A study in the International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable Development of teachers’ behaviour during outdoor play at kindergarten has identified a gap between the support children need and the help educators provide, particularly in emotional and social development.
The research looked at how teachers respond to the children in their care during outdoor games when the children are organising and directing their own play rather than taking part in teacher-led activities. The team collected observations and interviewed teachers.
The findings identified four categories of support: emotional, social, cognitive, and instrumental. The latter is practical assistance and resources. Cognitive support was the most obvious need, but emotional and social support provided by teachers fell significantly short of children's needs, the team found. The researchers explain this mismatch partly on the basis of how unpredictable outdoor play can be. Teachers must decide how and when to intervene without undermining children's independence during such independent play.
The researchers recommend that there is a need to create better supportive environments that encourage deeper teacher-child interactions. They also say that the observational skills of teachers at kindergarten need to be improved. Fundamentally, effective teaching during independent play requires attention so that children's learning opportunities as well as emotional and social needs are improved.
Shu, J. (2026) ‘Qualitative study on teacher support behaviour in outdoor autonomous games in kindergartens’, Int. J. Innovation and Sustainable Development, Vol. 20, No. 10, pp.22–38.
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