Curricula Considerations in ICT Integration: Models and Practices in Cyprus

In Cyprus, the pilot programme for the introduction of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in elementary schools aimed at ICT as a cross-curricular tool and involved a combination of centralised initiative and largely decentralised implementation responsibility. Two independent studies on curricula integration indicated that parents' and teachers' preferred models as well as teachers' applied models vary widely. These models range from the technocentric (applying ICT as a discrete subject) to the humanistic curriculum (using ICT as a cross-curricular tool). The findings indicate that the challenge is on the policy makers to decide which model to adopt so as to specify the role of ICT in the National Curriculum and to create an appropriate infrastructure to support the model adopted.