## 2 Materials and Methods
### Instruments  
1. Tobii pro lab (Stockholm, Sweden) version 1.194 with 64 Hz. It is eye-tracking software that provides a visual user interface and dedicated software functions that support the researcher in all phases of an eye-tracking experiment, from test design and recording to analysis. An image of the device used is shown in Figure 1 below.
2. Laptop computer. Falkon i7. Screen 15.6\"; processor Intel core I7-9750H; hard disk 512 Gb SSD; memory 16 Gb of RAM; Geforce RTX 2070 MAX-Q GDDR6 8 GB; Windows 10 Professional; connections: HDMI/USB-C/USB 3.1/RJ45 \(\times\) 1/HDMI \(\times\) 1/3.5 mm Jack/USB-A 3.1 \(\times\) 4/Thunderbolt \(\times\) 1--Bluetooth/WiFi/Gigabit Ethernet. Display resolution of 1080 \(\times\) 1920.
3. Shimmer3 GSR+ (galvanic skin response) (Europe Research Ltd., Dublin, Ireland) single-channel galvanic skin response data acquisition unit (measures electrodermal resistance (EDR)/electrodermal activity (EDA)). The GSR+ unit is suitable for measuring the electrical characteristics or conductance of skin. Traditional galvanic skin response theory is based on the idea that the electrical resistance of the skin varies with the state of the sweat glands. Sweating in the human body is regulated by the autonomous nervous system (ANS). More specifically, if the sympathetic branch (SNS) of the ANS is excited, the activity of sweat glands increases, which in turn increasesskin conductance. This device is compatible with Tobii pro lab version 1.194 and allows for the integration of records. Figure 2 shows the device and how it is placed to record EDA.
4. Virtual lab for the resolution of clinical cases. This lab was developed within the European project \"Specialized and updated training on supporting advance technologies for early childhood education and care professionals and graduates\", eEarlyCare-T-No. 2021-1-ES01-KA220-SCH-000032661. In this study, the virtual lab is a representation of a dialogue between two avatars: a student and a teacher. Two labs were used in this study. In Group 1 and Group 2, a general simulation virtual lab was applied (this referred to content that could be used in both degrees, as they were general and about patient intervention processes). This lab is extensively described in the study by [PERSON] et al. [32] (see Figure 1 in that publication). In addition, a specific lab with biomedical engineering content was applied to Group 3. This lab can be found in Supplementary Materials (Figure S1). Both virtual labs can be accessed and used free of charge by logging into the Virtual Classroom in the eEarlyCare-T project [[https://www2.ubu.es/eearlycare_t/en/project](https://www2.ubu.es/eearlycare_t/en/project)]([https://www2.ubu.es/eearlycare_t/en/project](https://www2.ubu.es/eearlycare_t/en/project)) (accessed on 16 August 2024).
5. Learning Strategies Scales (ACRA) by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [63]. This is an instrument that has been widely tested in research. It identifies 32 strategies at different points in the information processing cycle and has reliability indicators between \(\alpha\) = 0.75 and \(\alpha\) = 0.90, and content validity indicators between r = 0.85 and r = 0.88. In the present study, we applied the metacognitive skills subscale, which includes 17 strategies on the use of metacognitive skills in problem-solving tasks that are distributed over three subscales: Self-knowledge, Planning, and Self-Evaluation.  
Figure 1: Example of a test performed with Tobii pro lab version 1.194 with 64 Hz, recording eye movements and GSR.