ICT in the curriculum
The 2007 strategy of the cantons with respect to ICT in education fixes the achievement of digital literacy as one of its two general aims. Three objectives are indicated:
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to allow all pupils who attend compulsory education to acquire basic competences in ICT use;
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to promote equal opportunities with respect to ICT and media;
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to ensure that upper secondary school students are conversant with basic technical notions in the field of ICT.
Amongst the proposed actions aimed at achieving these goals, the ICT strategy mentions the possibility of fixing pedagogical objectives for ICT competences as constraints for cantonal curricula within the forthcoming HarmoS educational harmonisation programme. To ensure the necessary technical competences in upper secondary school, computer science has just been reintroduced as a subject in the Federal matriculation exams (which determine access to higher education). Inclusion was initially optional but became obligatory from 2008.
Integration of ICT in schools
According to the PPP-ésn (School on the Net) study, there are considerable differences between the linguistic regions when it comes to the development and implementation of a plan for the integration of ICT in schools. In the German-speaking part of Switzerland, 33.4% of schools have such a concept whereas only 5.8% of French-speaking schools have an ICT plan.
A survey carried out by the CTIE in 2008 provides an overview of the political and educational measures addressing the integration of ICT in the Swiss Educational System. The survey is based on a questionnaire addressed to those responsible for such matters in the cantons and asking them to report on existing measures. Results from the cantons show that 22 out of 26 specify concepts including components to further the integration of ICT during the years of compulsory schooling. From a more didactic point of view, 24 out of 26 cantons have adopted a curriculum that integrates ITC. The two cantons without such a curriculum mention that they are waiting for the forthcoming Frenchspeaking curriculum (PER), which will provide a curricular programme integrating ITC.
As for the non-compulsory level of upper secondary schooling (ages 16-19, but excluding vocational schools) results from the cantons show that 10 out of 26 specify concepts including components to further the integration of ICT during the years of compulsory schooling. From a more didactic point of view, 11 out of 26 cantons have adopted a curriculum that integrates ICT.
