ABSTRACT
Much learning that takes place through formal learning environments is of a fragile, shallow variety where students forget what they have learned soon after the end of the learning events (and the testing at the end) and does not get applied when relevant situations arise that are removed from the learning setting in time, space and conceptual context. The learning never seems to become a part of the way the student thinks about and interacts with the everyday world. Recent basic cognitive research in embodied or perceptually-grounded cognition provides a new perspective on what it means for learning to become more a part of the way students understand and interact with the world; further it provides guidance for the design of learning environments that integrate the learning with experiences that make it more meaningful and usable (Dewey, 1938).
