’Boys will be Boys—won't they?’: the attitudes of playgroup workers to gender and play experiences

This article discusses the attitudes of people concerned with the under fives, to the subject of gender and play experiences. Playgroup workers, parents and social work staff were questioned on their beliefs about children's choices in play. Amongst the playgroup workers and social work staff there appeared to be a belief that children should be free to choose their play activities and that these choices were often influenced by gender, as biological factors make boys and girls want to play in different ways. Parents, they believed, would object to any coercion or positive discrimination in favour of girls to allow them equal access to play material. Parents, on the other hand, were anxious for playgroups to remove gender stereotyping and assumed that positive action was being taken. There appears to be a serious lack of communication between these groups.     

Using Scenarios as a Learning and Teaching Strategy with Students

This article describes and evaluates work undertaken as part of ATEE-RDC19, an exploration of using scenarios to enhance students' learning in teacher education. Action research was carried out with students who were following a module entitled National Curriculum and Beyond on an Education Studies degree. Students discussed and devised a scenario for 2020 and the need for the curriculum in schools to prepare students for life in the future. New curricula were devised to address the needs presented by the scenarios then justified, presented to and discussed with peers. Students completed questionnaires regarding their opinions of the use of this learning and teaching strategy. Students expressed their wholehearted approval for this kind of learning even though many had found the process difficult. They agreed that the use of scenarios had enabled them to widen their thinking about the curriculum and become more responsible for their own learning.