Data on secondary social studies education in Rhode Island public schools are analyzed. Of 36 schools contacted in 1982-83, 25 department chairpersons and 154 teachers responded to questionnaires covering professional background, chairperson role perceptions, faculty program perceptions, departmental offerings, and instructional techniques and materials. Major problems perceived by department heads were inadequate resources, adversarial relationships with administrators, evaluation problems, and enrollment declines. Chairpersons identified their departments' major strengths as excellent faculty and curriculum offerings, and weaknesses as program coordination, chair-staff relations, and resources. Faculty finding revealed an older, well-educated staff: 25% had 11-14 years of experience, 4% had 1-5 years experience, and 74% had a Masters degree. Respondents indicated satisfaction with textbooks, text selection procedure, and departmental learning objectives. Survey results concerning techniques and materials indicated significant patterns. Lecture with questions or discussion was the predominant teaching method, with a majority of teachers indicating that they seldom or never used library work, problem solving, or current news sources. The report includes tables of data, chair and faculty questionnaires, and lists of program objectives. (LP)