How students read mathematical representations: An eye tracking study

Chiara ANDRA', ARZARELLO Ferdinando, FERRARA Francesca, K. Holmqvist, P. Lindstrom, ROBUTTI Ornella, SABENA Cristina

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

Abstract

How do students, with different background knowledge in mathematics, read a mathematical text? How do they perform the transformations between the different representations (formulas, graphs and words) in order to grasp its meaning? We use eye tracking to highlight the ongoing process of making sense of mathematical representations during problem solving. Eye tracking is a method enabling a close examination of how attention is directed at a stimulus. Its use in educational settings is increasing because of its great potential in capturing various aspects of the learning processes. Our data indicate quantitative and qualitative differences between the novice and expert group. We discuss some implications for mathematics education in general, and the design of mathematics textbooks in particular.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 33th Conference of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education (PME 33)
PublisherAristotle University of Thessaloniki & University of Macedonia
Pages49-56
Number of pages8
Volume2
ISBN (Print)9789602436547
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2009

Keywords

  • eye movement
  • mathematics
  • reading
  • representation

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