“From Policy to Practice and from Practice to Policy:
Finding concrete solutions to real problems”
19 to 20 September 2007
Crowne Plaza Hotel, Quezon City, Philippines

"Vision without action is a daydream.
Action without vision is a nightmare."
- 啓 発 Japanese Proverb

It’s unlikely that many people would deny that the use of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) has contributed greatly to worldwide education; however, it is likely that many people would agree that there needs to be a substantive evolution in the implementation of these technologies at the field level with teachers, school authorities, students and parents.

Initial policies were developed to address structural problems in each country. Therefore, ICT policies designed to address energy supply issues, promote the introduction of computers in schools and stimulate connectivity were the primary focus. However, these seemingly visionary solutions proved difficult and burdensome to manage in their day-to-day implementation. Some of the problems encountered included the difficulty of placing the computers in safe school environments, the financial constraints in training teachers on a large scale to be able to use the computers and the challenge to meaningfully integrate technology into the classroom. Therefore, a gap developed between existing policies and realities at the field level that translated into shortcomings in the primary goal: educational benefits to youth.

This Asia Policy Forum presents an exceptional opportunity for the development of strategies to address these ongoing challenges. The Forum aims to generate concrete policy responses from governments over time and represents a unique opportunity for: the collaborative identification of problems, the development of possible solutions and the evaluation of those solutions by high-level policy makers. The result will be to maximize the likelihood that these policies will be endorsed and implemented in their respective countries.

This gathering of leaders, scholars and educators to exchange and collaborate is a revolutionary event!

We hope you will be a part of it.

This Forum is organized by World Links with funding from the Japan Social Development Fund, administered by the World Bank, and from Intel.