Gesture-Based Learning and Instructional Systems

Gestures are movements of the hand or body that are used to communicate. Gestures discussed in this entry are broadly defined to include both representational gestures and interactive gestures. A representational gesture is a symbolic movement used to refer to an object that is not present, for instance, putting the thumb and index finger together to indicate that something is round. An interactive gesture refers to the speaker and functions to maintain a conversation such as smiling or hand waving. This entry first reviews the theories of grounded and embodied cognition as frameworks for understanding the role of gestures in communication. It then describes how gesture-recognition has been incorporated in various devices and applied to education.