Building the workforce through play-based learning

IN THE State of the Nation Address delivered last week, President Ramaphosa reaffirmed South Africa’s strong commitment to early childhood development (ECD).

“With over 700 000 children accessing early childhood education in the last financial year, we have established a firm foundation for a comprehensive ECD programme that is an integral part of the education system. This year, we will migrate responsibility for ECD centres from Social Development to Basic Education and proceed with the process towards two years of compulsory ECD for all children before they enter grade 1,” Ramaphosa said.

Indeed, ensuring that the children of Africa are adequately prepared for the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century, as defined by its fastpaced social, economic and technological change, requires the re-thinking and re-imagining of traditional approaches to learning. An education system that supports the development of skills such as problem solving, critical thinking and creativity will be crucial for success.

A growing body of research is pointing to play-based learning as a key means of improving both children’s academic performance and personal development. From infancy, children have a natural ability to learn about the world through play. Play-based learning creates a space in which children are free to experiment, explore, analyse, tackle and solve problems using their inherent capabilities such as curiosity and imagination.

But play is not only a critical form of stimulation that boosts children’s cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development. In this 30th year of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, all children, everywhere, have the right to play. And yet, play is often undervalued both by parents and by many preschool and education systems. Let’s work on changing this together.

South Africa is a trailblazer on the continent, having included play-based learning in the country’s curriculum for early childhood and primary education. “Experts worldwide, acknowledge that today’s children need more than the traditional 3-Rs (reading, writing and arithmetic) to prepare for 21st century opportunities.

“As government, we are paving the way towards 21st century opportunities, by preparing our children in the four critical areas, namely the 4 Cs – Collaboration and teamwork; Creativity and imagination; Critical thinking; and Communication,” said Angie Motshekga, Minister of Basic Education.

To that end, the Department of Basic Education South Africa, together with Unicef (UN Children’s Fund) South Africa, the Lego Foundation and the Association for the Development of Education in Africa will host the Play-Based Learning for the 21st Century Skills Africa Play Conference 2019, the first conference of its kind on the African continent, in Pretoria, from February 25-27.

The three-day conference will convene ministers of education from across the continent, academics, policy-makers, high-level representatives from development agencies, the private sector, civil society, and the media to facilitate a common understanding of the important role of play-based learning in preparing children for the opportunities of the 21st century.