This article charts the ways in which film has been included in history education over time and the research that has accompanied this. Through an analysis of historical development, current strands of educational research are realigned according to Epstein's theory of historical perspectives. Following this, the article presents a thorough…

This article explores how soccer can be used as a lens to teach about German history, culture, and society. I outline three sample modules for an advanced German course at the high school or college level: The first module focuses on soccer in German history, the second on sexism and LGBTQ-related topics in soccer, and the third on soccer and…

This study examined the effect of YouTube audio-visual documentaries (YAVDs) on students' achievement and interest in History in Enugu state, Nigeria. Six hypotheses guided the study using a quasi-experimental research design. Multi-stage sampling techniques were used to sample 70 Senior Secondary two students (SS2) in four intact classes. Data…

Challenging the embedded mythologies that surround Anzac, especially as the centenary of First World War played out over the 2014 to 2018 commemoration period, can be confronting for tertiary students as well as a difficult space for tutors to navigate. This is especially the case for teacher education students who form the majority cohort taking…

In this paper, we investigate an application of virtual reality and artificial intelligence (AI) as a technological combination that has a potential to improve the learning experience and engage with the modern generation of students. To address this need, we have created a virtual reality replica of one of humanity's first cities, the city of…

This article describes how elementary preservice teachers used four documentary films to think historically about the United States Civil Rights Movement. The author situates the descriptive case study within research about historical thinking and documentary film, identifying the need for using documentary film to think historically in the…

Over the last several decades, social studies educators' interest and emphasis on integrating technology into teaching has increased significantly. One promising area of inquiry focuses on the benefits of student-produced digital video. A number of researchers assert that student-produced digital videos provide a variety of benefits, including…

This article details the work of third grade teacher, co-author Kim Heckart, as she engaged her students in making historical documentaries: a project that succeeded in reaching all of her third-grade students. For the last five years, Kim has required students to make historical documentaries. As her students produced these works, Kim conversed…

This descriptive case study describes the use of documentary film to teach historical thinking in one undergraduate elementary social studies methods course. The study was situated within a teacher education program at a midsized public university in the Southeastern United States. Eighteen students were enrolled in the course. Of the eighteen…

As it becomes increasingly essential to include China in the social studies curriculum, teachers are faced with the challenges of finding appropriate, high-quality resources, and, more fundamentally, of engaging students with a culture and a place far removed from their own. Film and video can address both issues, and there is a wealth of…

The authors examine how representations of the Vietnam War in documentary film offer teachers unique opportunities to use visual media sources to teach a difficult moment in United States history. They discuss the use of documentary films and television, as well as Internet-based platforms such as YouTube. They argue that new media that serve as…

Elementary and secondary school history students demonstrate a great deal of enthusiasm for making documentary films. With free and easy-to-use software, as well as vast online, archival resources containing images and sounds, students can sit at a computer and make serious and engaging documentary productions. With students affectively engaged by…

How can teachers effectively use documentary film to teach history, and toward what goals? This article addresses these important questions by: (1) exploring what we know about secondary teachers' practices with documentary film and secondary students' beliefs about documentary film as a source of knowledge about the past, (2) proposing a…

In many of the U.S. History courses the author has taught, she has encountered students who refer to the second-wave feminists of the 1960s and 1970s as "bra-burners." Unsurprisingly, these students know very little about the origin of this epithet, and frequently, they know even less about the women's movement generally. Second-wave feminism, and…

Three criteria for meaningful student learning--construction of knowledge, disciplined inquiry, and value beyond school--are assessed as authentic learning outcomes for an implementation of a digital documentary project in two fifth grade history classrooms where teachers' practices are constrained by a high-stakes testing climate. In all three…