Toward effective learning of cybersecurity: new curriculum agenda and learning methods

Abstract

Abstract A recent survey among high school teachers and students in the EU revealed that cybersecurity topics are not included in the programs addressing computer science topics of European schools and that the teachers’ knowledge is not being upgraded regularly for this field. Based on an exhaustive study in 2021–2023 involving high schools in the EU a definition of the educational content and the aligned methodology for high school levels was developed for two areas: cyber-safety and cybersecurity. Available sources, including video platforms, quizzes, presentations, educational games, and hands-on sources for practical exercises, were evaluated and included in the developed fiches with the educational content. The applicability of the developed educational model and the content prepared for upgrading the high school teachers and their student’s knowledge was applied in nine European schools during the 2022–2023 school year. This paper describes the study, briefly presents the educational content, the class preparation and the assessment of the achieved learning objectives obtained with the surveys, interviews, and the Capture the Flag contest. The paper ends with an evaluation of the developed methodology and the usefulness of the approach. Recommendations for future use and development are included in the last paper section.