Neuronal Electrical Activity During Communication, Mathematical, and Geometric Skills in Newly Enrolled University Students

A traditional exam is a summative assessment that can present different biases such as 1) memorized concepts without understanding them, or 2) multiple-choice tests where there is a statistical probability of selecting a correct answer without knowing it. The objective of this research is to analyze the Electroencephalographic activity (EEG) during the cognitive processes involved in Communication Skill (CS), Mathematical Skill (MS), and Geometrical Skill (GS) of the Differential Aptitude Tests (DAT) in recently enrolled university students, to assess the viability of the following neuromarkers: Cognitive Load (CL) and Coherence Analysis (CA) between correct and incorrect responses. For the study, 13 students from the first, second, or third semester from different majors were recruited. In this research, it was found that the more assertive the student is, as was the case in MS, the CL has a much more defined topographic distribution, and the differences in CL involved between correct and incorrect responses are smaller. If the task involves greater complexity for the student, for tasks where they tend to be more assertive (as was the case with GS), the topographic distribution of CL is well defined, and the difference in CL between correct and incorrect responses is very pronounced and defined. On the contrary, for tasks where the student tends to be more hesitant (CS) due to lower aptitude, the topographic distribution of CL was very diffuse, and the difference in CL between correct and incorrect responses is large and without clear trends.