Squeezed, Stretched, and Stuck: Teachers Defending Play-Based Learning in No-Nonsense Times

Authors

Karen Wohlwend, Indiana University at BloomingtonFollow

Abstract

Describes how playful and inquiry-based engagements in kindergarten and first grade classrooms eventually gave way to the demands of district-mandated teacher evaluation plans that called for targeted reading strategies, seatwork, and instruction using basal reading materials. Wohlend describes the resulting impingement on children's emotional lives and the professional authority of teachers in these midwestern classrooms.

Author Biography

Karen Wohlwend is an assistant professor in literacy, culture, and language education at Indiana University in Bloomington. Her research interests include early literacy, play, and design as social practices in early childhood classrooms; gender and children's media; and critical discourse analysis. Wohlend teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in early literacy and qualitative research at Indiana University. Her K-12 teaching experience includes classroom teaching in kindergarten, first grade, and preschool, and resource teaching in reading and enrichment programs.

Recommended Citation

Wohlwend, K. (2009). Squeezed, Stretched, and Stuck: Teachers Defending Play-Based Learning in No-Nonsense Times. Occasional Paper Series, (22). DOI: https://doi.org/10.58295/2375-3668.1126