Multisensory learning environments. Research project Education on Screen

Abstract

The unity of heterogeneous sensory channels plays an essential role in our learning and development. The multisensory approaches to learning imply a simultaneous use of visual, auditory, kinesthetic-tactile and other possible modalities. The paper analyses the affordances of multisensory learning via the framework of semiotics of culture and contemporary research in education, as well as explores the relations between multisensory perception of environment and multimodality of representation in learning. The multimodal nature of human communication became explicit in the age of the Internet and audiovisual media. The development of digital technology also made it possible to consider the multiplicity of representational modes in learning. Whereas multisensory learning practices usually emerge in vernacular contexts, the recent developments in education and semiotics of culture offer unprecedented means for supporting such practices both in formal and non-formal education. Also, the multisensory learning practices are inherent to the development of the new literacies necessary for meaning-making in the contemporary media environment. The theoretical discussion is followed by the analysis of a practical example – digital educational platform Education on Screen. The platform aims to facilitate a meaningful dialogue with the cultural heritage by means of multimodal and multisensory learning.