Teaching Education in Values Through Games in Primary Education

Introduction

The primary aim of school education, fundamentally in its compulsory stages of Primary and Secondary Education, is to contribute to the development of pupils of those skills considered necessary for them to develop as citizens with full rights and duties in the society in which they live. Values have been, are, and always will be a fundamental, transcendent, and topical issue in education (Aktepe & Yel, 2019). For this reason, we want to address the subject and show that values can be taught in any area, at any time, and almost in any place.

We usually deal with education in values in tutoring hours or the subject “Education for Citizenship.” However, we must bear in mind that values are constantly present in our lives, in each of our actions, and that is why we must emphasize the work and promotion of these values, inside and outside the classroom and in any subject, in a playful and motivating way for our children, that is, using the activity that is present in all human beings, play (Escámez et al., 2017). There is not much recent research on the advantages of play in the development of children. However, we know that from birth, within the family environment, play is something they actively develop, and it causes them pleasure. Besides, games can promote countless values of interest to the education of the youngest children from Early Childhood to Primary Education. For the sake of clarity, throughout the chapter, we will use interchangeably the terms “play” and “game” since both are synonyms.

Based on a theoretical foundation, “Education in Values” is the process that helps people construct their values rationally and autonomously (Cortina, 2020). In other words, to provide human beings with the cognitive and affective mechanisms that help them to live together with the fairness and necessary understanding to integrate as social individuals and as unique persons in the world around us.

Nevertheless, why does this need to educate in values? The school emphasizes the continuous cultural, social, and educational changes that affect the development of students. The current crisis of values, the increase in violence, social changes, and technological changes demand educational systems that promote the person's integral development in all areas. And this requires rethinking the work of teachers, analyzing, and reflecting on what is for and not so much on what and how. Education in values responds to these demands by promoting the training of future critical, responsible, autonomous, and democratic citizens (Benitez Grande, 2021).

In order to achieve these approaches, we find in the “Democratic School” the reference framework, whose main principles are based on the objective that we intend to achieve with this research: to promote, not only in the students but also in the entire educational community, the participation of all the agents involved in the different learning communities. According to Louis (2023), one commonality shared by the educational systems in all countries is heated discussions about democratic values and education.

This diversity of culture, age, gender, ethnic origin, socio-economic class, abilities, etc., must be seen from a positive point of view rather than a negative one and in which values such as respect, solidarity, cooperation, collaboration, and equal opportunities, both in terms of access and educational success, are worked on (Parra, 2018). The commitment of this type of school is based on ensuring that there are no individual, group, or social differences, making the most of its organizational and curricular possibilities so that there are no difficulties in accessing the culture offered by the compulsory curriculum.

From another point of view, it is also essential to consider the “School Coexistence Plan,” which must be drawn up in all public educational centers, as it considers the characteristics and circumstances of both the center and its pupils. Promoting a positive climate in the school environment for students is the daily task of the teacher. However, giving a voice to families and students in order to encourage participation, debate, and reflection, and work with them on various aspects such as the culture of peace, mediation, and conflict resolution is a profound step forward in the complicated task of educating in values according to Díaz Torres & Rodríguez Gómez (2018).