Παιχνίδι σε ετερογενείς τάξεις παιδιών με και χωρίς αναπηρία: Απόψεις υποψήφιων εκπαιδευτικών προσχολικής εκπαίδευσης

Abstract

This article examines the views of student early childhood education teachers (ECETs) on play and its relation to learning in heterogeneous classrooms of kindergartens, when children with and without disability co-exist. More specifically, focusing on the example of the Undergraduate Department of Educational Sciences and Early Childhood Education of the University of Patras, we examined the views of second and third year student ECETs on issues related to: their understanding of play and its relationship with learning; the role of the ECET when children with and without disability play freely; and the challenges and skills related to their future profession in the process of promoting the active participation of all children in play. The results highlight that student ECETs approach play in multiple ways and rarely link free play to teaching and learning. They believe that the role of ECETs during free play is limited to enforcing rules, providing brief assistance, and managing crises. Furthermore, a pedagogical and inclusive perspective was found to be absent in their views of play and playful learning for children with and without disability, as well as in their views for the skills they will need for their future professional role. Finally, the implications that the results of this research have for the process of enriching the initial education of preschool teachers at the University of Patras are discussed, so as to highlight the intersection between play, learning and the pedagogy of inclusion.