Cognitive processing of educational polycode text: An experimental eye-tracking study

This study investigates the cognitive processing of educational PCTs by Russian-speaking readers, addressing the research gap concerning how this process is executed, regulated, and influenced by various factors. The primary aim is to explore the principles of text-image integration during the reading of an educational PCT by native Russian-speaking readers. Employing the concept that eye movements correspond to the logic of cognitive processing, the study uses eye-tracking methods to analyse this process. It relies on eye-movement data from 67 Russian students in the socio-humanities who read an educational polycode biology text in Russian. Findings reveal that the verbal component plays a dominant role in the cognitive processing of this text type, suggesting that this dominance is not dependent on the national educational culture. At the same time, the reading pattern is influenced by the learners’ experience with educational texts of a specific content type – in this case, biology. The study also confirms and identifies the mechanisms of the regulatory function of the verbal component during the reading of an educational PCT. The implications of this study are both theoretical and practical: it contributes to the understanding of how the cognitive processing of educational texts is carried out and what factors influence it and underscores the importance of the mindful use of images in the design of educational materials. Moreover, its findings can be applied in developing principles for teaching visual literacy.