January’s meeting of the LEaDER Journal Club explored playful pedagogical practice in a session facilitated by Dr Jane Secker.  Discussion focussed on two papers examining the pedagogical value of play by Nicola Whitton and Jane Secker and Chris Morrison.

Whitton’s paper considers the growth in playful approachse used in higher education, from games and gamification, to play and playfulness. Focussing on two case studies, Whitton focusses on the value of play as a safe space, in which failure is accepted, learners are immersed in an activity, and intrinsic motivation for learning develops.  The paper identifies and analyses three types of play: playful tools, playful techniques, and playful tactics.

Whitton’s paper proved a great starting point for our discussion, giving a useful summary of what playful learning means in HE and a great accessible introduction to the topic for those who are new to playful approaches. As well as engaging with the benefits of play, the article prompted valuable discussion about the challenges of adopting playful practice.  We discussed the fact that play is not always valued as a pedagogical practice in HE and that there is only limited research on its use in teaching adults.

This discussion linked well with the paper by Secker and Morrison, which explores the pedagogic value of games in the context of creating two games to teach librarians and educators about copyright. Considering the role games can play in teaching in a ‘contested space’, Secker and Morrison advocate for games as a mode of problem based learning, which make learning more active and engaging.

The paper prompted a great discussion about the variety of playful practices already used by attendees.  Again, some challenges with playful approaches were identified, including some students expressing reluctance to participate and the time investment required of facilitators when developing play-based activities.  The discussion spoke to the themes of Playful Learning Research currently being undertaken at City.

The next meeting of the Journal Club will take place at midday on Thursday 23rd February.  We will be discussing the following papers:

• “Belonging as situated practice” by Karen Gravett and Rola Ajjawi (2022)
• “In search of the feeling of ‘belonging’ in higher education: undergraduate students transition into higher education” by Catherine Meehan and Kristy Howells (2019)

Please book your place here.

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Thanks to Dr Jane Secker for facilitating January’s session and for providing a write-up of the session on which this post was based.