Rethinking Digital Learning Spaces Through Architectural Metaphors: The Hearth in Postdigital Education

Since the start of time, space has enabled our existence and influenced our perceptions, values, and behaviors. The concept of hearth has shaped in architecture the way humans create community, grow and learn around the central space of “fire”. As we learned to inhabit our bodies, our homes, our cities, we are now called also to engage in the digital world. What the hearth can enable in postdigital learning environments? How can practically the hearth be translated online to redesign digital spaces? Drawing from this architectural metaphor, this paper advocates to integrate community connection and human experience as part of the learning process in digital spaces.