INNOVATIVE PLAY-BASED LEARNING STRATEGIES AND COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT AMONG EARLY PRIMARY SCHOOL PUPILS IN NIGERIAN BASIC EDUCATION

Early childhood cognitive development forms the foundation for lifelong learning; however, teaching approaches within many primary education systems remain dominated by teacher centered instructional practices that limit exploratory learning and creativity among pupils. Play based learning has been recognized as an effective pedagogical approach capable of stimulating cognitive development, yet empirical evidence on its effectiveness within Nigerian basic education remains limited. This study examined the influence of innovative play-based learning strategies on cognitive development among early primary school pupils. The study employed a longitudinal experimental design involving 160 pupils from four public primary schools selected through cluster sampling techniques. Pupils were divided into experimental and control groups, where the experimental group was exposed to structured play-based instructional strategies over a twelve week learning period. Data were collected using standardized cognitive development tests and classroom engagement observation scales with reliability coefficients of 0.82 and 0.85 respectively. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, independent sample t-tests, and Pearson correlation analysis. The findings indicated a statistically significant difference in cognitive development scores between pupils exposed to play-based learning and those taught using conventional instructional approaches (t = 4.74, p < 0.001). Correlation analysis revealed a strong positive relationship between play-based instructional strategies and pupils’ cognitive development (r = 0.66, p < 0.01). The study recommends that primary education authorities adopt child-centered pedagogical models incorporating structured play activities in early childhood instruction. The study concludes that play-based learning strategies significantly enhance cognitive engagement, creative thinking, and problem-solving abilities among early primary school pupils.