seemed to have become more conscious of the inherent complexities involved in implementing such a pedagogical approach effectively, suggesting that there is a definite need for play to be ‘fussed’ about in the early years classroom.