Unpacking the black‐box of students' visual attention in Mathematics and English classrooms: Empirical evidence using mini‐video recording gadgets.

With the technological improvements of innovative portable recording gadgets, augmented researchers' interest in exploring students' visual attention in their natural and normal occurring classrooms. The purpose of this study was to gauge students' visual attention in their Mathematics and English classrooms. This article reports on a study conducted in three schools in Santiago, Chile, where a sample of 113 randomly selected students wore a mini‐video camera mounted on eyeglass in their Mathematics and English lessons. Using Google images, we automatically and objectively examined 723,600 frames from the recordings where the classroom teacher appeared in the students' visual field. The results show that students' visual attention varies depending on four factors: (a) gender of the student, (b) age of the students, whether students are low/high attainers and (d) whether students are in English or Mathematics lessons. Surprisingly, students significantly paid more visual attention in their Mathematics than in English lessons. High attainers were more visually engaged than their low attainers counterparts. Students appeared to be visually engaged differently at different stages in their education. Furthermore, girls were more visually engaged than boys. The results of this study can have enormous practical implications for teachers and teacher education, in order to be better visually engaged with students during teaching. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: The advantage of computers and technologies as tools in analysing teaching and learning.Measuring students' visual attention to teachers in different subject disciplines.Using first person's perspective (students' perspectives) in analysing classroom interaction. What this paper adds: Measuring students' visual attention to teachers in Mathematics and English classrooms using 723,600 frames.Students are more visually engaged to teachers in Mathematics versus English classrooms.Higher grade point average students are more visually engaged to teachers than their lower GPA counterparts.Female students significantly pay more visual attention to their teachers than their male peers.Students' visual attention to teachers is dependent on the year of study. Implications for practice and/or policy: Identifying students with lack of visual attention to the teacher objectively and automatically.Practical implications for teacher education courses, and also continuing Professional Development courses for in‐service teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]