Integrated E-Safety

So we have just started a new mini project in our ICT seminars about e-safety. The task is to make an informative presentation on the topic, which can show other trainee teachers how to teach the idea in the classroom. Our group got to work researching various resources through looking at sites such as VITAL, NAACE and swgfl where we found that a lot give the facts of what internet is and tips of things to be careful of but very little guidance of how to incorporate these into the classroom. After all, shouldn't e-safety be central to ensure that children fully understand safe practice of the devices that they are using to explore or learn from?

As a group, we became slightly stuck as where to take this project... Should we look at how to teach a good e-safety lesson? Doesn't that just involve giving the children tips? Which technologies should we focus on? What is the most effective way of doing this?

Probably my favourite e-safety site that I came across in the research - simple and to the point tips for children about using a varity of technologies safely

After a discussion, we agreed that we thought that at a time where devices are constantly being used in the classroom to support learning and where children have a wide range of them to use at home that e-safety shouldn't just be a standalone lesson but generally integrated throughout all teaching.

I began to research exactly that and googled 'integrated e-safety' with very little success. There were very few ideas of how to put this into place and no examples which really surprised us as it seemed like the best way for children to have all the knowledge they needed to stay safe when using technology. When writing previous ICT assignments it has always shocked me how little e-safety is mentioned in technology based text books, often given a paragraphs space at the end of the final chapter. It is great to be able to use so much new ICT in the classroom to support learning, so I feel that children need to also be taught common sense on how to use the huge variety without putting themselves in danger. In an assignment that I have just finished I referenced Ofsted's 'safe use of new technologies' document because it suggests that e-safety in outstanding schools was taught across the curriculum... through 'assemblies, tutorial time, personal, social, health and education lessons'.

Towards the end of our seminar we decided that although separate e-safety lessons can be useful, it should really be embedded into the curriculum as much as possible. Over the next few weeks, as we develop this resource/presentation, we're going take a 'how to' approach to the task and hopefully make something that demonstrates and teaches how to integrate e-safety into the primary curriculum.

I would be interested to hear how other people have seen e-safety taught in school, any integration seen/carried out or opinions on the best ways to teach children how the use the internet safely!

@HannahSheltonTT