Using gaze tracking technology to study student visual attention during teacher's presentation on board

Overview & Synopsis

We present some initial findings obtained from a study on student attention in class using mobile gaze tracking technology. In this descriptive case study, we use a teach-er's verbal, gaze, and gestural cues to identify the area on the board she wants her students to focus on, and analyse how one student's gaze location is shifting in relation to this. We found out that the student was actively following the cues during most of the time. However, we also observed moments when the student's gaze location was not in synchrony with the teacher's cues. The gaze tracking methodology seems to be a promising tool for a fine grained analysis of classroom communication and student attention.