The Integrating Technology in the Classroom track provided valuable
insights into both the benefits of incorporating technology into
undergraduate political science classrooms and the concerns these
interventions can generate. The benefits discussed by the track's 24
participants were numerous and varied, ranging from enhancing
participation in very large lecture classes to increasing students'
“political Internet literacy” and public trust in government and to
making learning more participatory and active through technological
simulations. Concerns fell into three main categories: (1) legal
concerns regarding student information posted publicly online and
the necessity (and challenges) of obtaining institutional review
board (IRB) clearance for classroom research; (2) the time required
to adopt new technological techniques; and (3) the need for stronger
research designs and evaluative measures to effectively assess
learning outcomes of different technology interventions. Despite
these concerns, there was broad consensus among track participants
that technological interventions have the potential to enhance and
ultimately transform undergraduate political science education. Here
we highlight the central benefits, challenges, and concerns
addressed by the track's five papers, and the discussions they
generated.