Exploring conflict occurrences in a nature-based preschool in the context of indoor and outdoor child-initiated play
Date
2020
Authors
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Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
The social nature of preschool play provides a rich context to study conflict. Play in the outdoor environment affords children the opportunity to engage in deep sustained play (Bohling et al., 2010) making outdoor nature-based preschools a rich setting for children to engage in conflict in the context of play. This descriptive qualitative study explored peer conflict and resolution in the context of free play in a culturally diverse nature-based preschool both in the indoor and the outdoor setting. In this nature-based preschool, children spend two-thirds of their school day outside engaging in free play and forty-five minutes indoors engaging in free play and teacher directed activities. For this study focal child (n=16) video observations were conducted. Each focal child was video recorded for 30 minutes of their outdoor free play and 30 minutes of their indoor free play. Event coding analysis was used to examine peer conflict frequency, catalysts, interventionist types, and resolution or no resolution. Data analysis showed that in this nature preschool the setting (indoor, outdoor) played a role in conflict frequency rates, duration, catalyst, interventionist type patterns, and children’s opportunity to negotiate and resolve peer conflict. Boys engaged in more conflict indoors while girls engaged in conflict outdoors. The outdoor conflict events were more likely to be initiated by a play idea, lasted longer and involved more complex interventionist patterns.
Description
Keywords
Catalyst, Nature-based, Outdoor education, Peer conflict, Resolution