Paper short abstract:

This paper looks at the gender and dynamics of gaze among children during the school hours recess time games. It explores the gender contestation and use of multiple gazes and negotiations among children while playing games.

Paper long abstract:

The playground is a space where gender relations are practiced (Paechter and Clark, 2007). The paper is drawn out of one of the chapters in my thesis. It focuses on children's games, the playground and the dynamics of gaze during recess time. As a space, the playground is quite often open and less supervised by the schoolteachers and administrative staff members, unlike a classroom. The playground allows students to play certain games and have fun during the recess/break amidst their studies. Girls and boys play games that manifest their limitations as well as their freedom (Karsten, 1998, Sebba, 1994, Karsten, 2003).

I am arguing that these games do reflect fun and freedom, but the games also manifest gendered aspects of children's lives. There is a clear gender contestation going on between girls and boys on the playground while playing games. Boys and girls don't reveal their agency, but also show how the boys maintain their male gaze and enjoy the larger space of the playground. At the same time, girls are not just silent or sidelined by the actions of the boys, but they negotiate and resist to some extent that allows them to participate in the games on the playground. Throughout these 30 minutes of recess, multiple gazes interact to reflect the level of power among girls and boys. Overall, this paper contributes to the wider literature on gaze/s (Foucauldian and Post-Foucauldian) and its various dynamics.