This paper, written for a National Archives staff training course discusses the use of computers in the classroom as reflective of the larger social trend toward an increasing dependency on automated systems to assist business and government in their efforts to more effectively manage and retrieve information. The paper also demonstrates the advantages of including elements of archival description in education units, particularly for the multimedia records of contemporary history, and explains the benefits of utilizing the expertise of both education specialists and archivists in developing education units--all of which would ultimately enhance the outreach mission of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA): to encourage learning in history, promote the use of NARA's records, and expand investigative skills in research in primary source documents. It is noted that education units, which are currently produced for secondary level students, only include the record group identification and content description of the individual documents presented on a given topic, and that the inclusion of archival information would enhance the unit by providing additional information about the function and organization of the agencies or offices that created the records. (14 references) (MAB)