LEND ME A HAND: EMBODIMENT-BASED LEARNING PRACTICES AND ENVIRONMENTS AS ACTIVE PROCESSES OF INCLUSION

Autors/ores

  • Mauro Carboni Full Professor, M.Ed., Music Conservatory, Perugia, 06123, Italy

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46827/ejse.v12i7.6971

Paraules clau:

embodied learning, active pedagogy, inclusion, playful experimentation, research models

Resum

The processes of inclusion across diverse educational contexts and institutional levels highlight the critical role of embodied gestures in shaping both individual presence and the collective capacity to learn within shared environments. Recognizing and interpreting these gestures requires acute sensitivity to their inherent complexities and variations, thereby enhancing the quality of our interpersonal interactions. From this perspective, playful exploration as an embodiment-based learning practice is recognized as a vital component of children's physical, cognitive, and emotional development. It fosters social interaction and cultivates resilience within securely bounded environments, as active processes of inclusion. Consequently, affective experiences manifest through narrative gestures, enabling children to actively engage with their immediate context— encompassing interactions with people, objects, and abstract concepts. This participatory approach to learning underscores the construction of meaning through intersubjective interactions, which are indispensable for the acquisition of knowledge. Ultimately, the collaborative essence of social interaction is integral to cognitive development, emphasizing the significance of relational dynamics in the learning process. This study aims to elaborate on the embodied learning paradigm, focusing on methodological approaches and educational designs rooted in well-established research models.

Biografia de l'autor/a

  • Mauro Carboni, Full Professor, M.Ed., Music Conservatory, Perugia, 06123, Italy

    Mauro Carboni’s academic profile reflects an interdisciplinary integration of music, cognitive psychology, clinical pedagogy, and special education. From 2000 to 2014, he worked as a tenured researcher at the University of Rome “Foro Italico”, where his research focused on special education and educational studies aimed at developing inclusive processes. In particular, his work addressed empathic motor and gestural behaviors in inclusive learning contexts, as well as the design of virtual learning environments mediated by sensory and motor experiences. In 2014, after fifteen years of academic activity, he joined the Conservatory of Music in Perugia as Full Professor of Music Pedagogy, a position he held until October 31, 2025. He formally retired on November 1, 2025. From 2020 to 2025, he served as Delegate for Disabilities and Specific Learning Disorders at the “Morlacchi” Conservatory of Music in Perugia. In this institutional role, in addition to addressing individual student learning and inclusion needs, his aim was to bridge the gap between institutional academic expectations and the learning potential of students with cognitive and functional disabilities. To this end, he worked to strengthen accessibility criteria and promote more inclusive educational environments.

Referències

Abril CR 2011. Music, Movement, and Learning, in Richard Colwell, and Peter Webster (eds), MENC Handbook of Research on Music Learning: Volume 2: Applications (New York, 2011; online edn, Oxford Academic, 27 May 2015), https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199754397.003.0003

Ahn SN (2022). A Systematic Review of Interventions Related to Body Awareness in Childhood. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(15). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19158900

Arrocha SS & Esteves RM (2025). Collaborative Learning: A Path to Real and Meaningful Inclusion. LATAM Revista Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades, 6(3), 1284-1296. https://doi.org/10.56712/latam.v6i3.4023

Behera A, Matthew P, Keidel A, Vangorp P, Fang H & Canning S (2020). Associating Facial Expressions and Upper-Body Gestures with Learning Tasks for Enhancing Intelligent Tutoring Systems. International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education, 30(2), 236-270. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40593-020-00195-2

Bertin-Renoux A (2024). Embodied and Enactive Creativity: Moving Beyond the Mind–Body Dichotomy in School Education. The Journal of Creative Behavior, 59(1). https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.651

Bonange J-B (1988). Le jeu symbolique à l'école. Éducation Physique et Sport,1, 37, 25 (in French). Retrieved from http://www.touteduc.fr/fr/scolaire/id-16357-le-jeu-dans-la-reeducation-a-l-ecole-il-vaut-mieux-que-les-enfants-l-inventent-jb-bonange-congres-de-la-fnaren-

Bristow S & Atkinson C (2020). Child-led research investigating social, emotional and mental health and wellbeing aspects of playtime. Educational & Child Psychology, 37(4). https://doi.org/10.53841/bpsecp.2020.37.4.115

Buldu M. Buldu E (2025). How to promote playful learning: insights from innovative early childhood classrooms in the USA. Humanities & Social Sciences Communications, 12, 1566 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-05291-z

Canarslan F & Chu M (2025). Individual differences in representational gesture production are associated with cognitive and empathy skills. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 78(1), 85-100. https://doi.org/10.1177/17470218241245831

Chen MY, Rouse E & Morrissey A (2023). Intentionality and the active decision-making process in play-based learning. The Australian Educational Researcher, 51, 1373-1388. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-023-00644-6

Creswell JW & Poth CN (2024). Qualitative inquiry and research design : choosing among five approaches. Publisher Thousand Oaks : SAGE Publications Limited, 5th edition, ISBN : 9781544398426. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Qualitative_Inquiry_and_Research_Design.html?id=gX1ZDwAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y

Dalkilic M & Vadeboncoeur JA (2016). Re-framing inclusive education through the capability approach: An elaboration of the model of relational inclusion. Global Education Review, 3(3), 122-137. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1114861.pdf

Delafield-Butt J T & Adie J (2016). The Embodied Narrative Nature of Learning: Nurture in School. Mind,10(2), 117-131. https://doi.org/10.1111/mbe.12120

Drijvers L & Holler J (2022). The multimodal facilitation effect in human communication. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 30, 792-801. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-022-02178-x

Eddy LH, Bingham DD, Crossley K., Shahid NF, Ellingham-Khan M, Otteslev A, Figueredo NS, Mon-Williams M & Hill LJ (2020). The validity and reliability of observational assessment tools available to measure fundamental movement skills in school-age children: A systematic review. PLoS ONE, 15(8). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0237919

Edna O (2020). Object play as a mediator of the role of exploration in communication skills development. Infant Behavior and Development, Vol. 60, 101467. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infbeh.2020.101467

Faella P, Digennaro S & Iannaccone A (2025). Educational practices in motion: a scoping review of embodied learning approaches in school. Frontiers in Education, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2025.1568744

Ferreira JM (2026). An Embodied View on Collaboration in Early Childhood Education: Combining Microanalysis and Introspective Analysis of Experiences to Understand Meaning-Making Between Children With and Without Intellectual Disabilities. Human Arenas, Vol. 23, 212-239. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42087-023-00380-4

Florio TM (2025). Emergent Aspects of the Integration of Sensory and Motor Functions. Brain Sciences, 15(2), 162. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci15020162

Fomunyam KG (2022). Affective and embodied pedagogy as pathways to equity in curriculum and responsiveness. Alternation Special Edition, 39, 260-280. https://doi.org/10.29086/2519-5476/2022/sp39a12

Francesconi, D. & Tarozzi, M. (2019). Embodied Education and Education of the Body: the Phenomenological Perspective. Leib – Leiblichkeit – Embodiment, Springer Nature, Chapter, 229-247. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-25517-6_12

Frick A & Möhring W (2016). A Matter of Balance: Motor Control is Related to Children’s Spatial and Proportional Reasoning Skills. Frontiers in Psychology, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.02049

Gallese V & Lakoff G (2005). The Brain’s concepts: the role of the Sensory-motor system in conceptual knowledge. Cognitive Neuropsychology, 22(3–4), 455–479. https://doi.org/10.1080/02643290442000310

Gelman SA (2009). Learning from Others: Children's Construction of Concepts. Annual Review of Psychology, 60:115-140. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.59.103006.093659

Granados R (2000). Constructing intersubjectivity in representational design activities. The Journal of Mathematical Behavior, Vol. 19(4), 503-530. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0732-3123(01)00055-4

Greenhead K & Habron-James J (2015). The touch of sound: Dalcroze Eurhythmics as a somatic practice. Journal of Dance & Somatic Practices, 7(1), 93-106. https://doi.org/10.1386/jdsp.7.1.93_1

Hasson Y, Amir E, Sobol-Sarag D, Tamir M & Halperin E (2022). Using Performance Art to Promote Intergroup Prosociality by Cultivating the Belief That Empathy Is Unlimited. Nature Communications, 13, 7786. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-35235-z

Hay S, Beamish W. (2026). Inclusive Education for Students with Special Educational Needs: A 30-Year Synthesis of the Review-Level Literature (1994–2023). Education Sciences, 16(5):794. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci16050794

Hewes J (2014). Seeking Balance in Motion: The Role of Spontaneous Free Play in Promoting Social and Emotional Health in Early Childhood Care and Education. Children, 1(3), 280-301. https://doi.org/10.3390/children1030280

Howley D, Dyson B, Baek S, Fowler J & Shen Y (2022). Opening up Neat New Things: Exploring Understandings and Experiences of Social and Emotional Learning and Meaningful Physical Education Utilizing Democratic and Reflective Pedagogies. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(18), 11229. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191811229

Hoya GF (2019). Body Languages: Art as an alternative teaching method to promote inclusivity and equality in education. Arteterapia. Papeles de arteterapia y educación artística para la inclusión social, 17, 175-188. https://doi.org/10.5209/arte.76268

Ianì F (2019). Embodied Memories: Reviewing the Role of the Body in Memory Processes. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 26(6), 1747-1766. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-019-01674-x

Kiefer M & Trumpp NM (2012). Embodiment theory and education: The foundations of cognition in perception and action. Trends in Neuroscience and Education, 1(1), 15-20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tine.2012.07.002

Laner I (2020). Reflective interventions: Enactivism and phenomenology on ways of bringing the body into intellectual engagement. Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences, 20(3), 443-461. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-020-09673-3

Ling W, Wang D, Xu X, Zhu D, Wu X, Zhang L (2025). The association between empathy ability and attitudes toward children with disabilities in inclusive physical education classes among primary students: the mediating role of friendship quality. Frontiers in Psychology, 17(16): 1531002. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1531002

Macedonia M (2019). Embodied Learning: Why at School the Mind Needs the Body. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 2098. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02098

Marson F, Naor-Ziv R, Paoletti P, Glicksohn J, Harris T, Elliott MA, Carducci F, Ben-Soussan RD (2024). Chapter Ten - When the body fosters empathy: The interconnectivity between bodily reactivity, meditation, and embodied abstract concepts. Editor(s): Tal Dotan Ben-Soussan, Joseph Glicksohn, Narayanan Srinivasan, Progress in Brain Research, Elsevier, Vol. 287, 2024, 217-245, ISSN 0079-6123, ISBN 9780443238758. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.pbr.2024.05.004

Matusov E (2020). Pattern-recognition, intersubjectivity, and dialogic meaning-making in education. Dialogic Pedagogy: A Journal for Studies of Dialogic Education, 8. https://doi.org/10.5195/dpj.2020.314

McGowan T & Delafield-Butt J (2022). Narrative as co-regulation: A review of embodied narrative in infant development. Infant Behavior and Development, 68:101747. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infbeh.2022.101747

Nilsson M, Ferholt B & Lecusay R (2018). ‘The playing-exploring child’: Reconceptualizing the relationship between play and learning in early childhood education. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 19(3), 231-245. https://doi.org/10.1177/1463949117710800

Parladé MV & Iverson JM (2011). The Interplay Between Language, Gesture, and Affect During Communicative Transition: A Dynamic Systems Approach. Developmental Psychology, 47(3). https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021811

Pröckl M & Schwarz E (2025). Empathetic Timing and Existential Landscapes—An Investigation of the Significance of Empathy in Educational Practices. The Journal of Aesthetic Education, 59(2): 20-33. https://doi.org/10.5406/15437809.59.2.03

Ravn S (2022). Embodied Learning in Physical Activity: Developing Skills and Attunement to Interaction. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 4: 795733. https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2022.795733

Rico-González M (2023). Developing Emotional Intelligence through Physical Education: A Systematic Review. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 130(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/00315125231165162

Rutland A & Campbell RN (1996). The relevance of Vygotsky's theory of the 'zone of proximal development' to the assessment of children with intellectual disabilities. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 40(2), 151-158. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2788.1996.741741.x

Sanger CS (2020). Inclusive Pedagogy and Universal Design Approaches for Diverse Learning Environments. In: Sanger, C., Gleason, N. (eds) Diversity and Inclusion in Global Higher Education. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-1628-3_2

Schoop-Kasteler N & Müller CM (2020). Peer relationships of students with intellectual disabilities in special needs classrooms – a systematic review. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 20(2), 130-145. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-3802.12471

Shilling C (2017). Body Pedagogics: Embodiment, Cognition and Cultural Transmission. Sociology 51(6), pp. 1205-1221. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038516641868

Skovbjerg HM & Sand A-L (2022). Play in School – Toward an Ecosystemic Understanding and Perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, 12: 780681. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.780681

Skulmowski A & Rey GD (2018). Embodied Learning: Introducing a Taxonomy Based on Bodily Engagement and Task Integration. Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 3. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-018-0092-9

Sullivan J V (2018). Learning and Embodied Cognition: A Review and Proposal. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 17(2), 128-143. https://doi.org/10.1177/1475725717752550

Sumonte-Rojas V, Fuentealba LA, Faúndez-Casanova C & Vega GT (2026). Pedagogies for Inclusion in Higher Education (HE): A Systematic Review of Empirical Studies (2015–2025). Sustainability, 18(5), 2294. https://doi.org/10.3390/su18052294

Takahashi J (2013). Multiple Intelligence Theory Can Help Promote Inclusive Education for Children with Intellectual Disabilities and Developmental Disorders: Historical Reviews of Intelligence Theory, Measurement Methods, and Suggestions for Inclusive Education. Creative Education, 4, 605-610. https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2013.49086

Tamis-LeMonda CS & Masek LR (2023). Embodied and Embedded Learning: Child, Caregiver, and Context. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 32(5), 369-378. https://doi.org/10.1177/09637214231178731

Trevarthen C. (1999). Musicality and the intrinsic motive pulse: Evidence from human psychobiology and infant communication. Musicae Scientiae, Vol.3, Issue 1. https://doi.org/10.1177/10298649000030S109

Veerbeek J & Vogelaar B (2025). Dynamic Testing of Instructional Needs: A Training-Only Graduated Prompts Approach. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 43(1), 74-87. https://doi.org/10.1177/07342829241287947

Vescio TK, Sechrist GB & Paolucci MP (2003). Perspective taking and prejudice reduction: the mediational role of empathy arousal and situational attributions. European Journal of Social Psychology, 33(4), 455-472. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.163

Zafeiroudi A, Tsartsapakis I, Trigonis I, Kouli O, Goulimaris D, Kouthouris C (2025). Embodied Mindfulness Through Movement: A Scoping Review of Dance-Based Interventions for Mental Well-Being in Recreational Populations. Healthcare, 13(17), 2230. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13172230

Descàrregues

Publicat

2026-08-30

Número

Vol. 12 Núm. 7 (2026)

Secció

Articles

Llicència

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

 

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

 

  1. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

 

  1. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).