The pedagogical use of information and communication technology in education: a Dutch perspective

This special issue discusses Dutch research on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in education. In this introduction, four broad research lines are distinguished: Policy-oriented research, research on learning technologies, research on computer-based instructional design tools, and research on the pedagogical use of ICT. The focus of this special issue is on the last type of research. The main research questions, findings and conclusions of the six contributions are discussed. It is concluded that the most important directions for future research deal with the added value of ICT for information problem solving in resource-based learning, for collaboration using external representations and tools that provoke critical discussion and reflection, and for simulation in learning environments for competence based learning and discovery learning.