Child Risk Assessment and Safety (CRAS)-Based Play Environment Management: A Study of Indoor and Outdoor Educational Play Tools in Early Childhood Education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35457/6e2btj23Keywords:
CRAS -Based Play Environment Management, Indoor and Outdoor Educational Play Tools, Early Childhood EducationAbstract
This research aims to analyze the management of play environments and the availability of Educational Play Equipment (APE) in Early Childhood Education (PAUD) institutions, as well as to identify the extent to which the principles of Child Risk Assessment and Safety (CRAS) have been applied in managing child safety and play experiences. The study uses a descriptive qualitative approach through field observations, surveys of APE availability in 10 institutions in Tapos, Kediri Regency, and interviews with principals and teachers. The results show that the availability of indoor APE is not yet evenly distributed, with building blocks available in 70% of institutions, puzzles in 60%, and Lego/Bombik in 50%. In the outdoor environment, slides are available in 90% of institutions, while sandboxes are in 50%, seesaws in 40%, swings in 30%, and crawling tunnels in only 10%. Institutions have implemented several safety practices through spatial arrangement, APE inspection and maintenance, teacher training, recording of medical and allergy profiles, and injury handling procedures. However, the implementation of CRAS has not been fully structured because risk identification, assessment of the suitability of APE with child characteristics, risk-benefit analysis, mitigation, and monitoring documentation have not yet appeared as an integrated system. This study validates the necessity of transitioning from risk aversion to risk management that takes into account both safety and the developmental advantages for children.
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