Roman Rosiek

Eye-tracking verification of the strategy used to analyse algorithms expressed in a flowchart and pseudocode

The results of qualitative and quantitative investigations conducted with individuals who learned algorithms in school are presented in this article. In these investigations, eye-tracking technology was used to follow the process of solving algorithmic problems. The algorithmic problems were presented in two comparable variants: in a pseudocode and flowchart. The eye-tracking data resulted in both qualitative (films registering the gaze paths) and quantitative measures, which allowed the detection and interpretation of the differences in the task-solving strategies between those who found the correct answer and those that did not. The results confirmed a hypothesis that use of the formal notation characteristic of a programming language for presenting algorithms is often a practical difficulty in the process of solving even simple tasks. This study opens a new direction of research; they show that eye-tracking technology can be used to optimise the educational process of learning programming.

Eyetracking in Research on Physics Education

The paper discusses new opportunities to carry out research on physics education, specifically from a neurodidactical point of view . It shows the possible ways of applying new tools and technologies in didactics of physics. Emphasis was placed on analysing eyetracking as a research method. Examples chosen from an analysis of empirical research results are provided to illustrate the diagnostic possibilities of the tool as well as to point out their strengths and weaknesses. Eyetracking technology was used to examine the strategies and difficulties faced by high school students, university students, and scientists in the process of problem solving.

An excerpt from an eye-tracking comparative study between Poland and Japan with the use of Force Concept Inventory

The paper presents the initial results of a comparative Polish-Japanese study. The research was conducted at the Department of Mathematics, Physics and Technical Science at the Pedagogical University of Cracow and at the University of Hokkaido. The participants of the study were university students of humanistic courses. The research concerns the comparison of the respondents’ knowledge and understanding of the concept of force in mechanics and their ways of solving problems in the field of a basic mechanics course. A special theoretical tool was used. It was the standardized, international test diagnosing the understanding of the concept of force - the so-called “Force Concept Inventory” (FCI), in its official Polish and Japanese translations. The eye-tracking method was combined with structured interviews and discussions with all the respondents.