The Power of Play in Higher Education: Creativity in Tertiary Learning
Edited by Alison James and Chrissi Nerantzi
by Lisa Forbes
If you value play in higher education, you need to read this book. If you don’t value play in higher education, you need to read this book. There. Blog complete.
Just kidding, you knew I had more to say. This book The Power of Play in Higher Education is a must read. One of my most favorite parts of this book is that it squashes all those play haters out there! Remember, people throw rocks at things that shine. Anyway, I love this quote:
“There is this belief of those working in universities that higher levels of study should be a deadpan business with little time for fun.” (p. vii).
Dr. James and Dr. Nerantzi challenge the idea that fun and play doesn’t belong in higher education and that somewhere along the way there has been a cultural evolution towards a more serious version of learning. They argue the importance of not losing play in tertiary learning and adopting an increasingly expansive view of education.
“Play has been separated out from education – there’s been a gradual cultural evolution towards a more serious version of learning. In early years, education play is virtually synonymous with learning but as students get older, play is increasingly removed from the experience of school. Once at university, play can be all too often seen as unserious suggesting a lack of quality.”
This book is essentially 41 chapters of examples of play in higher education from over 60 different people. I read this book and not only had a better idea of what play in higher education could look like but it also allowed my creativity to ignite. Although all of these chapters might not have directly related to my discipline, some of the ideas could easily translate but even if they didn’t, I still found joy in reading about play in learning as it fueled my inspiration and creativity to do better in making my teaching more playful.
Check out the book and check out the editor’s websites for more about them and the amazing work they are doing: