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21 - Gesture in Learning and Education

from Part IV - Gestures in Relation to Cognition

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 May 2024

By
Miriam A. Novack  and
Susan Goldin-Meadow
Edited by
Alan Cienki
Alan Cienki
Affiliation:
Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam
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Summary

Gesture is a powerful tool for learning. Gestures reflect a learner’s knowledge and also have the power to change that knowledge. But how early does this ability develop and how might it change over time? Here we discuss the effects of gesture on learning, taking a developmental perspective. We compare how young learners benefit from gesture prior to developing full language skills, as well as how gesture and language work together to support instruction in older children. For both developmental stages, we explore three ways in which gesture can influence learning: (1) by indexing or reflecting a learner’s knowledge, (2) by changing that knowledge through the gestures that learners themselves produce, and (3) by changing that knowledge through the gestures that learners see. Taken together, the evidence suggests that gesture plays a powerful role in learning and education throughout development.

Keywords

babychildreneducationinfancyknowledgelearningmathmismatchpointingteacher
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of Gesture Studies , pp. 556 - 576
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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