Kids, educators debate recess plan that may prevent bullying
One of the largest independent recess programs in the country reduces bullying, improves classroom behavior and creates safer schools 鈥� at least according to teachers. Students, however, seem to have a different point of view.
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This is from a new rigorous, random assignment study by researchers at Mathematica Policy Research and the John W. Gardner Center for Youth and Their Communities at Stanford University, in Stanford, Calif. The researchers compared schools using Playworks 鈥� a recess initiative that has won hundreds of millions of grant dollars and is used in hundreds of low income elementary schools 鈥� to those that had requested, but did not yet have, the program.
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听To advocates of Playworks, including chief executive officers Jill Vialet, the findings add to a growing body of research pointing to the importance of play and recess for children.
听鈥淲e鈥檙e really excited to see the results,鈥� Ms. Vialet said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not even an anti-bullying program. [The research] pointed to me how clearly bullying is really a behavior. It鈥檚 a behavior that can be addressed by emphasizing other behaviors and giving kids skills.鈥�
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听But take closer look at the study and there are some significant questions, as well.
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听Most notably, there鈥檚 a big difference in how teachers and students perceived the impact of Playworks 鈥� a program that gives more structure to recess, with 鈥渃oaches鈥� leading games, helping kids moderate conflicts and encouraging physical activity.
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听While teachers in schools using Playworks reported significantly less bullying and exclusionary behavior, there was no difference in student perception of aggressive behavior, the ability to get along with other students or resolving conflicts.
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听So what鈥檚 up?
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听Susanne James-Burdumy, associate director of Mathematica Policy Research, said researchers have been thinking about why the disparity exists.
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听It could potentially be study related, she said. While teachers filled out their surveys based on observations of first through fifth graders, the only students to fill out surveys were in fourth and fifth grade. (Researchers worried that younger kids would not give accurate results.) Or, she said, there might simply be different perspectives about Playworks.
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听鈥淪tudents and teachers may have different perceptions of what鈥檚 happening during recess and during the school day,鈥� she said.
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听Which leads to another big finding. One of the most statistically important findings was that with Playworks, teachers believe students move more effectively from recess to the classroom.
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听This, it seems, would make sense. Playworks is structured by design, and began as a way to make the school day easier for teachers 鈥� while preserving play at the same time.
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听Vialet says she was inspired to start the program after talking with principals who told her that recess was the worst part of the day 鈥� a time when kids would get out of control and fights would start, often leading into the classroom. She says that it seemed that students were not using recess for the sort of beneficial play that she remembered as a kid.
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听鈥淲hat I was seeing out in schools was that the recess I remember wasn鈥檛 happening,鈥� she said.
She believed that replicating the sort of sandlot structure of older kids teaching younger kids how to play games 鈥� of introducing games like 鈥渞ock, paper, scissors鈥� to resolve conflicts, 听of 鈥渕apping鈥� out a playground so everyone knew that basketball would be played here and jump rope there 鈥� would go far in both making a more fulfilling recess for kids, and a better school day for the grown-ups.
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听But does an easier time for teachers translate into effective play? Certainly for beleaguered public schools administrators. But for kids?
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听More results from the study 鈥� due to come out in about a year 鈥� may give more insight. That data will explore the difference in recess behavior between students in Playworks and non Playworks schools.
