Gesture, Matter and Media in Learning: an Ecological-Embodied Approach.

Abstract

The paper argues that learning emerges from the interplay of gesture, materials and media within extended pedagogical ecologies. From an enactive perspective, knowledge is generated through embodied action and the history of organism–environment couplings (Varela, Thompson, & Rosch, 1991), and is further clarified by an ecological view of mind that understands the brain as mediating a relational field distributed across the body and across social and material interactions (Fuchs, 2021). Empirically, the paper reports data from 325 teachers enrolled in the fifth cycle of the 30-CFU qualifying courses (ex art. 13) at e-Campus University, using aneight-dimension instrument. Findings show broad agreement on the importance of integrating body and movement, but also reveal limited specialist training and a gap between the value attributed to embodied approaches and their actual use; classroom climate, participation and inclusion are associated with the perceived quality of gesture–matter–media co-ordination (Maggi, Balestra, & Zappa, 2025). Operationally, the paper proposes design criteria aligned with UDL and backward design to make inclusive forms of participation observable and practicable (CAST, 2018; Wiggins & McTighe, 2005; Rose & Meyer, 2002).