New Zealand schools have experienced unprecedented change during the lastdecade. Radicalrestructuringoftheframeworksforbothcurriculumand qualificationsfollowedamovementtowards self-managementin 1989. The curriculum framework, consisting of seven essential learning areas, has been progressively introduced with completionnotexpecteduntil 2002. Thenew Qualifications Framework, based on unit standards, was launched in 1994. The introduction of unit standards signalled an emphatic movement towards the use of internal assessment for awarding qualifications at the seniorsecondaryschoollevel. Eachcoursehadunitstandardsdefined,which described the outcomes and the performance criteria that would be used to determine whether or not the standard had been achieved. Approximately five to eight standards would be used for each full year course and each standard had a number of credits associated with it. The plan, which has since been modified, was for these credits to contribute to a National Certificate of Educational Achievement, at years 12 and 13, and other, subject specific, National Certificates. Secondary schools were faced with the task of recording and reporting 1 unit standardresults to theNew Zealand Qualifications Authority . This, by itself, was not a major issue as the significant suppliers of CSIS had modules availablewhichsatisfiedthis need. Atthistimeamodelwasbeingpresented to school audiences demonstrating how the recording, reporting and evaluation ofassessment data, relating to the curriculumframework, could be relatively straight forward IF there was a common assessment ‘currency’ across the school. This model was converted into software form for demonstration purposes.

Information Technology and Educational Management in the Knowledge Society is an essential reference for both academic and professional researchers in the field of information technology and educational management. Since the mid-1980's, computer assisted educational information systems have been developing in various parts of the world and the knowledge surrounding the development and implementation of these systems has been growing. The papers presented in this volume are the result of an international call for papers addressing the challenges faced by the information technology and education management (ITEM) field in a society where knowledge management is becoming a major issue both in educational and business systems. This state-of-the-art volume presents the proceedings of the 6th International Working Conference on Information Technology in Educational Management, held July 2004 in Spain. The collection will be important not only for information technology and education management experts and researchers, but also for all teachers and administrators interested in this growing field.

Evolution of Information Technology in Educational Management As the editors of this volume we are very happy to publish a selection of the papers that were presented at the eighth Conference of Working Group 3.7 of the International Federation for Information Processing which was held in July 2008. The focus of Working Group 3.7 is on ITEM: Information Technology in Educational Management (for more information, please visit our website http://item.wceruw.org/), and the theme of its 2008 conference was on the Evolution of Information Technology in Educational Management. Our Working Group started its activities (officially we were not an IFIP Working Group at that time) in 1994 in Israel, so it made sense to look at how ITEM has evolved over the years and to reflect on what its future may be. The conference took place in Darwin (northern Australia) which even during the Australian winter is a very pleasant location for having a conference. The town of Darwin was given its name by the Captain of the Beagle (the ship on which Darwin travelled when he made the investigations on which he based his Theory of Evolution) who came to the area and named the town after the giant of science he admired.

This volume presents findings and insights from contemporary thinking and research on the application of Information Technology in Educational Management. It analyzes the ways in which ICT has been used, across a range of educational institutions, to support various aspects of educational management. It is the latest in a series of books produced by IFIP Working Group 3.7.

For 60 years the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) has been advancing research in Information and Communication Technology (ICT). This book looks into both past experiences and future perspectives using the core of IFIP's competence, its Technical Committees (TCs) and Working Groups (WGs). Soon after IFIP was founded, it established TCs and related WGs to foster the exchange and development of the scientific and technical aspects of information processing. IFIP TCs are as diverse as the different aspects of information processing, but they share the following aims: To establish and maintain liaison with national and international organizations with allied interests and to foster cooperative action, collaborative research, and information exchange. To identify subjects and priorities for research, to stimulate theoretical work on fundamental issues, and to foster fundamental research which will underpin future development. To provide a forum for professionals with a view to promoting the study, collection, exchange, and dissemination of ideas, information, and research findings and thereby to promote the state of the art. To seek and use the most effective ways of disseminating information about IFIP’s work including the organization of conferences, workshops and symposia and the timely production of relevant publications. To have special regard for the needs of developing countries and to seek practicable ways of working with them. To encourage communication and to promote interaction between users, practitioners, and researchers. To foster interdisciplinary work and – in particular – to collaborate with other Technical Committees and Working Groups. The 17 contributions in this book describe the scientific, technical, and further work in TCs and WGs and in many cases also assess the future consequences of the work’s results. These contributions explore the developments of IFIP and the ICT profession now and over the next 60 years. The contributions are arranged per TC and conclude with the chapter on the IFIP code of ethics and conduct.

This book constitutes the refereed post-proceedings of the 9th IFIP WG 3.7 Conference on Information Technology in Educational Management, ITEM 2010, held in Kasane, Botswana, in July 2010. The 22 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected. The papers cover a wide range of topics addressing the utilization of ICT at different levels of education from primary education to higher education, such as identifying and satisfying learning needs, strategical management, school management information systems, open source software, and the relationship between ICT and organizational performance.

As the developed world continues to become more digitized, lesser developed areas are starting to see more technological advancements being integrated into their society. These advancements are creating opportunities to improve both the economy and the lives of people within these areas. Information Technology Integration for Socio-Economic Development features theoretical concepts and best practices in the implementation of new technologies within developing areas around the world. Highlighting empirical research on the application of information technologies to bridge the digital divide within different countries, the book is ideally suited for technology developers, managers, and policy makers.