The play milieu at creches in Macassar

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Play is widely acknowledged as a cornerstone of childhood development. Its significance stretchesbeyond developing cognitive abilities and school readiness to the development of social skills,emotional expression and well-being. The milieu, or environment, is recognized as highlyinfluential with regards to occupational performance; the play environment is therefore also of greatimportance to child development. However, there is a lack of knowledge regarding the assessmentof this play environment, especially in a developing country context. This study therefore focuseson the play environment at South African crèches, specifically with regards to assessing theenvironmental factors impacting children's play, namely play space, play objects, play time andplay mates (including caregivers). The National Guidelines of ECD Services in South Africa hadalready set standards relating to play space, play time and caregiver ratio's at crèches. Criteria forplay objects were established as part of this study through an extensive literature review. Thesecriteria were then applied in a quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive survey at registered crèchesin Macassar, a community in the Cape Flats outside Cape Town. The survey results indicated thatcrèches complied to play space and play time regulations, but that not all crèches complied with theregulations regarding caregiver-child ratio's and play object adequacy. The crèches especiallylacked in gross motor play objects. These findings emphasize the importance of establishingpractical criteria and guidelines for all aspects of the play environment and enforcing thosestandards at day care crèches. The study also provides a useful framework for measuring theadequacy of the play environment at South African crèches.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University