A systematic literature review of embodied language learning with(out) the arts

Beskrivning

Focus on embodiment has increased in various disciplines since the 1990s (Kosmas & Zaphiris, 2018). The notion of embodied learning has gained ground during the last decade, indicated by a growing number of studies using embodied pedagogies. Embodiment has also entered language education, where researchers acknowledge embodied learning as an alternative to mentalistic education (Macedonia, 2019). A growing body of language research draws on embodied and distributed cognition, which indicates that cognitive capacities are not individual competencies but rather produced embedded in social practice and interactions between people and material contexts (Atkinson, 2010). Additionally, combining language learning and teaching with the arts is becoming increasingly implemented, and an embodied approach and arts integration in language education have been suggested to have positive contributions to language learning (e.g., Alisaari & Heikkola, 2016).
This paper presents a systematic literature review that aggregates and reviews empirical research, published from 1990 to 2020, using embodied learning approaches with and without the arts in language learning and teaching. The review is conducted within the Embodied Language Learning through the Arts research project (ELLA; 2021–2024). The review intends to investigate what characterizes embodied language learning, to offer an overview of what is empirically established and what remains unexplored, and to investigate how the arts can contribute to embodied language learning and what language learning and teaching activities use embodied learning approaches. The study draws on theories that acknowledge the mind-body connection in learning and language. The searching, screening, and analytical processes are conducted during 2021. In this presentation, we present and discuss the results in both Nordic and international contexts.

References
Alisaari, J., & Heikkola, L. M. (2016). Increasing fluency in L2 writing with singing. Studies on Second Language Learning and Teaching, 6, 271–292.
Atkinson, D. (2010). Extended, Embodied Cognition and Second Language Acquisition. Applied Linguistics, 31(5), 599–622.

Period	4 nov. 2021
Evenemangstitel	Nordic Educational Research Association: Hope and Education
Typ av evenemang	Konferens
Plats	Odense, DanmarkVisa på karta
Omfattning	Internationell