Conservation and Development of the Thai Children’s Folk Play Wisdom  in Andaman Coastal Provinces

parichat pragobmas

Authors

parichat pragobmas Phuket Rajabhat University

Keywords:

Andaman Coastal Provinces, Child Development, Conservation Factors, Development Guidelines, Thai Children's Folk Play Wisdom

Abstract

The objectives of this research are to: 1) examine the value of traditional folk play on physical, emotional, mental, social, and cognitive development of Thai children in the Andaman coastal provinces; 2) examine factors affecting the conservation of folk play wisdom in the Andaman coastal provinces; and 3) propose guidelines to develop Thai children folk plays in Andaman provinces. The sample consisted of 400 primary school students and
50 key informants including school administrators, primary school homeroom teachers, physical education teachers, local leaders, folk philosophers, and parents. Research instruments comprised: 1) a handbook of traditional folk play for Thai children in the Andaman coastal provinces; 2) an observation form for assessing the value of traditional folk play; and
3) interview protocols regarding conservation factors and development guidelines for traditional folk play. The content validity of the instruments was determined by calculating the Index of Item-Objective Congruence (IOC) with values ranging from 0.67-1.00. The reliability coefficients were 0.87 for the observation form and 0.85 for the interview protocols. Data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, and content analysis. The findings revealed that:
1) traditional folk play significantly contributed to children's development across all aspects (physical, emotional, mental, social, and cognitive) at high levels; 2) conservation of folk play wisdom was influenced by personal factors, family and social factors, economic factors, and technological factors; and 3) effective guidelines for developing folk play wisdom included implementing supportive local policies, establishing educational institution policies, adapting play formats and equipment, and implementing targeted projects. The research findings provide valuable direction for developing local curricula and activities that promote the conservation of indigenous wisdom in educational institutions.

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