Fool's gold or hidden treasure: are computers stifling creativity?

A description of a recent report issued by the US-based Alliance for Childh ood indicates the main criticisms made of the use of ICT in primary educati on. These criticisms are considered and the arguments developed in the repo rt are examined. The effect of the report's publication is also discussed, as is the media response in the US and beyond. As a partial answer to the r eport's claims regarding creativity and computers, two practitioners provid e case study evidence of the ways in which ICT has been used to develop inn ovative classroom activities. The paper concludes with a call for enlighten ed discourse in this area rather than polemical stance-taking.