These resolutions were presented and accepted by ACEI members at the
Annual Business Meeting on March 25, 2005.
Whereas ACEI is committed to the betterment of children worldwide; and
Whereas ACEI is concerned about the pressures and stressors placed on children through NCLB, excessive standardized testing, and educational practices that are not developmentally appropriate; and
Whereas play (including recess) is a fundamental right of all children; and
Whereas research supports that active bodies make active brains creating permanent neurological connections critical to academic learning; and
Whereas obesity, connected to poor eating habits and lack of exercise, has been identified as a national health risk by the U.S. Surgeon General and has spread to other parts of the world; and
Whereas free play has decreased in the U.S.16% and outdoor play has decreased by 50% since 1981 due to parental work patterns, neighborhood safety issues, and increased participation in organized sports at an earlier age1; and
Whereas children talking with peers, which occurs on the playground and in nonstructured play activities, is critical to the development of language, writing skills and socialization; and
Whereas ACEI's Position Paper on Play2 recognizes the need for children of all ages to play and affirms the essential role of play in children's lives;
Therefore, be it resolved:
ACEI and its membership will advocate at all levels for the reinstatement
of play (including recess) as an appropriate and essential component of
all school curriculums; and
ACEI will, through continued publications and joint efforts with other professional education organizations, continue to promote play as a critical component of all children's lives; and
ACEI will endorse educational practices that recognize the importance of play; and
ACEI and its membership will actively seek the involvement and advocacy of parents in a joint effort to emphasize the critical importance of play; and
ACEI will continue efforts and encourage future efforts in research and publication regarding the importance of play; and
ACEI will take the lead in articulating the critical and essential need for play experiences to all educators, parents, and policymakers worldwide.
1 Hofferth, S. & Sandberg, J. F. (2001). "Changes in American Children's Use of Time, 1981-1997" Children at the Millennium: Where have we come, Where are we going? Advances in Life Course Research, 193-229, Elsevier Science.
2Isenberg, J. P., and Quisenberry, N. (2002). Play: Essential
for all children. A Position paper of the Association for Childhood
Education International. Accessed from http://www.udel.edu/bateman/acei/playpaper.htm
on 12/3/02.
Whereas ACEI is committed to the betterment of young adolescents (twelve to fourteen year olds) worldwide; and
Whereas ACEI is concerned about the pressures and stressors placed on young adolescents brought about by excessive standardized testing through federal, state and local initiatives and other educational practices that are not developmentally appropriate; and
Whereas social interaction (including movement and physical activity) as a form of play is a fundamental right of all young adolescents; and
Whereas research supports that active bodies make active brains creating permanent neurological connections critical to academic learning; and
Whereas obesity, connected to poor eating habits and lack of exercise, has been identified as a national health risk by the U.S. Surgeon General and has spread to other parts of the world; and
Whereas free time has decreased in the U.S. by 16% and outdoor activities has decreased by 50% since 1981 due to parental work patterns, neighborhood safety issues, and increased participation in organized sports at an earlier age1; while young adolescents do also need to be active and playful; and
Whereas young adolescents interacting with peers, which occurs on breaks and in nonstructured social interaction activities, is critical to the development of language, writing and socialization skills; and
Whereas ACEI's Position Paper on Play2 recognizes the need for children to play and young adolescents to be playful through social interaction affirms the essential role of play in children's lives.
Therefore, be it resolved:
ACEI and its membership will advocate at all levels for the reinstatement
of more social interaction and physical activity for young adolescent youth
as an appropriate and essential component of all school curriculums; and
ACEI will, through continued publications and joint efforts with other professional education organizations, continue to promote social interaction as a critical component of all young adolescents' lives; and
ACEI will endorse educational practices that recognize the importance of social interaction; and
ACEI and its membership will actively seek the involvement and advocacy of all parents in a joint effort to emphasize the critical importance of social interaction; and
ACEI will continue to promote the importance of social interaction internationally via present and future research and publications3; and
ACEI will take the lead in articulating the critical and essential need for social interaction especially in middle school experiences to all educators, parents, and policymakers worldwide.
1Hofferth, S. & Sandberg, J. F. (2001). "Changes in American Children's Use of Time, 1981-1997" Children at the Millennium: Where have we come, Where are we going? Advances in Life Course Research, 193-229, Elsevier Science.
2Isenberg, J. P., and Quisenberry, N. (2002). Play: Essential for all children. A Position paper of the Association for Childhood Education International. Accessed from http://www.udel.edu/bateman/acei/playpaper.htm on 12/3/02.
3 Including Dr. Jill Hunter's spring 2004 ACEI
Middle School Focus, article: Challenging Young Adolescents, and
other researchers such as Lee Manning, Laura Berk, and Ken McEwin.
Whereas ACEI is a non-governmental organization (NGO) with consultative status to the United Nations (UN), UNESCO, and UNICEF; and
Whereas ACEI is committed to promoting and supporting the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the two Optional Protocols protecting children from involvement in: (a) armed conflict; and (b) trafficking, prostitution, and pornography; and
Whereas ACEI is committed to promoting and supporting the 2002 World Fit for Children, outcome document of the Special Session on Children, sponsored by the UN General Assembly.
Therefore be it resolved that:
ACEI will promote and support the UN's Millennium Development Goals
(2000)1; and
ACEI will promote and support UNICEF's Medium-Term Strategic Plan (MTSP)2 in five priority areas:
ACEI will educate and advocate on behalf of UNICEF's Strategic Plan for the world's children and young adolescents.
1 www.developmentgoals.org
2 UNICEF (2002). UNICEF's Priorities for Children 2002-2005. NY: UNICEF.
These pages are copyright 
2005 by the Association for Childhood Education International. Please send
any comments to Jana Pauldin at jpauldin@acei.org.
