Peer-reviewed article

Teacher Perceptions of Play in Early Childhood Education

Karen Burke, Dawn L. Mollenkopf · 30 Dec 2025

Abstract

Play is crucial for early childhood development, fostering skills like social-emotional competence, cognition, and language. Despite its recognized importance, factors like screen time and academic pressures have led to a decline in play implementation. This study used survey and interviews to examine teachers' perceptions of the importance of play and challenges they faced in implementing play-based learning. Classroom observations used the ECERS-3 and the CLASS assessments and recorded time spent in play to provide measures of developmentally appropriate practice, including play. Survey and interview data indicate teachers value play but face implementation barriers such as screen time and academic expectations. Data from the ECERS-3 and CLASS indicated play quality and appropriateness had lower scores than other indicators. Observations showed insufficient playtime was associated with increased challenging behaviors. There's a pressing need to promote high-quality play in early childhood education and support teachers in effective play-based learning implementation. Keywords: structured play, free play, loss of play, curriculum, policy, early childhood education, child development, perception, standardization, teacher practice