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This report presents the findings of a quasi-experimental study conducted with grade 10 history students in two urban Ontario English-speaking school districts.
The purpose of this research was to investigate the role and effect of a digital history program, The Virtual Historian© (hereafter VH), on students’ historical learning and literacy.
One hundred seven (107) participants divided into two groups, instructional (classroom) and experimental (VH), were involved in implementing a Canadian history unit on “World War II and the Dieppe Raid of 1942.” Both groups received a pre-test and post-test on the unit of study to assess their prior knowledge and progression in learning. Both groups also carried out, for the same time period (3 classes of 75 minutes), a research assignment: an argumentative essay on the historical significance of the Dieppe Raid for Canada, the Allies, and World War II. Only the VH group learned the unit of study in the computer lab using The Virtual Historian© without formal classroom teaching. The instructional group studied the same unit in class using an inquiry-based learning model structured around a classroom lecture, group activities, and independent research study. Both groups were exposed to primary and secondary sources on the subject, as well as the Internet, but only the experimental group used The Virtual Historian©.
The results provide evidence that using The VirtualHistorian© as a digital program to teach history can increase significantly students’ understanding of the subject matter, their ability to write an essay with supporting evidence, and their critical thinking about the past. The research concludes with pedagogical recommendations for the integration of technology in history education in light of the findings with the two school boards.