”Man leker når man leker”: Hvilke forståelser av lek og læring gir et utvalg barn uttrykk for? - en undersøkelse basert på samtaler med barn

Abstract

This is a master´s dissertation on children´s understandings of the terms and phenomena ‘play’ and ‘learning’. The dissertation is a qualitative research study inspired by phenomenology and ethnomethodology. While the focus on creation of meaning between research participants and ethnomethodology’s interest in everyday life has inspired me. It is mainly the focus on subjective experiences and the term lifeworld I find particularly interesting and relevant to my project from phenomenology. My project is characterized by an understanding that both knowledge (epistemology) and reality (ontology) arises and changes in encounters between people in social interaction. From the very beginning of my project I had a strong desire that children should take part in it. Children should be the ones who answered the research question I eventually decided on. It was children`s understandings that was most interesting to me, therefore the method used is conversational interviews with children (barnesamtaler). The conversational interviews have been conducted in two different groups of children in two districts in Oslo. The paper comments on the importance of the ethical aspects when researching with children. It also comments on the importance of the researchers ethical reflection during the entire process. In my analysis I have analysed the excerpts from the transcript into three levels, and in nine subjects (tematiseringer). On the final level I have based my analysis on concepts and understandings from phenomenology and ethnomethodology. The way I have interpreted my material, I feel it gives insight into how the children I have talked to understand the terms and phenomena play and learning. I feel my material can be seen as a confirmation that children do not greatly distinguish between the terms and/or phenomena play and learning.