Led by Sylvia Gabel, a doctoral researcher in teacher professional vision and eye-tracking tech from University of Augsburg, the study has revealed the clear difference in the gaze behaviour between novice and expert teachers when they are confronted with a classroom disruption.

Using dynamic scanpath analyses, the study examined the eye movements of 15 expert and 18 novice teachers as they watched a short classroom video that showed several minor and one major disruption threatening to derail a maths lesson.

Researchers tracked the stability of the teachers’ gaze patterns before, during and after each disruption, finding experienced teachers showed more predictable and adaptive monitoring strategies than novice teachers.

Critically, the expert teachers returned to their routine gaze behaviour more quickly than novices after an unexpected disruption.

This finding gives evidence of what effective visual monitoring strategies look like, researchers say.

“While expert teachers initially gained a structured overview of the classroom situation, their gaze behaviour became more focused because of a critical event and showed more stability afterward,” the study elaborates.

“This pattern could not be confirmed with novice teachers: There was a more explorative gaze behaviour both before and after the classroom disruption, which showed less stability and predictability in their gaze….”

Put simply, novice teachers struggled to maintain their focus during and after a disruption. 

Commenting on the research in a Substack post, Dr Carl Hendrick noted expert teachers do not simply “notice more” in the classroom.

“…they have routinised ways of scanning the class, briefly zoom in on the disruption, then rapidly re-engage with everyone else.

“Novice teachers, by contrast, show more scattered, exploratory gaze behaviour and are more easily pulled off their routine,” the science of learning expert and Professor of Education at Academica University of Applied Sciences in Amsterdam, says.

According to Hendrick the research has very practical implications for teacher training,

 ”…learning to manage behaviour is partly learning to manage your eyes.

“Training that makes these expert gaze routines visible and gives novices guided practice in using them could help them keep lessons on track rather than getting visually and cognitively stuck on the disruptive pupil,” he concludes.

The researchers assume that thanks to expert teachers’ broad repertoire of experience and knowledge, they can better distinguish between relevant and irrelevant visual information and “might be already aware of the possible impacts of a teaching disruption”.

“This enables them to notice the disruptive students quickly and to get back into routine immediately so that the situation does not further distract the teaching process – and thus, the primary vector of action,” they note.

In an instructional video shared by AERO, teacher Annmarie Lehane from Xavier Catholic College demonstrates her visual scanning technique in her classroom.

“I would start at the top of the classroom to scan the classroom fully to see if there’s any major issues.

“Then, on my circulation of the classroom, I would also scan to see is there anything from a different angle? I try to do it on a continual basis. It is not just a one scan or one circulation of the room,” she explains.

Even when working individually with students, Lehane says she takes a quick pause to look up and ensure all students are on task. This offers critical information, she suggests.

“…by seeing students who may not be on task, I can identify if there’s something that is too difficult or too easy for them and then differentiate the lesson content to suit their needs.”

Students know Lehane is scanning the room continually, so they are less inclined to become disruptive or disengaged when they know that it is going to be quickly identified and responded to.

Also featuring in the video, teacher Dave Chettle from Woodcrest State College says that it’s really important to make scanning intentional – students are watching your movements closely, he says.

“…if they see you moving your head, they know you are scanning and they know that you’re looking out to see what’s happening.

“I think one of the most important things you need to do in your classroom is set it up properly for yourself, so that you can actually move in points around the classroom where you can keep a constant monitoring and look at what’s going on.

“I like to set up the room with a couple of spots that I have. And depending on the classroom, the spots change depending on where the students are.”

Frequent scanning is really key to stopping disruptive behaviour before it occurs, Chettle says.

“Because you’ll get a constant look at what’s going on in the classroom. You know who’s engaged, who’s doing the work, who might start to fidget.

“Because you know the students well, you start to get signs of when they’re going to start to escalate. By knowing that early, you can then de-escalate.”

AERO offers a recap of what successful scanning entails:

  • Position yourself to see all students, including when talking to an individual student or group.
  • Use intentional and obvious head movements so students are aware that you are scanning the class.
  • Ensure all students and areas of the learning environment are monitored.