Chapter 23: Using Technology to Analyze, Discuss, and/or Act on Social Issues in the Classroom

In the 1991 Handbook of Research on Social Studies Teaching and Learning, Ehman and Glenn’s seminal chapter reviewed early research on the use and impact of interactive technology on social studies education. The authors found “low use” of this technology in classrooms but also the possibility of stimulating “affective outcomes” among students. They also identified a “very thin” knowledge base of research on technology in the social studies, especially in the area of impact on teachers. Moreover, they foreshadowed the coming technology boom of the 1990s and 2000s by identifying several major questions in need of research: the link between teacher effectiveness and technology research; technology and positive student outcomes; technology applications and cost-effectiveness; and integration of technology into the social studies curriculum.