The School of Play
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The School of Play
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Since 2022, La Trobe University researchers have studied our programs five times. Here is what the data said, including the parts that didn't go our way.
Plenty of wellbeing programs say they are evidence-based. Fewer let a university study them, and fewer again publish the results that didn't land. Since 2022, La Trobe University researchers have studied our programs five times. Here is all of it.
Fifteen teachers and parents, aged 28 to 58, took part in a single structured, one-hour play session. Vitality rose 40%, positive mood 30% and mindfulness 32%, while negative mood fell 20%. All four changes were statistically significant, with large effects. The study is peer-reviewed and published in the Journal of Play in Adulthood. My favourite finding: people came out more energised and more present at the same time, which the researchers called ‘energetic mindfulness’.
Student leaders ran play for their peers over five weeks, with control groups who didn't do the program. Primary students' autonomy rose 9.4% (4.69 to 5.13), a significant, large effect that only appeared in the students who did the program.
A second study looked at the 49 student leaders running the sessions, measuring their own autonomy and vitality. Over five weeks there was no statistically significant change. The researchers pointed to engagement as a factor, and that shaped how we run Student Agency now.
Teachers ran our curriculum for eight weeks at Keilor Views Primary School (53 Grade 3 and 4 students) and McKinnon Secondary College (49 Year 8 students). At Keilor Views, average vitality rose 9.7% (4.34 to 4.76), a small positive effect in line with previous play research. It is a preliminary, descriptive finding: it was not statistically significant after adjustment. At McKinnon, belonging and resilience didn't change significantly over eight weeks.
These were short studies, from one session to eight weeks, mostly in single schools, and three had no control group. The researchers recommend larger, longer, controlled studies, and we are committed to them. We refuse to claim what the studies didn't show. That's the line between research and marketing.
Download the Evidence summaryA printable 2-page summary with the key takeaways. Perfect for staffroom walls, fridge doors, or the back of a planner.
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