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The government is committed to embracing learning through play, an approach experts are certain increases the quality of education, especially for pupils in Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres and primary schools.

Under the learner-centered approach, teachers use materials in society and skits among other things to demonstrate topics as well as increase children’s desire to attain education.

According to education experts, teachers can also group children while learning through play to facilitate team building and peer support.

Currently, learning through play is being implemented by Plan International in schools within sub-regions that include Busoga, West Nile, Lango, and Central.

Addressing the National Play Day for Busoga sub-region in Kamuli district on Tuesday, Rose Birungi, the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) committed that the government is to support all schools in the sub-region to implement learning through play to increase the enrollment and retention of children in schools.

“It is evident that when the approach is implemented, it increases the quality of learning for children and improves the relationship between the teachers and learners as they interact often,” she said.

Playful future project director at Plan International Uganda Jimmy Ivan Obbo remarks. (All Photos by Lawrence Mulondo)

The RDC said the same approach helps deal with emotional challenges in children, explaining that if a child is facing consequences of gender-based violence at home, they can find comfort at school and heal as they learn.

She said the approach also helps improve the health of children as they get exercises that keep them free of diseases, evidenced by learners in schools where it has been implemented.

“Playing is a therapy to those that are sick, a reason why hospitals have also come up with child play centres,” she said.

Kamuli district has a total of 522 schools including the ECDs, primary and secondary schools. However, 144 primary schools, that also have ECDs are implementing the teaching approach.

Wilfred Wamboga, the Education Officer for Kamuli district said with learning through play intervention, academics in the district have improved to a level that there is a higher completion rate in schools.

“The girls and boys who had dropped out of school due to boredom have returned and enrolled into the institutions with the levels of completion also improving,” he said.

Wamboga called on parents to take active participation in their children’s learning, by providing food for them at school and scholastic materials.

“Parents should also support the caregivers in ECDs with facilitation and local play materials since the government has not decided on including them on its payroll,” he said.
The officer thanked the government for putting in place policies like the fight against corporal punishments, which he said are increasing children’s desire to attain education.

Children look on as their colleagues play on a trampoline. This was during the National Play Day for Busoga subregion at Nawansaso Primary School Kamuli on April 23, 2024.

Jimmy Ivan Obbo, the project director for the Playful Future Project at Plan International Uganda explained that learning through play was introduced by the government years ago and has existed for a long time, however, teachers could not implement it well.

Obbo said under the Playful Future project, they have equipped the caregivers in ECDS with formal knowledge of handling younger children and trained them on how to make local play materials to deliver a meaningful and also help in raising the motivation of learners.

“When we talk about children learning through play, we do not talk about playing during the break time only, but playing that starts from when the teacher enters the classroom for a lesson,” he noted.

He said learning through play can involve the use of skits, available play material, or even the use of body parts to demonstrate a certain topic like counting.

He said all things in our community can be materials used in implementing the approach giving an example of empty bottles that can be used as learning aids in counting.

Obbo said teachers can also group children while learning through play to facilitate team building and peer support. 

“With this approach, it’s difficult to leave a child behind as they can easily remember what,” he said.

Obbo said the aim of organising the National Play Day is to emphasize to the public that playing is good and can facilitate quality learning for the children without dangers if implemented well.

The Playday started with a match around Kitayunjwa sub-county attended by headteachers, teachers, district political leaders, religious leaders, pupils, students, and parents among others.

Pupils of Nawansaso Primary School spiced up with play materials like music, dance, and drama performances at the event.