Wake Up Call Public Education

Wake Up Call Public Education

Good Guy, Bad Guy: Bringing the Evil Back to School

Pretend play in preschool, should teachers intervene and stop children from role playing that involves a good guy vs. bad guy scenario?

Detour, A., Logue, M.E. (2011). Early Childhood Research & Practice. "You Be the Bad Guy": A New Role for Teachers in Supporting Children's Dramatic Play. Spring 2011, V. 13, Number 1. Retrieved from: http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v13n1/index.html

Summary of Information/Abstract: The authors of this study observed how preschool students respond to pretend "bad guy" play to examine whether or not the good vs. evil dynamic involved in "bad guy" pretend play has the potential to ameliorate a child's social development.

The study itself was a "collaborative inquiry" as opposed to an empirical or statistical examination. Research was conducted with the subjects, who ranged in age from 3 to 4-1/2 years, as opposed to on the subjects. In total, there were 12 subjects, six boys and six girls.

The teacher who cooperated in the study as well as the pretend play used certain prompts and played a role in steering the play script. Initially children played an emergency themed "saving babies" game in which children had to rescue their dolls (babies) from a ledge. Over the next few days the game evolved into a scenario in which the teacher was assigned the role as the "bad guy" (a witch) and was tasked with stealing the babies.

Although the teacher had reservations about playing the "bad guy" role, she eventually embraced it provided that the children could differentiate between pretend play and reality. She went so far as to ask the children, "Is this pretend or real? I would NEVER really steal a baby." One subject responded, "We know. It's pretend."

The study was conducted over the course of several days. Toward the end of study, children had assigned and re-assigned and willfully took up the role of "bad guy." The teacher was impressed by "the levels of sustained attention, planful negotiation, cooperation, and inclusive play among the children they observed during the various scenarios." The authors concluded that, at the very least, teachers may want to rethink prohibiting pretend "bad guy" play.

Relevance of Information for 21st Century Schools

Over the past few decades schools and preschools have adopted a political correct agenda. This agenda has impacted everything from curriculum to classroom etiquette.

One of the key aspects of the PC movement has been to insulate children from fundamental aspects of society, i.e good and evil, winning and losing, pretty and ugly. In today's schools, everyone is good, everyone is a winner, and everyone is pretty (Penny, 2003).

The result of this way of thinking, teaching, and living is manifested in many ways. The most apparent is the growing number of teenagers and adolescents who need prescription medication (psychotropic drugs) to get through the day.

Teachers would be wise to read this study and consider how important it is for children to experience situations were things are less than ideal. Carefully moderated pretend "bad guy" play is just one way to prepare a child for the hardships that life has to offer.

In addition, the authors note that "previous work about bad guy play (e.g., Pellegrini, 1998) indicates that a small percentage of children in classrooms may escalate from pretend aggression into real aggression, but that most will not." So with very little risk, there's no reason not to let kids be kids.

Professional Position/Response to Content

The study makes many cogent points and raises many interesting questions.

The conclusion it makes are as follows, (1) children's pretend play can become complex when teachers support but do not direct it, (2) teachers' discomfort with certain play themes might inhibit play that could be valuable to children, (3) children's pretending to act aggressively is not the same as acting aggressively, and (4) play has a rhythm and structure that can be better understood through documentation and reflection.