Educational policy and integration of ICT in the educational system. The Italian situation on the international scene

Abstract

In this paper we analyze educational policies and technology integration in educational systems,
particularly the situation of Italy in the international arena. The article provides an updated
overview of the integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the Italian
educational system. In the first part of the paper it is presented an overview of educational
policies developed since the mid-nineties, in the context of European reference. The second part
highlights key current issues related to the difficulty of the diffusion of digital technologies in
teaching practices based on the findings of international comparative studies (IEA, OECD) and
those carried out in Italy (IARD , FGA).
The analysis of documents is considered useful to detect the distance between the intentions of
the policy makers and the reality of schools. According to the information of the main educational
institutions we find a vision of ICT guided by a strong optimism about the ability of these tools to
generate a deep innovation of the teaching-learning process, guiding them toward constructivist
pedagogical models. Moreover, surveys show that despite the increasing availability of digital
resources in schools, often still play a secondary role in teaching practices.