Impact of IXL on Social Studies Learning in Texas

This research article investigates the impact of IXL Social Studies on the academic achievement of 8th-grade students in Texas public schools, specifically focusing on their performance in the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) social studies assessment. The study employs a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design to compare proficiency rates between cohorts using IXL and those not using it during the 2023-24 school year. The findings indicate that students in IXL cohorts achieved significantly higher proficiency rates, with a notable increase of over five percentage points compared to non-IXL cohorts. The analysis includes demographic matching to ensure comparability between groups and utilizes statistical methods to assess the significance of the results. The study concludes that IXL Social Studies is an effective educational tool for enhancing student learning outcomes in social studies, contributing to the broader understanding of educational technology's role in academic performance.