Development of the play experience model to enhance desirable qualifications of early childhood

The objectives of this research were to develop the play experience model and to study the effect of usage in play experience model for enhancing the early childhood’s desirable qualification. There were 3 phases of research: 1) the document and context in experience management were studied, 2) the play experience model was developed, and 3) the effect of usage in play experience model for enhancing the early childhood’s desirable qualification. The samples were 54 Kindergarten 2 students studying during the second semester of 2013 academic year, Prasathin School Network Center, the Office of Roi-Et Primary Educational Service Area 1. The statistic used for data analysis included the Percentage, Mean, Standard Deviation, and t-test. The findings found that the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood’s desirable qualification consisted of : 1) the basic of theoretical approach, 2) the objectives, 3) the steps of play experience model, 4) the social system, 5) the principle of response, 6) the supportive system. In addition, there were 3 steps of play experience model:1) readiness, 2) action, and 3) the conclusion and evaluation. The overall and each aspect of desirable qualification of the early childhood obtained play experience model, found that the posttest 1, was higher than the pretest at .01 significant level. Furthermore, the posttest 2, was higher than the posttest 1 at .01 significant level. Besides, the evaluative findings found that, there were no significant differences between two weeks after the posttest 2, and the posttest 2.The early childhood’s desirable qualification by using the play experience model, was higher than the general experience management at.01 significant level. Moreover, the teachers’ opinion on the usage of play experience model for enhancing the early childhood’s desirable qualification was in “the Highest” level.


INTRODUCTION
Early childhood education is a branch of educational theory which relates to the teaching of young children up until the age of about eight, with a particular focus on education, notable in the period before the start of compulsory education.The first two years of a child's life are spent in the creation of a child's first "sense of self"; most children are able to differentiate between themselves and others in their second year.This is a crucial part of the child's ability to determine how they should function in relation to other people (Oatley and *Corresponding author.E-mail: watchara0819@hotmail.com.Tel: +66 (1) 8715066.
Authors agree that this article remain permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License Jenkins, 2007).Early care must emphasize links to family, home culture, and home language by uniquely caring for each child, which is known as the key worker system.Parents can be seen as a child's first teacher and therefore an integral part of the early learning process (Anning et al., 2004).
Early childhood education focuses on children's learning through play, based on the research and philosophy of Jean Piaget (Piaget, 1982).This belief is centered on the "power of play".Play meets the physical, intellectual, language, emotional and social needs (PILES) of children.Tassoni development, but many will develop several areas (Tassoni, 2000).Depending on the child's interests will influence the development of skills in different areas of play.It is important practitioners promote children's development through play by using various types of play on a daily basis (Tassoni, 2000).It has been thought that children learn more efficiently and gain more knowledge through play-based activities such as dramatic play, art, and social games.The theory of play stems from children's natural curiosity and imagination, allowing topic lessons to occur.Key issues of play are having a healthy and safe environment, having plenty of space, correct supervision, quality of care/environment, the attitudes of the practitioner and their cultural awareness as well as a good knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage (Winner, 2013).The developmental interaction approach is based on the theories of Jean Piaget, Erik Erikson, John Dewey and Lucy Sprague Mitchell, the approach aims to involve children in acquiring competence via learning through discovery.
UNESCO Bangkok (2011) reported that early childhood care and education targets children aged 0-5 years in Thailand.There are three types of pre-primary education depending on the local conditions: pre-school classes, kindergartens and childcare centers.Private schools usually offer a three-year kindergarten programs.Twoyear kindergarten and one-year pre-school classes are available at public primary schools in rural areas.Preschool education is not compulsory and it is free from 2009 after introduction of 15-year free education policy which recognized the importance of pre-school education.The government's policy on pre-school education has clear direction to expand and improve the provision of pre-school education in state schools in rural areas on a nationwide scale in order to give better education opportunities for economically disadvantaged children in rural areas.The access to pre-primary education in Thailand is moderately high.Still a significant proportion of children from lower socio-economic background and/or from remote rural areas have no access to pre-primary education.
Education in Thailand is provided mainly by the Thai government through the Ministry of Education from preschool to senior high school.A free basic education of twelve years is guaranteed by the constitution, and a minimum of nine years' school attendance is mandatory.Formal education consists of at least twelve years of basic education, and higher education.Basic education is divided into six years of primary education and six years of secondary education, the latter being further divided into three years of lower-and upper-secondary levels.Kindergarten levels of pre-primary education, also part of the basic education level, span 2-3 years depending on the locale, and are variably provided (Ministry of Education, 2010).
The Early Childhood Curriculum (Academic Department, 2003) specified the Educational management philosophy, and the child rearing on the basis for serving the early born children to 5 year-old who needed love, warm, understanding, and necessity to obtain development in their physical, emotional, mental, and intellectual with balance continuously in all aspects.After graduation, children would have standard in 12 factors of desirable qualification including: 1) strong body, being grown up according to one's age with good hygiene, 2) ability in using one's gross motor and fine muscle fluently and cooperatively, 3) good mental health and happiness, 4) had ethics, morality, and good mind and spirit, 5) appreciation and expression in art, music, movement, and exercise.6) self-help appropriately with one's age, 7) love the nature, environment, and culture in locality, and Thai being, 8) living with the others happily and good member of society, 9) language competency appropriately with one's age, 10) thinking ability and problem solving appropriately with one's age, 11) imagination and creative thinking, and 12) good attitude towards learning different things and skill in searching for knowledge.
An assessment of the quality of pre-school education indicated that only 40% of 3 to 5 year old children received adequate preparation for readiness in learning before attending primary school.Although Thailand has a very high percentage of young children attending child development centers, if such centers are not supported properly through strengthening capacity and management, the quality of early childhood development and young children's preparation for primary schooling can be seriously affected (UNESCO Bangkok, 2011).Most children attend formal pre-primary institutions administered by the Ministry of Education and about half of these children enroll in learning childcare/development centers of the non-formal pre-primary education system, mainly administered the Department of Local Administration.The Office of Basic Education Commission (OBEC) prepares the core early childhood curriculum and disseminates it to all Educational Service Area (ESA) Offices to distribute it to parents, guardians and teachers in order to ensure that all key stakeholders combine efforts to provide pre-school children with quality education.The 10-Year Plan and Policy for Early Childhood Development (2006Development ( -2015) ) provides a blueprint for achieving universal early childhood education for all Thai children.The 10-Year Plan and Policy gives priority to three main strategies: 1) to support early childhood development; 2) to support parents and other stakeholders; and 3) to promote an environment that facilitates early childhood development.
Researcher; a teacher and an administrator at the local educational area emphasizes to the 10-Year Plan and Policy of UNESCO and the 10-Year Plan and Policy gives priority to three main strategies of Thailand for early childhood at Prasarthin School in the Office of Roi-Et Primary Educational Service Area 1.How can this school management support early childhood learning development?What are this school supported parents and other stakeholders to admire and believable to this school?How can teacher promote an environment that facilitates early childhood development with developing play model for students' playing to enhance desirable qualifications of early childhood?This study was seeking to answers of the whole of these questions to; formulate a common concept and guidelines for early childhood development, to concrete operational plans for effective mobilization, management, and resource utilization, to provide guidelines for data and information collection, and to incorporate early childhood development as an integral part of educational reform.

Purpose of study
1. To study the problem situation in providing the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification.2. To develop the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification.3. To study the effect of usage in the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification.

Participants
The samples were 54 early childhood studying in Kindergarten 2, during the second semester of 2013 academic year of Prasathin School Network Center, the Office of Roi-Et Primary Educational Service Area 1. Twenty nine students were assigned into the experimental group.Twenty five students were assigned into the control group.They were selected by Multi-stage Random Sampling.

Procedure
This research was to develop the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification by using research and development.The researcher conducted research including 3 Phases as follows: Phase 1: the study of document and context in experience management for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, there were 3 Steps of implementation as follows: Panpum et al. 1363 The study of document and research literature in experience management for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification were studied by studying the theoretical approach used for developing the play experience model.The model included the experience management based on Waldorf's approach.It was expected to bring the children's inherent potentiality that needed to obtain adequate learning and experience including one's physical appearance the children could learn by doing and one's mind the children expressed quality through feeling with good mentality, conscious, and spirit which were obtained by direct experience.The students could practice by themselves, for instance (Rudolf, 1988).
For the experience management based on Montessori's approach, was focused on children themselves as the main point of instructional management so that the children would be able to learn themselves through the equipment from concrete form to abstract one (Montessori, 1983).In addition, the Constructivist theory stated that one's learning was a process that occurred inside children since they constructed knowledge from relationship of what they had found, and their prior knowledge.They associated the new knowledge with their former one in order to cause learning in each one's intellectual structure (Vygotsky, 1978).Later on, the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualifications was developed.
The study of problem situation in experience management for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, aimed to study the problem situation of experience management for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification.
The researcher used survey research.
The analysis of problem situation and need in order to be used for designing the research study, aimed to analyze the desirable qualification of early childhood with problem as well as to design the research study by using the interview form.
Phase 2: the development of play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, there were 3 steps of implementation: The synthesis of play experience tentative model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, aimed to develop the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification obtained from the analysis of problem situation in experience management for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification obtained including: the early childhood management, the play experience model, the theoretical approach of experience management.Then, all of them were used for developing the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification by using the play experience model of Joyce et al. (2004) consisting of: 1) the basic of theoretical approach, 2) the objectives, 3) the steps of play experience model, 4) the social system, 5) the principle of response, and 6) the supportive system.
The investigation of play experience tentative model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification by 7 experts, it was investigated its propriety of play experience tentative model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification as well as the content of experience management and its components.Then the findings of experts' investigation were considered as well as improved based on their recommendations.The play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, was established for trying out later.
The investigation of propriety and feasibility of play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, aimed to investigate the propriety, feasibility, and problem and obstacle of play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification.The play experience model was tried out with the pilot experimental group as 47 Kindergarten 2 students during the second semester of 2013 academic year, Prasathin School Network Center, the Office of Roi-Et Primary Educational Service Area 1, who were not the samples.Twenty three of them were assigned into the experimental group, and twenty four of them were assigned into the control group.
Phase 3: the study of effect in usage of play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, consisted of 2 steps of implementation as: The study of the effect in usage of play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, aimed to study the findings in using the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification.The samples were 54 Kindergarten 2 students during the second semester of 2013 academic year of Prasathin School Network Center, the Office of Roi-Et Primary Educational Service Area 1. Twenty nine students were assigned into the experimental group, and 24 students were assigned into the control group.They were selected by Multi-stage Sampling.
The opinion evaluation of teachers using the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, the samples were 2 teachers teaching the Kindergarten 2 during the second semester of 2013 academic year.They provided the experience management by using the play experience model.They were selected by Purposive Sampling.

Instruments
The instruments using in this study included 1.The questionnaire asking the problem situation in experience management for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification 2. The interview form of problem situation in experience management for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification 3. The play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification 4. The evaluative form of early childhood's desirable qualification including the observation form, the interview form, and the evaluation form 5. The questionnaire asking opinion of teachers using the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification.

Data collection
The research implementation and data collection of this study were as follows: The document and research studies in experience management for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification regarding the educational management for early childhood, the play experience management, the experience management model, the desirable qualification.Then, the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, was developed.
The study of context for providing the experience management for enhancing the early childhood' desirable qualification, the researcher used the survey research by using the questionnaire asking opinion of Teachers teaching Kindergarten regarding to the issues of problem situation in experience management for enhancing the early childhood' desirable qualification.
The analysis of problem situation and need using for designing the research study, the researcher used the interview form to interview 10 teachers teaching in Kindergarten 2 during the first semester of 2013 academic year, under jurisdiction of the Office of Roi-Et Primary Educational Service Area 1, who had knowledge and experience in teaching the kindergarten class not less than 10 years.
The play experience model for enhancing the early childhood' qualification, was developed.The pilot study was implemented with 47 Kindergarten 2 students who were not the samples, during the second semester of 2013 academic year, Prasathin School Network Center, the Office of Roi-Et Primary Educational service Area Twenty three students were assigned into the experimental group.Twenty four of them were assigned into the control group.The implementation was performed for 8 weeks, 5 days a week by using the pretest-posttest control group design.(Campbell and Stanley, 1969) The instruments were tried out with the samples of 54 Kindergarten 2 students during the second semester of 2013 academic year, Prasathin School Network Center, the Office of Roi-Et Primary Educational service Area 1. Twenty nine students were assigned into the experimental group.Twenty five students were assigned into the control group.The implementation was performed for 10 weeks, 5 days a week by using the control-group interrupted time series design (Creswell, 2003).
The opinion of teachers teaching the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification was asked.

Data analysis
Basic statistic including the percentage, mean, and standard deviation of scores obtaining from the evaluation of desirable qualification by using the play experience model, and general experience management, were analyzed.
The differences between the pretest and posttest mean values of the early childhood's desirable qualification, were found by using the t -test (dependent samples).
differences between the pretest and posttest mean values of the early childhood's desirable qualification, between the play experience model, and the general experience management, were found by using the t -test (independent samples).

RESULTS
The findings of development in play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, could be concluded as follows: The early childhood's desirable qualification included the problem in experience management and usage in 3 aspects of research design including: the thinking ability and problem solving appropriately with one' age ( X = 4.04, S.D. = 1.25) which was in "High" level, the good mental health and happiness ( X =3.75,S.D. = 1.32) which was in "High" level and the living with the others happily and good member of society ( X = 3.61 , S.D.= 1.46) which was in "High" level.
The play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualifications, consisted of 6 components including: 1) the basic of theoretical approach, 2) the objectives, 3) the steps of play experience model, 4) the social system, 5) the principle of response, and 6) the supportive system.The efficiency was = 81.07/80.87.The effectiveness Index was = The findings of usage in play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification included the following details: The comparative findings of desirable qualification of the early childhood obtained play experience model shown in Table 1.
According to Table 2, the comparative findings of desirable qualification of the early childhood obtained play experience model, found that the posttest 1, was higher than the pretest at .01 significant level.Furthermore, the posttest 2 was higher than the posttest 1 at .01 significant level.Besides, the evaluative findings found that there were no significant differences between two weeks the posttest 2 and the posttest 2, both of overall and each aspect.
The comparative findings of desirable qualification of the early childhood obtained play experience model are shown in Table 1.
According to Table 2, the comparative findings of desirable qualification in the early childhood between those who obtained the play experience model and the students who obtained the general experience management, found that there were no significant differences in evaluative findings of pretest from both of overall and each aspect.There were significant differences in evaluative findings between the posttest 1, and the posttest 2, and two weeks after posttest 2 between the experience management by using the play experience model, and the general experience management at .01 level in both of overall and each aspect.
The findings of opinion from teachers using the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, found that the teachers agreed with the usage of the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, in "the Highest" level.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
The findings of development in play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification show the followings: 1.The findings of study in problem situation of play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, were in "Moderate" level ( X =3.12, S.D = 1.24).Considering each aspect, it is found that the item with highest level of mean value in the first 3 orders of problem situation in experience management for enhancing the early childhood' desirable qualification The basic of theoretical approach: 1.The experience management based on Waldorf's approach.
2. The experience management based on Montessori's approach.

The steps of play experience model (RACE) 1. Readiness
1.1 Activity for motivation development.
1.2 Activity for revision of prior experience.

Action
2.1 Activity for learning the new experience.2.2 Activity for developing desirable qualification.
2.3 Activity for processing desirable qualifications.

Conclusion and Evaluation
3.1 Activity for concluding and evaluating desirable qualifications.
3.2 Activity for enhancing desirable qualifications.

The objectives
To enhance the early childhood's desirable qualifications including: 1) The good mental health and happiness, 2) The living with the others happily and good member of society, and 3) The thinking ability and problem solving appropriately with one' age.

The social system
1. Teacher's role.2. Students' role.were: the thinking ability and problem solving appropriately with one' age ( X = 4.04, S.D. = 1.25) which was in "High" level.The second order was the good mental health and happiness ( X =3.75,S.D. = 1.32) which was in "High" level.The third order was the living with others happily and good member of society ( X = 3.61, S.D.= 1.46) which was in "High" level.According to each aspect study, it is found that 3 aspects of early childhood's desirable qualification using in this study were: the thinking ability and problem solving appropriately with one's age, the good mental health and happiness, and the living with the others happily and good member of society.

The principle of response
The problems were in "High" level which indicated that it was emergent for the early childhood educators to pay attention to the development of early childhood's desirable qualification so that thechildren in this age would be able to obtain self-development with full potentiality.It was supported by the Academic Department (2003) that in order to provide the students' knowledge and skill in problem solving or developing their daily life, the content material to be studied included the basic knowledge of occupational skill, problem solving and life development skill, and social skill for cooperation and living together peacefully.These skills were the third order was the living with the life skill that everyone had to learn as lifelong learning.According to the significance, the researcher had an approach to develop the early childhood's desirable qualification in 3 aspects with the above problems by using the appropriate model with the early childhood's age as the play activity management.2. The findings of development of play experience model enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, found that the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification including 6 factors: 1) the basic of theoretical approach, 2) the objectives, 3) the steps of play experience model, 4) the social system, 5) the principle of response, and 6) the supportive system.The steps of play experience model consisted of 3 steps: 1) readiness included the subactivities in motivation development and revision of prior experience, 2) action included the sub-activities as learning the new experience, developing desirable qualification, and processing desirable qualification, 3) the conclusion and evaluation included the sub-activities as the concluding and evaluating desirable qualification, and enhancing desirable qualification.The efficiency of experience management plan based on the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification (E 1 / E 2 ) was = 81.07/80.87.The effectiveness index was = 0.6229 indicating that after the experience management based on the play experience model developed by the researcher, the students had increased desirable qualification of early childhood of 62.29% from pretest.The play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification, had both efficiency and effectiveness as specified criterion.It might be because: The play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification was developed by studying the Early Childhood Program (2003), the Joyce et al.'s approach, the document relating to the early childhood's desirable qualification, and the theoretical Panpum et al. 1367 approach of play theory including the activity management based on Waldorf's approach, the experience management based on Montessori and constructivist theory.Then, the play experience model was developed through the investigation of its content validity by experts.
It was tried out with the Kindergarten as non-samples in order to search for the concurrent validity.So, it could be believed that the developed play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification had quality.Each experience management plan based on the play experience model was developed from the basic theoretical approach until 3 steps were obtained: 1) readiness included the sub-activities in motivation development and revision of prior experience, 2) action included the sub-activities as learning the new experience, developing desirable qualification, and processing desirable qualification, 3) the conclusion and evaluation included the sub-activities as the concluding and evaluating desirable qualification, and enhancing desirable qualification, which were investigated and recommended by experts, and tried out and improved until it was complete by studying the documents relating to Early Childhood Program to be congruent with learning objectives, measurement and evaluation, considering the psychological theory of early childhood.Consequently, the experience management plan based on play experience model had quality including various approaches of play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification.This study was supported by Bridget York's (2007) approach that the experience management was a model for children to work in group, be leader, and obtain thinking skill and problem solving.When the early childhood was provided with the experience management based on play experience model, they would develop 3 aspects of desirable qualifications including: 1) the thinking ability and problem solving appropriately with one's age, 2) the good mental health and happiness, and 3) living with others happily and good member of society.
The study of effect in using the play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualification found that: The comparative findings of desirable qualification of the early childhood obtained play experience model, found that the posttest 1, was higher than the pretest at .01 significant level.Furthermore, the posttest 2, was higher than the posttest 1 at .01 significant level.Besides, the evaluative findings found that, there were no significant differences between two weeks after the posttest 2, and the posttest 2, both of overall and each aspect.It was supported by Rudolph's approach (1984) that the children's play was the developmental process in all of 4 aspects: physical, emotional, social, and intelligence.The children's play consisted of 3 components: the children's play could lead to the discovery of logic and thought, it was the connection, and it could lead to one's

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.The play experience model for enhancing the early childhood's desirable qualifications.

Table 1 .
The comparative findings of desirable qualification of the early childhood obtained play experience model.

Table 2 .
The comparative findings of early childhood' desirable qualification by using the play experience model and general experience.