Teachers' perceptions of the importance of play in indoor and outdoor play environments for the socially adaptive behaviour of children in Jordanian kindergartens

Throughout the early years, young children acquire a variety of behavioural, social cognitive, and emotional skills that have significant implications for their future social adjustment and well-being. Early years play settings, whether indoor or outdoor, may support or undermine play and development opportunities for children. Therefore, this research aimed to explore teachers' perceptions about the importance of play environments for the socially adaptive behaviour of children in Jordanian kindergartens during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cultural-historical Activity Theory was utilised as a theoretical framework to explore the relationship between facilitators and barriers impacting children's social interactions, social competencies, and adaptive behaviours within a culturally meaningful context. Activity Theory was a helpful exploratory tool for the investigation of activity system elements associated with a familiar subject, namely children. In alignment with the Activity Theory framework, qualitative and interpretive research was undertaken. Semi-structured interviews were used as a tool to explore the perspectives of twenty kindergarten teachers: ten teachers working in urban settings; and ten teachers working in rural locations in Jordan.

The semi-structured interviews were analysed using the six phases of thematic analysis, in combination with an activity system model that was created for this study. Two types of play (free and unstructured) were identified as the primary activities that promote socially adaptive behaviour in children. Children favoured outdoor play settings because they mainly involved unstructured play.

At the end of this research, it identified new patterns in children's play environments and how they relate to broader environmental contexts (social, natural, and geographical), it was clear that children participating in activities promoting social skills were influenced by the natural resources in their outdoor play environment, and social adaptation in kindergarten settings was perceived to be easier for girls than for boys. As a result, a new method for studying children's adaptation to kindergarten and a framework for gaining a comprehensive understanding of the factors that influence teacher practises toward facilitating play were proposed.