Analysis of Preservice Physics Teachers’ Thinking Processes in Solving Force Concept Inventory Item Using Eye Tracking

Abstract

Understanding students' conceptual reasoning in physics cannot be adequately explained through correct or incorrect answers alone, as conventional assessments provide limited information about the cognitive processes underlying problem solving. Although eye-tracking technology has been increasingly applied in educational research, its use to investigate students' visual attention while solving conceptual physics problems, particularly the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), remains limited. This study aimed to analyze students' visual attention patterns during the completion of an FCI question using eye-tracking technology. A descriptive study was conducted involving ten undergraduate students in a Physics Education program. Eye-movement data were collected using GazeRecorder with the built-in laptop camera while participants solved one FCI question. The analysis focused on dwell time, and heatmap across eight predefined Areas of Interest (AOIs). The results indicated that students primarily allocated their visual attention to the problem description and illustration before evaluating the answer options. Students who selected the correct answer generally exhibited greater attention to the correct alternative, whereas those selecting incorrect options devoted more attention to the distractors they ultimately chose. These findings demonstrate that eye tracking provides valuable insights into students' conceptual reasoning beyond conventional test scores and has considerable potential as a diagnostic assessment tool for identifying misconceptions in physics learning.