The Pythagorean School, a Model of Reference for Knowledge Building and Learning Communities in eLearning Contexts

During the last decades came up several epistemological and didactical models, and even many methods trying to explain how to improve learning or how to better teach in online learning or eLearning situations. The real fact is that these theoretical frames, generally suitable a priori, show paradoxical results when they are applied within real situations. In many cases these frameworks appear to be simply inoperative. The aim of this paper is to illustrate some defining characteristics of a networking learning community and to demonstrate how the Pythagorean School, whose origins date back to 2.500 years, practiced such characteristics in the Ancient Greece and, consequently, they constitute a theoretical (an very up-to-date) model for building learning communities for eLearning situations.