Application and Barriers to Play-Based Learning: Perspectives of Higher Education Tutors and Lecturers in Ghana

This study assessed the relationship between selected demographic characteristics and application of play-based learning by tutors/lecturers as well as inhibitory factors militating against the use of play-based learning. Utilizing a concurrent nested design, 90 tutors/lecturers (68 males; 22 females) completed the quantitative phase while 16 tutors (12 males; 4 females) who were initially involved in the quantitative phase completed the qualitative phase. The study established that there was no statistically significant relationship between sex of tutors/lecturers and items related to the application of play-based learning. Again, there was no statistically significant relationship between level of experience of tutors/lecturers and items related to the application of play-based learning. However, while there was no statistically significant difference between tutors’/lecturers’ institution (college or university) and the majority of the items related to the application of play-based learning, there was a statistically significant relationship between tutors’/lecturers’ institution and the specific item related to the use of play-based learning throughout the lesson delivery. Specifically, tutors in the colleges of education were likely to apply play-based learning throughout their lesson delivery compared to lectures at the university. Comparative thematic analysis between lecturers’ and tutors’ narratives revealed a possible reason for the aforementioned finding, which is the relatively larger class sizes lecturers have to manage at the university level. Beyond dealing with large class sizes, other inhibitory factors militating against the application of play-based recounted by tutors/lecturers included limited resources, time allocation challenges, and classroom space constraints. In light of these findings, it is recommended that faculty development programmes incorporate play-based learning modules, and that institutions provide adequate instructional materials, assistive technologies, and adopt group-based strategies to support implementation in large classes, thereby promoting inclusive education.