Abstract
In this study, we explored whether access to block play is beneficial to mathematical learning for young children in a low-income country. The research, conducted in Papua New Guinea, explored if access to Duplo Lego blocks, across a 7-month period, in early childhood education settings facilitated mathematical learning for children, aged from 5 to 7 years. The research design of the research involved an intervention group (n = 23) with children from three playschools who had access to the blocks across a period of 7 months. A comparison group (n = 26) included children from three elementary schools who had usual programming and resources across the period of the intervention. Learning outcomes were assessed using the Schedule for Early Number Assessment. Findings from this exploratory study indicated that children in the intervention group had stronger mathematics skills at the end of the intervention period than children in the comparison group. Findings indicated that access to block play had potential to improve mathematics skills in early childhood settings in Papua New Guinea. Greater access to block play could provide a feasible and affordable intervention to support early mathematical learning with potential to improve mathematical skills through primary school.
Résumé
Dans cette étude, nous avons examiné si l’accès au jeu de blocs favorise l’apprentissage des mathématiques chez de jeunes enfants dans une zone rurale de Papouasie-Nouvelle-Guinée. La recherche a examiné si l’accès aux briques Duplo de Lego sur une période de 7 mois dans des contextes de petite enfance facilite l’apprentissage des mathématiques chez des enfants âgés de 5 à 7 ans. Le devis de recherche comprenait un groupe d’intervention composé d’enfants (n = 23) de trois garderies, lesquels ont eu accès aux blocs sur une période de sept mois. Un groupe de comparaison était composé d’enfants (n = 26) de trois écoles primaires qui ont participé aux programmes habituels pendant toute la période d’intervention. Les résultats de l’apprentissage ont été évalués par le Schedule for Early Number Assessment (SENA) (Programme d’évaluation préscolaire du nombre). Les conclusions de cette étude exploratoire indiquent à la fin de la période d’intervention de meilleures compétences en mathématiques chez les enfants du groupe d’intervention par rapport à ceux du groupe de comparaison. Les conclusions indiquent que l’accès au jeu de blocs a le potentiel d’améliorer les compétences en mathématiques dans des contextes de la petite enfance en Papouasie-Nouvelle-Guinée. Un plus grand accès au jeu de blocs pourrait constituer une intervention réalisable et abordable en vue de soutenir l’apprentissage précoce des mathématiques, avec la possibilité d’améliorer les compétences mathématiques tout au long de l’école primaire dans des pays aux ressources faibles.
Resumen
En este estudio se investigó si el acceso al juego con bloques beneficia el aprendizaje de matemáticas en niños pequeños en una zona rural de Papua Nueva Guinea. La investigación analizó si el acceso a bloques Duplo Lego durante un período de siete meses en ambientes de aprendizaje temprano facilita el aprendizaje de matemáticas en niños entre cinco y siete años de edad. El diseño de la investigación incorporó un grupo de intervención con niños (n = 23) de tres jardines infantiles que tenían acceso a bloques durante un período de siete meses. Un grupo comparativo incluyó niños (n = 26) de tres escuelas de primaria que participaron en la programación normal durante el período de intervención. Se evaluaron los resultados de aprendizaje utilizando el Modelo de Evaluación Númerica Temprana (SENA por su abreviatura en inglés). Los resultados de este estudio exploratorio indicaron que los niños en el grupo de intervención demostraron habilidades matemáticas más fuertes al final del período de intervención que los niños en el grupo de comparación. Los resultados demostraron que el juego con bloques tiene el potencial de mejorar las habilidades matemáticas en contextos de enseñanza infantil temprana en Papua Nueva Guinea. Un mayor acceso a juego con bloques podría constituir una intervención viable y económica para apoyar el aprendizaje temprano de matemáticas, con el potencial de mejorar las habilidades matemáticas en toda la escuela primaria en países de bajos recursos económicos.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Asia South Pacific Association for Basic and Adult Education Project. (2012). The power of literacy: Women’s journeys in India, Indonesia, Philippines and Papua New Guinea. Retrieved from http://www.aspbae.org/sites/default/files/pdf/The%20Power%20of%20Literacy.pdf.
Bobis, J., Clarke, B. A., Clarke, D. M., Gould, P., Thomas, G., Wright, R., et al. (2005). Supporting teachers in the development of young children’s mathematical thinking: Three large scale cases. Mathematics Education Research Journal,16(3), 27–57. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03217400.
Butterworth, B., Varma, S., & Laurillard, D. (2011). Dyscalculia: From brain to education. Science,332(6033), 1049–1053.
Byrnes, J. P., & Wasik, B. A. (2009). Factors predictive of mathematics achievement in kindergarten, first and third grades: An opportunity–propensity analysis. Contemporary Educational Psychology,34(2), 167–183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2009.01.002.
Campbell, D. T., & Stanley, J. C. (1963). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for research. In N. L. Gage (Ed.), Handbook of research on teaching. Chicago: Rand McNally.
Carr, V., Simoncini, K., & Manson, E. (2018). In J. L. Roopnarine, J. E. Johnson, S. F. Quinn, & M. M. Patte (Eds.), Handbook of international perspectives on early childhood education (pp. 248–260). London: Routledge.
Casey, B. M., Andrews, N., Schindler, H., Kersh, J. E., Samper, A., & Copley, J. (2008). The development of spatial skills through interventions involving block building activities. Cognition and Instruction,26(3), 269–309. https://doi.org/10.1080/07370000802177177.
Clements, D. H. (2004). Geometric and spatial thinking in early childhood education. In D. Clements, J. Sarama, & M. A. DiBaise (Eds.), Engaging young children in mathematics: Results of the conference on standards for pre-school and kindergarten mathematics education (pp. 267–298). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum Associates.
Clements, D. H., & Sarama, J. (2011). Early childhood mathematics intervention. Science,333(6045), 968–970.
Department of Education. (2011). Literacy in Papua New Guinea. Waigani, NCD: National Literacy and Awareness Secretariat.
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). (2010). Australian government department of foreign affairs and trade annual report 2010–2011. Canberra, Australia: DFAT. Retrieved 15 April 2015 from: http://dfat.gov.au/about-us/publications/corporate/annual-reports/annual-report-2010-2011/performance/1/1.1.6.html.
Department of National Planning and Monitoring. (2010). Millennium development goals second national progress comprehensive report for Papua New Guinea. Retrieved from http://www.spc.int/nmdi/Reports/PNG_MDG_Report_2009.pdf.
Duncan, G. J., Dowsett, C. J., Claessens, A., Magnuson, K., Huston, A. C., Klebanov, P., et al. (2007). School readiness and later achievement. Developmental Psychology,43(6), 1428.
Fraenkel, J. R., & Wallen, N. E. (1993). How to design and evaluate research in education. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Jirout, J. J., & Newcombe, N. S. (2015). Building blocks for developing spatial skills: Evidence from a large, representative US sample. Psychological Science,26(3), 302–310. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797614563338.
Kamii, C., Miyakawa, Y., & Kato, Y. (2004). The development of logico-mathematical knowledge in a block-building activity at ages 1–4. Journal of Research in Childhood Education,19(1), 44–57. https://doi.org/10.1080/02568540409595053.
Levine, S. C., Ratliff, K. R., Huttenlocher, J., & Cannon, J. (2012). Early puzzle play: A predictor of preschoolers’ spatial transformation skill. Developmental Psychology,48, 530–542. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025913.
Mikhailovich, K., Pamphilon, B., Chambers, B., Simeon, L., & Zapata, J. R. (2016). Exploring the lives of women smallholder farmers in Papua New Guinea through a collaborative mixed methods approach. Cogent Social Sciences,2(1), 1143328. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2016.1143328.
Mix, K. S., Levine, S. C., Cheng, Y., Young, C., Hambrick, D. Z., Ping, R., et al. (2016). Separate but correlated: The latent structure of space and mathematics across development. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General,145(9), 1206–1227. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000182.
Mulligan, J., Bobis, J., & Francis, C. (1999). Insights into early numeracy: The count me in too project. Australian Primary Mathematics Classroom,4, 22–27.
Murnane, R. J., & Ganimian, A. J. (2014). Improving educational outcomes in developing countries: Lessons from rigorous evaluations. Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research.
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. (2006). Curriculum focal points for prekindergarten through grade 8 mathematics: A quest for coherence. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Ness, D., & Farenga, S. J. (2016). Blocks, bricks, and planks: Relationships between affordance and visuo-spatial constructive play objects. American Journal of Play,8(2), 201–227.
Nguyen, T., Watts, T. W., Duncan, G. J., Clements, D. H., Sarama, J. S., Wolfe, C., et al. (2016). Which preschool mathematics competencies are most predictive of fifth grade achievement? Early Childhood Research Quarterly,36, 550–560. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2016.02.003.
NSW Department of Education and Training. (2001). Count Me In Too professional development package (CMIT). Sydney: Author.
Rao, N., Sun, J., Ng, M., Becher, Y., Lee, D., Ip, P., et al. (2014). Validation, finalization and adoption of the East Asia-Pacific Early Child Development Scales (EAP-ECDS). New York: UNICEF, East and Pacific Regional Office.
Ryan, S., Koczberski, G., Curry, G. N., & Germis, E. (2017). Intra-household constraints on educational attainment in rural households in Papua New Guinea. Asia Pacific Viewpoint,58(1), 27–40.
Schmitt, S. A., Korucu, I., Napoli, A. R., Bryant, L. M., & Purpura, D. J. (2018). Using block play to enhance preschool children’s mathematics and executive functioning: A randomized controlled trial. Early Childhood Research Quarterly,44, 181–191. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2018.04.006.
Smith, H., & Simoncini, K. (2018). Literacy, Numeracy and School Survey Baseline Report: Papua New Guinea—Central, Madang and Morobe Provinces. Kokopo: Together for Education Consortium.
The World Bank. (2018). Girls education. Retrieved 16 November 2018 from https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/girlseducation.
Trawick-Smith, J., Swaminathan, S., Baton, B., Danieluk, C., Marsh, S., & Szarwacki, M. (2017). Block play and mathematics learning in preschool: the effects of building complexity, peer and teacher interactions in the block area, and replica play materials. Journal of Early Childhood Research,15(4), 433–448. https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X16664557.
UNICEF. (2012). Annual Report 2012 for Papua New Guinea, EAPRO. Retrieved from: https://www.unicef.org/about/annualreport/files/Papua_New_Guinea_COAR_2012.pdf.
UNICEF. (2016). Education in Papua New Guinea: An early start for a better future. Retrieved from: https://blogs.unicef.org/east-asia-pacific/education-papua-new-guinea-early-start-better-future.
UNICEF. (2018). Papua New Guinea primary: The children primary school age. Retrieved 16 November 2018 from https://unicef.org/png/children_3857.html.
United Nations (UN) (2015). Transforming our world: The 2030 agenda for sustainable development (A/Res/70/1). New York: UN General Assembly. Retrieved from http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (2014). Human development report. New York: United Nations, UNDP.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (2015). Human development report. New York: United Nations, UNDP.
Uttal, D. H., Miller, D. I., & Newcombe, N. S. (2013). Exploring and enhancing spatial thinking: Links to achievement in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics? Current Directions in Psychological Science,22(5), 367–373.
Verdine, B. N., Golinkoff, R. M., Hirsh-Pasek, K., & Newcombe, N. S. (2014). Finding the missing piece: Blocks, puzzles, and shapes fuel school readiness. Trends in Neuroscience and Education,3(1), 7–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tine.2014.02.005.
Verdine, B. N., Golinkoff, R. M., Hirsh-Pasek, K., Newcombe, N. S., Filipowicz, A. T., & Chang, A. (2013). Deconstructing building blocks: Preschoolers’ spatial assembly performance relates to early mathematical skills. Child Development,85(3), 1062–1076. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12165.
Wai, J., Lubinski, D., & Benbow, C. P. (2009). Spatial ability for STEM domains: Aligning over 50 years of cumulative psychological knowledge solidifies its importance. Journal of Educational Psychology,101(4), 817–835. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0016127.
Acknowledgements
The authors wish to acknowledge the schools and playschools in East New Britain who participated in the study. We would also like to acknowledge the seed funding grant from the Australian Centre for Sustainable Communities that enabled this project.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Simoncini, K., Forndran, A., Manson, E. et al. The Impact of Block Play on Children’s Early Mathematics Skills in Rural Papua New Guinea. IJEC 52, 77–93 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13158-020-00261-9
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13158-020-00261-9