Embodied interaction in language learning: Enhancing students’ collaboration and emotional engagement

Abstract

Embodied interaction enriches conventional educational practice and provides ways of integrating the physical body and movement into the learning process. The Embodied theoretical framework via the use of emerging technologies has significantly changed the direction of teaching allowing learners to be more active and engage in collaborative learning activities. This study investigates students’ performance in a collaborative embodied learning environment using motion-based games within a real classroom language learning context. Participants were 52 elementary students (second and third graders) and five teachers. The analysis is based on a students’ questionnaire, direct classroom observations and semi-structured interviews with participating teachers. Findings indicate that embodied learning interactions enabled students to work more collaboratively engaging them in the learning activities, physically and emotionally. The paper contributes to the HCI community by providing a better and evidence-based understanding of the potential of using embodied technology in collaborative settings within a real classroom environment.