This text reports on the policies and practices regarding computers in education in 20 countries, representing Northern America, Asia and both the Eastern and Western parts of Europe. The editors have analysed and reflected from several perspectives on the richness of the national reports resulting in chapters on curricular, (in)equity and education paradigmatic aspects of the introduction of computers in education. The volume is a spin-off of the international comparative study of the use of Computers in Education (CompEd) conducted by IEA, the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement. The variety found across countries in the CompEd results led to the question whether this might be explained by differences in national contexts. For that reason, the initiative was taken to invite countries participating in the study, as well as some other countries with interesting developments in this area, to report on their policies and practices regarding computers in education. A collection of country profiles of a technological innovation that invaded their education systems is provided.These profiles provide baseline information against which recent developments on information and communication technologies in education can be studied. The book is therefore of importance for all those in charge of policy-making and implementation in this area and it provides background information for researchers and graduate students, both in the area of information and communication technology in education and comparative education.
