AN EXAMINATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE INTEGRATION OF TECHNOLOGY INTO SOCIAL STUDIES AND CONSTRUCTIVIST PEDAGOGIES
ABSTRACT
Educational technologies, specifically computer and the Internet technologies, have apparently become powerful tools in the classroom as they change the way we teach and learn today. That is why pedagogies of school reform are now highly influenced by and built around the “constructivist” theories of learning, assuming the use of technology in education for active and meaningful knowledge construction. Due to these trends it appears inevitable that social studies educators do need know how to use technology effectively in their educational settings. Therefore, after a brief look at the concepts of technology and educational technology including a rationale for the use of technology in education, the current literature specifically on the integration of technology in the social studies with a reference to constructivism is examined. As a result, based on this study it seems that the infusion of technology into educational environments—specifically in the social studies—alinged with constructivist pedagogy bears the potential to inspire new ways of teaching and learning.