Category: Play

Releasing Poor Kids from Preschool Prison

by David Labaree, posted in Curriculum, Education policy, Inequality, Play

This post is a piece from NPR summarizing the recent Tennessee study about the negative effect of preschool programs.  Here's a link to the original. The study showed that the preschool program in Tennessee aimed at disadvantaged students was no only ineffective at improving the academic performance of these students but actually put them at … Continue reading Releasing Poor Kids from Preschool Prison

Johan Huizinga on the Centrality of Play

by David Labaree, posted in Culture, History, Play

This post is a reflection on Dutch philosopher Johann Huizinga's classic 1955 work, Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture.   In this stunning book, Huizinga argues that play is central to civilization, that in fact it precedes and forms the basis for human culture.   At the start, of course, he needs to define … Continue reading Johan Huizinga on the Centrality of Play