Identifying and explaining the role of the teacher and the child in the guided play process: a qualitative content analysis

Effective implementation of guided play requires teachers who, with a clear understanding of their role and that of children, know how to begin and interact during play. Such teachers, while paying attention to and supporting learning goals, also provide children with a process of enjoyable playing experience. The goal of the current study was to identify and explain the role of the coach and the child in the guided play process of teaching-learning. The research method was inductive qualitative content analysis in which guided play research studies in the field of children's education between 2000-2020 were identified by purposive sampling and analyzed until reaching saturation. The result of analyzing 17 scientific sources (including 15 articles and 2 dissertations) led to the identification of 6 main organizing themes and 5 sub-organizing themes, which were divided into two comprehensive themes: teacher role (purposeful initiator, a participant in the play, supportive) and child role (intrinsic motivation, active role in the play, dynamic participation). The identified themes were well-received and validated by experts.