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- Bergin, Michelle, et al.
(author)
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Exploring with children, play in Irish primary schoolyards
- 2024
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In: International Journal of Play. - : Taylor & Francis. - 2159-4937. ; 13:2, s. 157-172
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Children’s play in Irish schoolyards remains neglected in educational policies and practices despite government commitments to inclusive schools and children’s rights. There is a dearth of research on children’s perspectives of play, criticisms of ‘at risk’ discourses underpinning concerns for certain children’s play rights, and studies identifying exclusion within Irish schoolyards, particularly for children with minoritized identities. This inquiry informed by the theory of practice architectures used walking interviews to explore with twenty-three children their play practices in two Irish primary schools identified as disadvantaged. Analysis of the interviews generated three themes: (1) the state of play – cracks with(in) the routines of the schoolyard, (2) playing along and with(in) this shared space and (3) the hard yard. This inquiry contributes to understandings of children’s play with(in) Irish schoolyards, as socially situated practices with contrasting representations of play as habitual and emerging. Play was central to children’s social lives, identities, and friendships and interrelated with diverse constraints, exclusionary practices, and the (re)production of the ‘hard yard’. While mattering most children’s experiences of significant constraints and inequities, this inquiry also highlighted the transformative possibilities generated within play to create shared possibilities for individual and collective flourishing.
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| 2. |
- Bergin, Michelle, et al.
(author)
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‘Finding the play’- exploring with occupational therapists practice possibilities in the context of Irish schoolyards
- 2024
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In: Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1103-8128 .- 1651-2014. ; 31:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BackgroundResearch has identified diverse constraints to the adoption of school-based occupational therapy approaches and a lack of attention to addressing the barriers to children’s play opportunities. Critical contextualised research is advocated to inform practice possibilities.Aims/ObjectivesThis inquiry aimed to explore with occupational therapists their existing practices in Irish schoolyards to generate practice possibilities concerned with play, as an issue of occupational justice.Materials and MethodsUsing the theory of practice architectures, six occupational therapists from diverse sites of practice participated in the first phase of a critical action research process using dialogical focus group and occupational mapping methods.ResultsThree themes were generated (1) Existing practices as situated (2) (Re)mattering play and practices as occupations and (3) Practice possibilities – ‘Finding the play’ between responsiveness and responsibilities. A further interrelated dimension was how the research methods provided mechanisms of raising consciousness.Conclusions, and SignificanceAlongside constructing knowledges on existing practices in an Irish context, this inquiry contributes to understandings of practices as socially embedded generative processes of ‘finding the play’, highlighting ethical responsibilities to make visible inequities reproduced in habitual practices and engage in relationships of solidarity to (re)construct alternative shared practices.
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| 3. |
- Bergin, Michelle, et al.
(author)
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Irish Schoolyards: Teacher’s Experiences of Their Practices and Children’s Play-“It’s Not as Straight Forward as We Think”
- 2024
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In: Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools, & Early Intervention. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1941-1243 .- 1941-1251. ; 17:2, s. 259-278
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- With the inclusion of play as a right, schools are urged to consider whether all children can access play opportunities in schoolyards. Refocusing on play as occupation is identified as an important way in which occupational therapists can contribute within schools. Greater knowledges of children’s play and teachers’ practices, in schoolyards in an Irish context, is required however to guide practices. This inquiry used interviews to explore with 10 primary school teachers, their practices, and experiences of children’s play in Irish schoolyards. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to generate three interrelated themes. These were a) Break(in)time: Play in schoolyards as different from other ways of doing within schools, b) play as producing inclusion and exclusion, c) and certainties and uncertainties produced in teachers’ everyday practices. This inquiry generated knowledges on the social nature of children’s play and teachers” practices in Irish schoolyards as negotiated processes, interacting with diverse intentions, and the particularities of each schoolyard. The consequences of individualizing choice were highlighted as central to the production of inclusion and exclusion in schoolyards. Greater consideration of how children’s play and teachers” practices occur as collective occupations, is proposed to advance inclusive schoolyards.
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| 4. |
- Bergin, Michelle
(author)
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Playing along (with)in the hard yard? Play, practices, and occupational justice in Irish schoolyards
- 2024
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- This thesis aims to generate knowledges on practice possibilities concerned with children’s play and occupational justice in Irish schoolyards. Navigating the intersections between theory and practice required an ongoing examination of the tensions and points of resonance between ideas, ideals, and practices. Drawing on critical occupational perspectives, four distinct yet interrelated studies contribute to the thesis aim, exploring play, particularly the play of children with minoritized identities, as an issue of occupational justice from diverse perspectives. Minoritized draws attention to the active social processes that create inequitable opportunities for children because of their identities relative to gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, religion, sexuality, and disability.In Study I, a scoping review using the Joanna Briggs institute methodology, showed a paucity of existing research on the play of Irish Traveller children, an ethnic minoritized community. Using an existing conceptual model to categorise reported influencing factors emphasized the distinct restricting factor of racism on Irish Traveller children’s play. To address the problematization of at-risk representations of Irish Traveller children, as reflective of culturist assumptions, greater attention to children’s own diverse constructions of play as a capability is proposed.Study II completed virtual and walking interviews with ten primary school teachers to explore their practices and experiences of particularly children with minoritized identities play in Irish schoolyards. The reflexive thematic analysis highlighted how prevailing norms interrelated with the locus of risks of exclusion to children’s individual choices and how teachers’ while valuing play, prioritised safety and an absence of conflict. Knowledges constructed on teachers and children negotiating individual and collective interests within diverse occupations in relationships (with)in the schoolyard, resonated with conceptualisations of collective occupations as constitutive with the production of the social space.Study III used individual and group walking interview methods to explore with 23 children their play in two Irish primary schools, identified as disadvantaged. Using the lens of the theory of practice architectures, the analysis highlighted children’s contrasting representations of play as habitual and emerging situated relational processes. Children’s acceptance of social hierarchies, individualistic and exclusionary social practices within schoolyards generated insights into the consequences of significant constraints and normative ideas on children’s play. Play was thus interrelated with the reproduction of what was termed the “hard yard”. However, the transformative potential of play was also suggested in how shared play created possibilities for fun, solidarity, and friendship.Study IV drawing on earlier studies, engaged six occupational therapists from diverse sites of practice in a critical action research inquiry to interrogate existing practices and generate practice possibilities focused on play and occupational justice in Irish schoolyards. Putting the theory of practice architectures to use again, the analysis drew attention to how habitual practices interrelated with constraints including circumscribed professional identities, service expectations and cultural norms to (re)produce practice possibilities, in tension with occupational justice ideals. Furthermore, the research process using dialogical focus group and occupational mapping methods provided a mechanism for raising consciousness that (re)mattered occupations and occupational justice.In conclusion, this thesis contributes nuanced understandings of play as socially situated practices interrelated with significant constraints and diverse social practices (with)in the particularities of Irish schoolyards. The ways in which inequities were (re)produced in habitual, individualistic, and exclusionary practices within schoolyards, and relationships of solidarity and fun were created within shared play supports understandings of the centrality of occupations to (in)justice. The insights generated problematized inclusive practices drawing attention to normative discourses, the individualising of choices, the neglect of substantive issues, such as racism and the significance of vulnerabilities and friendships. This thesis suggests practice possibilities that extend beyond play as an individual concern to consider ethical responsibilities to raise consciousness on the relational nature of collective practices with(in) shared spaces. Furthermore, in connecting (with) theorizing on occupation as collective, the theory of practice architectures and mechanisms of raising consciousness this thesis contributes to understandings of praxis.
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| 5. |
- Boyle, Bryan, et al.
(author)
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The Arabic psychosocial impact of assistive devices scale: Development, translation, and evaluation
- 2024
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In: Assistive technology. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1040-0435 .- 1949-3614.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper describes the development, translation, and early evaluation of the Arabic Psychosocial Impact of Assistive Devices Scale (AR-PIADS), an outcome measure instrument for the subjective impact of Assistive Technology on a person with a disabilities' quality of life. Developing the AR = PIADS instrument involved forward and backward translation by two independent teams of bilingual, Arabic-English speakers (n = 5) and a quality and usability review by a panel of people with disabilities (n = 18). The emergent version was evaluated with a group of experienced Arabic-speaking Assistive Technology users (n = 67) for its psychometric properties. Initial results demonstrate a favorable comparison for 16 of the 26 questionnaire items with scores recorded for the original, English language version. Internal consistency, measured using Cronbach's alpha, yielded a range of 0.97-0.99 for AR-PIADS while the new instrument's reliability was assessed using an intraclass correlation coefficient resulting in scores within the range of 0.86-0.97 for the overall instrument. Despite these positive results however, the translation process did highlight a number of challenges with language and cultural interpretation of the translated instrument. This suggests that further work is warranted to explore its utility in service provision.
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| 6. |
- Loudoun, Fiona M.
(author)
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Play Occupations in Digital Spaces: Children’s Experiences Throughout Childhood
- 2024
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Play is enshrined as a right for all children and is characterised by its autotelic and intrinsic nature. As such, play is recognised as the primary occupation of children and best understood in terms of the multiple meanings it holds for individuals. The spaces in which children choose to play are considered to facilitate and limit opportunities and experiences for play reflecting a dynamic and complex interconnection between individuals, spaces, and occupations. Despite the exponential growth of gaming technologies and digital devices offering children spaces for a plethora of novel, captivating and diverse play experiences, there remains a limited understanding of how these spaces afford or constrain play, especially from the perspective of the main protagonist, the child. Exploring children’s perspectives of their play in such digital spaces can uncover the multifaceted dimensions highlighting the purposeful and meaningful nature of such occupations in children’s everyday life. Such understanding challenge current social discourses and support how such play experiences contribute to children’s wellbeing and active participation in society. The overall aim of this thesis was to generate a deeper understanding of children’s perceptions of their play occupations in digital spaces throughout the trajectory of childhood. This thesis was informed by four, qualitative research studies. Study I, a scoping review, aimed to identify and map the current literature examining children’s perspectives of play in digital spaces by exploring how the daily relevance, personal and ecological significance, and methods were approached in the research. The review identified thirty-one articles from the past fifteen years with data extracted inspired by theories of play, ecology, and occupation. The review highlighted a significant lack of empirical research focusing specifically on children’s autotelic play and which demonstrated a relevance to their everyday life. Additionally, we found that methods did not consistently involve the active participation of children. The findings from this review provided a clear rationale for the design of the subsequent three studies.Choice making reflects a key aspect of how children experience their play, therefore, study II explored children’s experiences of their choice making in play within digital spaces. Eight participants were recruited who were aged between 6 and 7 years old. Using a focus group design and a plethora of data generation tools, the findings indicate that children enjoyed the flexibility and variety of choices offered by their play in digital spaces yet were constrained in their possibilities for play. Further, findings highlight how children negotiate play experiences as a tension between choice making and their desire for mastery. Study III explored the play value of digital spaces, specifically how the digital space affords play from the perspective of the child. The study was conducted using focus groups and comic strips to elicit data from eight children aged 11 years old. Findings indicate that children value the endless opportunities for play that were not necessarily available to them in real world spaces. Children discussed the play value associated with continually exploring new tasks, roles, and arenas, a space to be and do together, and to develop and learn. Study IV explored and identified how the meaning of playing video games is situated in adolescents’ everyday life. The study utilised narrative methodologies to generate data from five participants aged 16 – 17 years. The findings reflect how they engage in processes negotiating and balancing between occupations in both the physical and digital space with play integrated across their everyday lives. These studies reveal the richness and depth of perspectives children hold with regard their play in digital spaces and uncovers a unique and diverse number of characteristics that contributes to our understanding of the meaning children hold of this key occupation of childhood. This thesis articulates how children consider the primacy of play in their everyday lives in their negotiations between play in physical and digital spaces and how the, often overlooked, social dimensions of such play experiences throughout the course of childhood serves to enhance their connections with others and promote a sense of belonging. Additionally, the perception of competence in their play fostered their sense of self whilst embodying other roles and identities reflect a progression towards a future self. This enhanced understanding of the play occupations in digital spaces can be used to promote, offer, and design play occupations that reflect the experiences of children themselves thus recognising how and where play in digital spaces is integrated in relation to everyday life. To further explore play occupations in digital spaces, it may be fruitful for future research to be designed with children in mind to further enhance understanding.
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| 7. |
- Loudoun, Fiona M., et al.
(author)
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Play value of digital play spaces: Children's voices
- 2024
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In: International Journal of Child-Computer Interaction. - : Elsevier. - 2212-8689 .- 2212-8697. ; 40
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Play for plays sake emphasises the significance of how children characterise play opposed to any secondary purposes or benefits it may generate. The concept of play value draws attention to how the space in which children play proffers the experiences that children want. Increasingly, digital play experiences are emerging as spaces for play. This inquiry aims to examine the play value of digital spaces, specifically how play is afforded by the digital space from the perspective of children. Eight children aged 11 years old participated in seven focus groups, creating comic strips which were used to elicit discussions. Focus group analysis generated three themes with associated sub-themes which were collectively explained by the overarching theme of endless possibilities in play in digital spaces. This study provides a new understanding of how digital spaces affords play value from the child's perspective.
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