This paper describes the evolution of a national research plan for computers and education, an approach which was initiated in the Netherlands in 1983. Two phases can be recognized in the Dutch experience: one from 1984 until 1988 and one from 1989 until 1992. Building upon the experiences of the first phase, research plans for the second phase are outlined. General conclusions are that research plans should be formulated within a concrete and well-defined framework, oriented more toward implementation issues than toward theoretical research questions and undertaken in a context of international cooperation. Priorities for the next phase of research include: (1) procedures and criteria for software evaluation by teachers; (2) alternative approaches to the inservice training of teachers in computer usage; (3) computer applications in vocational education; (4) cooperative learning and computers; (5) the effect of computers on higher cognitive skill development; (6) the applicability of artificial intelligence techniques to the production of courseware; and (7) the development of interactive coaches.