Toward a teaching embodied-centered: perspectives of research and intervention

The aim of this study is to present experimental evidence in support of the idea that an "embodied-centered" teaching approach based on multimodal sensory grounding should be more effective than a classic verbal-centered teaching approach. The study is based on the comparison between learning and retrieval of sentences presented in a verbal only or verbal plus related visual images modality. Concrete and abstract meanings were used. Participants had to learn and then recognize these sentences (name and verb recognition). The preliminary data showed a general facilitation of the verbal plus visual image of the learning material. Moreover, a difficulty with abstract sentences emerged. The pattern of results supports the effectiveness of an embodied centered teaching based on educational stimulations that have a strong experiential sensory-motor basis. The implications of these results are discussed.