Improving the integrity of online education with eye tracking

Eye tracking has the potential to improve confidence in online education. Learning in both higher education and corporate settings is increasingly shifting toward an online format. There are 6.7 million college students taking at least one online course this year, which is an all-time high at 32%.  Companies are investing in online training programs for their employees as well; about $2 billion a year is spent on online learning. But despite the high amount being spent on online courses, many have doubts about the effectiveness of this format.

If you’ve ever done some form of online course or training, you know can be difficult to avoid the temptation to let your attention wander with distractions like social media, email, and chat so easily accessible. A company called Mindflash is trying out a new eye tracking feature to go along with their online training programs that may help give employers confidence that the material they are paying for is actually being absorbed.  Similar to the eye tracking feature we saw in the Samsung Galaxy S4, the Mindflash feature automatically pauses training videos when the viewer’s eyes leave the screen.

There is also concern about the integrity of the online education format. Easy access to search engines or taking exams at home where no one is monitoring present opportunities for cheating. There is also the issue of verifying that the person taking an online exam is actually the one getting the credit for the course.  Virtual proctoring companies like ProctorU and Kryterion are employee webcam technology to monitor test takers’ behavior, but scenarios like this are screaming for eye tracking technology. An eye tracker could detect eye movements that indicate the student looking at something off the screen or other behaviors out of the ordinary.

From the university’s or company’s perspective, eye tracking could help ensure the integrity and value of online education and training programs. How about from the test taker’s point of view? Would knowing your eye movements were being monitored impact your performance? Let us know what you think!