The IT-Based Educational System (in Romanian SEI "Sistem Educational Informatizat") is a complex program initiated by the Romanian Ministry of Education, Research and Youth (MERY), for supporting the teaching/learning process in the pre-university education system with cutting-edge technology. The program sustains the objectives of the educational reform in conformity with the European strategies eEurope 2005, initiated by the European Union as part of the European eLearning initiative; it is implemented through a public-private partnership. The main companies involved in the implementation are SIVECO Romania, HP, and IBM.


The research report focused on how new ICTs are used in the Romanian education system for teaching and learning activities, for school collaboration, and for developing 21st -century-specific student competencies. The results demonstrate that both teachers' and students' feel SEI has had a positive impact on the education system.


With regard to the teachers' activities, ICTs main contribution lies in achieving the learning objectives followed by the discharge of teaching activities. Regarding the organization of the education process, teachers emphasized the benefits of using ICT in the promotion of active and participative learning, as well as cooperative learning. Seven teachers out of ten (70.2%) observed a positive impact of ICT on the learning performance in their discipline. In regard to their own computer skills, 65% declared that they use a computer well or very well.


The study also revealed that teacher training in computer-assisted instruction plays a role in the equation. Eighty-three percent of the teachers with specialized training remarked that the use of ICTs has a positive effect on students, whereas only 65% of those without such training saw the importance of ICT in education.


Students considered the most important effect of using the ICT for school lessons is a simplified learning process followed closely by easier understanding of the content and the fact that they learn to use the computer better. Only 0.9% of students who study in schools provided with IT laboratories during the implementation of the SEI do not use the computers; 63% use them at school and 83% use them at home.


Increased use of computers and the Internet for lessons of various disciplines was the wish of 95% of the students. And 90% think that students without access to a computer will be disadvantaged later in their professional and social lives.


The research is a premiere for Romania, considering its extent and the subject scrutinized. The investigation was carried out with the help of specific questionnaires for each of the three categories of potential beneficiaries: students, teachers, and school directors. The questions were posed to a representative sample in each category: 3953 pupils, 1588 teachers, and 195 headmasters.