Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education
This thesis argues that Donald Winnicott's theory of transitional space and play casts new light upon the ontological dimensions of students' experiences of transition within Higher Education. Winnicott enables the illumination of the different ways that students might react, cope and pers...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Thesis (University of Nottingham only) |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2011
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/13449/ |
| _version_ | 1848791736257609728 |
|---|---|
| author | Mackenzie, Helen Elizabeth |
| author_facet | Mackenzie, Helen Elizabeth |
| author_sort | Mackenzie, Helen Elizabeth |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | This thesis argues that Donald Winnicott's theory of transitional space and play casts new light upon the ontological dimensions of students' experiences of transition within Higher Education. Winnicott enables the illumination of the different ways that students might react, cope and personally develop when faced with similarity, difference and change, demonstrating this can have powerful influences upon the facilitation and hindrance of individuals’ transitions.
The qualitative case study, conducted at a Russell Group University, involves an in depth exploration of eight second-year undergraduate Biological Science students' transitional journeys during their study of one module. The students' study included designing their own experiments, working with others, presenting orally, analysing their data and individually writing a scientific report, as part of a creative group project. I argue throughout this thesis that this module invited learners to engage in adult, transitional academic play spaces. Here, learners had the freedom to risk putting him or herself into relation with sameness, uncertainty, difficulty, challenge and change.
The study reports that the potential and enjoyment of transition, as Winnicott proposed, might be only fully realised when the conditions are 'good enough' in the mind of the learner. This involves achieving a delicate balance between firstly, the provision of a teaching and learning environment that provides the freedom and opportunities to engage with transition and secondly, the capacities of students to engage with change which might include, toughness, resilience and a will to learn. In the light of the empirical findings it is argued that students' transitional journeys are both idiosyncratic and complex and students emerge in different ways. It is found that at this stage in their degree study all students required the sensitive support of teaching staff in order to have the confidence to engage within transitional space. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:33:15Z |
| format | Thesis (University of Nottingham only) |
| id | nottingham-13449 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:33:15Z |
| publishDate | 2011 |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-134492025-02-28T11:25:15Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/13449/ Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education Mackenzie, Helen Elizabeth This thesis argues that Donald Winnicott's theory of transitional space and play casts new light upon the ontological dimensions of students' experiences of transition within Higher Education. Winnicott enables the illumination of the different ways that students might react, cope and personally develop when faced with similarity, difference and change, demonstrating this can have powerful influences upon the facilitation and hindrance of individuals’ transitions. The qualitative case study, conducted at a Russell Group University, involves an in depth exploration of eight second-year undergraduate Biological Science students' transitional journeys during their study of one module. The students' study included designing their own experiments, working with others, presenting orally, analysing their data and individually writing a scientific report, as part of a creative group project. I argue throughout this thesis that this module invited learners to engage in adult, transitional academic play spaces. Here, learners had the freedom to risk putting him or herself into relation with sameness, uncertainty, difficulty, challenge and change. The study reports that the potential and enjoyment of transition, as Winnicott proposed, might be only fully realised when the conditions are 'good enough' in the mind of the learner. This involves achieving a delicate balance between firstly, the provision of a teaching and learning environment that provides the freedom and opportunities to engage with transition and secondly, the capacities of students to engage with change which might include, toughness, resilience and a will to learn. In the light of the empirical findings it is argued that students' transitional journeys are both idiosyncratic and complex and students emerge in different ways. It is found that at this stage in their degree study all students required the sensitive support of teaching staff in order to have the confidence to engage within transitional space. 2011 Thesis (University of Nottingham only) NonPeerReviewed application/pdf en arr https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/13449/1/546540.pdf Mackenzie, Helen Elizabeth (2011) Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education. PhD thesis, University of Nottingham. Undergraduates learning philosophy learning psychology of |
| spellingShingle | Undergraduates learning philosophy learning psychology of Mackenzie, Helen Elizabeth Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education |
| title | Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education |
| title_full | Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education |
| title_fullStr | Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education |
| title_full_unstemmed | Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education |
| title_short | Students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education |
| title_sort | students' experiences of academic play within transitional space in higher education |
| topic | Undergraduates learning philosophy learning psychology of |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/13449/ |