STRANMILLIS UNIVERSITY COLLEGE
BEd Year 3 Module Guide
Primary SCS3062
Learning Through a Play-Based
Curriculum in the Early Years
Weighting of Module
20 CATS / 10 ECTS / 5 US Credits
Module Content
This module provides the students with the opportunity to examine how play can be
developed and managed within the Foundation Stage and KS1 classroom. The rationale
and theoretical justification for a play based curriculum will be investigated. The role of
play within the Northern Ireland Curriculum Primary will also be examined. Practical
issues such as planning and preparation for play, observation and tracking of children
and assessment and evaluation of play will be addressed. The role of the teacher and
the classroom assistant in managing resources, time, children and assessment will also
be analysed. The importance of learning outdoors will be an important focus for
discussion. The range of play activities will be investigated practically and students will
be encouraged to focus on the thematic approach to planning and learning across the
curriculum. The course consists of lectures, seminars and workshops where students
will be introduced to the role of play based learning within the Northern Ireland
Curriculum and the theoretical justification for play as the main mode of learning within
early years.
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this module the students should demonstrate:
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a theoretical understanding of the value of a play-based curriculum;
an awareness of contemporary thinking in this field;
active involvement in planning and preparing play themes and play centres;
a critical awareness of how play can deliver aspects of the Revised Curriculum;
a critical analysis of the role of the teacher and classroom assistant in managing play.
Transferable Skills
Students should:
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Construct and communicate oral and written arguments
Use ICT to retrieve information, carry out on-line searches and present
information appropriately
Demonstrate the capacity to plan, share goals and work as a member of a team
Improve their own learning and performance, including the development of
study and research skills, information retrieval, plan and manage learning and
reflect on their own learning
Analyse, synthesise, evaluate, and identify problems and solutions
GTCNI Teacher Competences
The Northern Ireland Curriculum Primary emphasises that children need ‘opportunities
to be actively involved in practical, challenging play-based learning in a stimulating
environment’ (CCEA, 2007, p9). This module aims to develop students’ understanding of
how to implement a play-based curriculum and how children learn through this
approach.
This module also aims to develop the student as a reflective and activist teacher by
developing the following teacher competences from the General Teaching Council for
Northern Ireland:
 Teachers will have developed a knowledge and understanding of contemporary
debates about the nature and purposes of education and the social and policy
contexts in which the aims of education are defined and implemented (professional
competence 2)
 Teachers will have developed a knowledge and understanding of the factors that
promote and hinder effective learning, and be aware of the need to provide for the
holistic development of the child (professional competence 6)
 Teachers will create and maintain a safe, interactive and challenging learning
environment with appropriate clarity of purpose for activities (professional
competence 19)
Teaching and Learning
During the study of this module students will experience a variety of teaching and
learning methods and techniques. They will gain knowledge and understanding through
lectures, seminars, workshops, peer group discussions, individual consultation
opportunities, presentations and independent study time.
General Regulations for all University Courses
 Full-time students are required to be in attendance at the University during the
15 weeks of each semester and whatever additional time is required by the
programme of study for which they are registered.
 Students may normally be absent from the University during these periods only
where they have permission from their Adviser of Studies or supervisor or in
cases of illness or emergency or where there are extenuating circumstances.
 Students are expected to attend all scheduled sessions and other forms of
instruction as defined by the programme of study and all scheduled
examinations. Specific attendance requirements, including explicit attendance
thresholds, will be stated by the School.
Assessment
In this module assessment consists of 2 elements: a presentation and a case study.
There will be no examination.
Title
Date
Word Length
% Aggregate
Planning activity
Week 11
10 mins
35% tutor mark
Poster presentation
Assignment
15% peer mark
Week 14
2500
50%
For ethical reasons all schools and personnel who participate in your study must be
made anonymous within your presentation. Do not include any photographs or
literature with school names.
Presentation: Planning activity
Students in small groups will engage in planning a range of Play activities based on a
theme. Each group will present their planning through a poster.
1. Planning will be for one week. Some progression could be indicated if
appropriate ( in the notes).
2. Teacher’s notes are to accompany the poster to aid as clarification, fuller
explanation and development of the poster. These are to help you to talk to the
poster as obviously not all you want to say would fit on to the poster. The notes
to be handed in with the poster. You are not marked on these but they will help
to moderate your mark and for the External Examiner.
3. It is up to you what you include on your poster but please ensure you cover the
assessment criteria between the Poster and accompanying notes.
Criteria for presentations
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Presentation delivery
Content
Knowledge and understanding
Analysis
Resources given
Audience involvement
Assignment
Please select one of the following titles:
Critically evaluate the role of outdoor play in children’s learning.
Critically discuss the value of role play in the primary classroom.
Critically discuss the challenges and opportunities of observing children during play.
Assessment Criteria
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A rationale for play
A justification for the approaches/strategies supported by reference to relevant
theory and research
Clear links made with child development and NIC
Relevant examples from professional practice
A critical evaluation of the approach adopted
See the Stranmillis University College Marking Criteria for level Descriptors as well as
criteria given above.
See the Referencing System below for information on how to reference in the correct
manner.
For ease of marking please do not submit your assignment in a poly pocket or plastic
folder – simple presentation with a corner staple is preferable.
Exceptional I
100
95–100
90
85–94
Definite I
80
78–84
Low I
75
70-77
High 2.1
68
67–69
Definite/solid 2.1
65
64–66
Low/clear 2.1
62
60-63
High 2.2
58
57-59
Definite/solid 2.2
55
54–56
Low/clear 2.2
52
50–53
rd
48
47-49
45
44-46
rd
42
40-43
Marginal fail
35
35-39
High/Excellent I
(in addition to
criteria for
Definite/low 1)
High 3
Definite 3
Low 3
rd
Exceptional and exemplary work showing:
 A very high level of critical analysis
 A very high level of insight in the conclusions drawn
 An in-depth knowledge and understanding across a wide range of the relevant
areas including areas at the forefront of the discipline
 Very thorough coverage of the topic
 Confidence in the appropriate use of learning resources to support arguments
made
Excellent and outstanding answer showing:
 Considerable independence of thought and critical judgement with sustained
critical analysis.
 A well developed ability to analyse concepts and ideas at an abstract level
 A thorough understanding of all the main issues involved and their relevance
 A substantial degree of originality
 Substantial evidence of wide, relevant and critical use of learning resources
 Good understanding of complex and problematic areas of the discipline
Excellent answer showing:
 A good level of independence of thought and critical judgement and a level of
critical analysis.
 A developed ability to analyse concepts and ideas
 An understanding of all the main issues involved and their relevance
 A degree of originality
 Evidence of wide, relevant and critical use of learning resources
 An understanding of the complexity and scope of the discipline
Very good, comprehensive answer showing:
 Good understanding of relevant wider issues.
 Well developed arguments with evidence of independent thought
 A good understanding of module material coupled with the ability to relate this to
new ideas and concepts
 Evidence of wide and relevant use of learning resources
 Synthesis / integration of material from other modules/experience as well as the
current module
 Evidence of independent/autonomous learning.
Good answer showing:
 The ability to draw reasonable conclusions
 Knowledge and awareness of the main issues
 A satisfactory understanding of module material
 Little reference to resources outside module material.
Adequate answer which:
 Shows fair understanding of main issues
 Shows little familiarity with resources outside module material.
 Makes arguments that are not strong
 Has a low but acceptable level of written expression.
Passable (Just acceptable) answer which:
 Contains some relevant material
 Contains significant omissions and/or inaccuracies
 Recognises the aim of the question and has attempted to answer it.
Marginally failing answer which:
 Meets some of the necessary requirements
 Has some major inaccuracies
 Shows limited understanding of the module content.
Weak fail
25
25-34
Poor fail
15
15-24
0
0-14
Nothing of merit
Unsatisfactory answer which:
 Fails to meet most of the necessary requirements
 Shows little understanding of the major issues
 Indicates that knowledge is vague and skimpy
 Has many major inaccuracies.
Poor answer in which:
 There are few points relevant to the question
 The bulk of the answer is irrelevant/inaccurate
 There are major misunderstandings of the material.
Answer meeting none of the necessary requirements with:
 Minimal or no material of value to the question asked
 No recognition of the question.
Late submission of assessed work
Assessed work submitted after the deadline will be penalised at the rate of 5% of the
total marks available for each working day late up to a maximum of five working days,
after which a mark of zero shall be awarded. Where the assessed work element
accounts for a certain proportion of the module mark, the 5% penalty will apply to the
assessed element mark only and not to the overall module mark. Exemptions shall be
granted only if there are extenuating circumstances, and where the student has made a
case in writing to the School Manager within three working days of the deadline for
submission. A list of guidelines on acceptable extenuating circumstances is contained in
the Policies and Procedures Manual, available from the Academic Affairs office or at:
http://www.qub.ac.uk/
Plagiarism
The University College regards plagiarism as a serious academic offence which may lead
to disciplinary action being taken against the student concerned. Plagiarised material
will be deemed to be passages from other works (including internet sources)
incorporated without acknowledgement and with the intention of it being taken to be
the student's own work. Passages from other works may be quoted only if shown as
quotations with acknowledgement of the sources, and similarly may be paraphrased
only if the sources are acknowledged.
Please refer to the student study regulations for further information. These can be
accessed at http://www.stran.ac.uk/media/media,82169,en.pdf .
Students may be requested to submit an electronic version of their work to be checked
for plagiarism. Students should be aware that this procedure may delay processing their
results.
Referencing and Citation
Good assignments acknowledge the sources of their ideas, and give full details of the
works, journals, etc where they are to be found. When presenting assignments, you are
asked to use the following conventions when you are referring to a publication in the
text of your assignment and when compiling your list of references.
1.
Books
a)
Single author
in your text:
‘Bush (1986, p43) argues that ….’
In the list of references:
b)
c)
d)
Bush, T. (1986) Theories of Educational
Management, London, Harper and Row.
Two authors
in your text:
‘Bolman and Deal (1984), p27) found that …’
in your references:
Bolman, L. G. and Deal, T. E. (1984) Modern Approaches to
Understanding and Managing Organisations, San
Francisco, Jossey-Bass.
More than two authors
in your text:
‘Baldridge et al. (1978, p16) have stated that ….’
in your references:
Baldridge J. V., Curtis, D.V., Euchre, G. and Riley, G.L.
(1978) Policy-Making and Effective Leadership, San
Francisco, Jossey-Bass.
A single author’s chapter in an edited collection
in your text:
‘Al-Khalifa, F. (1989, p22) reported that …’
in your references:
Al-Khalifa, F. (1989); Management by halves: women
teachers and school management’ in de Lyon, H. and
Widdowson-Mighiuolo, E (eds) Women Teachers: issues
and experience, Milton Keynes, Open University Press.
(The conventions for joint and multiple authorship of chapters are as above)
e)
If a book has more than one edition, make clear in the references which edition
you have used
in your text:
2
‘Handy (1981, 2nd ed) Understanding Organisations,
Harmondsworth, Penguin Books
Journals
a) Single author
in your text:
‘Hoyle (1982, p27) states that …’
in your references:
Hoyle, E. (1982)
‘Micropolitics of educational
organisations’
Educational
Management
and
Administration, 10(2), pp87-98.’ (Note that you should
provide the volume number, in this case 10, the part
number where available and page numbers.)
(The conventions for joint and multiple authorship of articles are as above)
3
Government Publications
in your text:
‘It was stated that (DES, 1985, p43) that …’
in your references:
‘DES (1985) Better Schools, London, HMSO.’
4. Internet sources
Appropriate academic conventions for the use of internet material are still evolving.
Referencing should follow the usual pattern as far as possible but include the full http
address so that the site can be accessed. The date on which you obtained the material
should also be included.
In text:
The reference is cited in the conventional way in
the body of the text i.e. the name of the author,
followed by the date e.g DENI (2000)
In reference section:
DENI Circular 2000/9 (2000) Target Setting and
Benchmarking, Bangor: DENI
http://www.deni.gov.uk/circulars/dc2000/dc20000.9.pdf (Accessed 2 October 2000)
5. Using secondary sources in assignments
Students are encouraged to use and refer to primary sources where possible in their
assignments. However, should you wish to refer to author’s works mentioned in other
texts, these are secondary sources and must be properly acknowledged as such in your
complete assignments:
In text:
Griffin (1993) (cited in Mac an Ghaill, 1994, p148)
examines the changing views on……….
In reference section:
Griffin, C. (1993) Representations of Youth: the study of
youth and adolescence in Britain and America, cited in Mac
ac Ghaill, M. (1994) The Making of Men, Buckingham:
Open University.
The Organisation of References
In your list of references, all materials should be listed alphabetically by author. For
each author, single-authored items come first, then joint items and finally multiple
items; within the single-authored section, within the joint authored section and within
the multiple-authored section, items should be listed in date order.
If two or more items have the same date, the items should be listed with a lower-case
letter ( a, b, c, etc) after the date. This applies both in text, eg ‘(Southworth, 1985a)’ or
‘(Southworth, 1985b) – and in the references:
‘Southworth, G. (1985a) ‘Primary heads’ reflection on training’, Education,
165(25), p560.’
‘Southworth, G. (1985b) ‘Perspectives on the primary curriculum’, Cambridge
Journal of Education, 15(1), pp419.’
Recommended reading:
Aldridge, M. (2003) Meeting the early learning goals through role play: a practical guide
for teachers and assistants. London, David Fulton.
Bilton, H. (2010) Outdoor learning in the early years: management and innovation.
London, Routledge.
Blenkin, G., and Kelly, V., (1994) ‘The Death of Infancy’ Education 3-13, October pp. 3- 9.
David, T. (1990) Under Five - Under Educated, Buckingham, Open University Press.
Dowling, M. (2000) Young Children’s Personal, Social and Emotional Development, PCP.
Featherstone, S. (2001a) The Little Book of Outdoor Play. Leicestershire, Featherstone
Education Ltd.
Featherstone, S. (2001b) The Little Book of Role Play. Leicestershire, Featherstone
Education Ltd.
Featherstone, S. (2002) The Little Book of Sand and Water. Leicestershire, Featherstone
Education Ltd.
Featherstone, S. (2004) The Little Book of Prop Boxes for Role Play. Leicestershire,
Featherstone Education Ltd.
Featherstone, S. & Bayley, R. (2005) Boys and Girls come out to play. Leicestershire,
Featherstone Education Ltd.
Fisher, J. (2008) Starting from the Child (3rd edition), Buckingham, Open University
Press.
Hall, N. and Abbott, L. (eds)(1991) Play in the Primary Curriculum. London, Hodder and
Stoughton.
Hutchin, V. (1996) Tracking Significant Achievement, London, Hodder and Stoughton.
McNamara, D., (1994) Classroom Pedagogy and Primary Practice, London, Routledge.
Mills, R.W. (1992) Observing Children in the Primary Classroom, London, Routledge.
Moyles, J. (1989) Just Playing, Buckingham, Open University Press.
Moyles, J. (ed.) (2010) The Excellence of Play (3rd edition), Maidenhead, Open
University Press.
O’Hara, M. (2000) Teaching 3 – 8 , London, Continuum.
Pascal, C., Bertram, T. (1997) Effective Early Learning, London, Hodder and Stoughton,
1997.
Pluckrose, H. (1993) Starting School, London, Simon and Schuster.
Pugh, G. (2001) Contemporary Issues in the Early Years, PCP
Riley, J. (2007)(ed) Learning in the Early Years. London: Sage Publications Ltd
Schlank, C. (1997) Together and equal: fostering cooperative play and promoting gender
equity. Boston, Allyn and Bacon.
Sharman, C., Cross, W., Vennis, D. (1995) Observing Children, London, Cassell.
Smidt, S. (2011) Playing to Learn: The role of play in the early years. Routledge, Oxon.
Smidt, S. (2007) A Guide to Early Years Practice (3rd edition), Routledge-Falmer.
Smith, E. A. (1994) Educating the Under-Fives, Cassell.
Thorne, B. (1993) Gender Play: girls and boys in school. Buckingham, Open University
Press.
Tovey, H. (2007) Playing Outdoors: Spaces and places, risk and challenge. Berkshire:
Open University Press
Reports and Government Publications
CCEA (2007) The Northern Ireland Curriculum Primary, CEA, Belfast.
Early Years Interboard Panel (2005) Learning Outdoors in the early years. ISBN 1
905093 79 9
Early Years Interboard Panel (2003) Learning through Play in the early years.
DENI, DHSSPS, CEA (1997) Curricular Guidance for Pre-School Education, Belfast: CCEA.