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Carol Rainbow, Primary ICT Advisory Teacher reviews the latest e-safety recommendations

'E-safety: the experience in English educational establishments' was an audit carried out in August 2005 to measure the current level and range of activity within English state maintained educational establishments to ensure the safe and effective use of information and communication technologies (ICT).

In 2005 Becta commissioned research about e-safety in schools. Charlotte Barrow led the research from the Department of Education and Social Science at the University of Central Lancashire. The recommendations and executive summary are downloadable from: http://becta.org.uk/page_documents/research/esafety_summary.pdf , and the whole report is downloadable from: http://becta.org.uk/page_documents/research/esafety.pdf

Below is a summary of the recommendations from the report that effect schools directly.

E-Safety Recommendations for Schools

1. A strategic and integrated approach towards e-safety is required in educational establishments.

E-safety needs to become integrated into educational establishments through a range of measures to ensure that it is addressed in an holistic manner. This could be done in three key ways:

E-safety should be referred to in behavioural, anti-bullying, and child protection policies, as well as being part of every home-school agreement, so that awareness is raised amongst all members of the school community.
One member of staff should act as designated Internet or E-safety Coordinator. This person would have responsibility for maintaining and monitoring strategies and systems to ensure that e-safety remains a priority.
E-safety needs to be integrated into the curriculum, with direction and materials provided for teachers across all key stages and sectors.

2. Issues relating to mobile technologies and e-safety need to be addressed in teaching and learning.

The research has found that where pupils are taught about e-safety, breaches of e-safety are reduced. Thus, to avoid, or exclude, teaching about new mobile technologies is to deny both the inevitable evolution of technology and the proven recreational use of these technologies by young people. Teaching materials need to be regularly reviewed in light of emerging technologies in order to prevent pupils being placed at increased risk.

3. Targeted directives are required to counter breaches of e-safety amongst particular pupil groups.

The research shows that some pupils are more likely to be involved in breaches of e-safety than others. Pupils most commonly involved are those at the higher end of the school age range (i.e. Year 6 Primary and Years Ten and Eleven Secondary). Breaches are also influenced by gender; for example, girls are more likely to be involved in incidents of bullying via mobile phones, whereas boys are more likely to be involved in incidents of plagiarism and the viewing of unsuitable online material. Therefore, strategies could be targeted specifically at groups of pupils based on known risks.

Such an approach would help to protect pupils and reduce the problems associated with breaches of e-safety for staff.

4. Educational establishments need to consider alternative ways of managing the use of personal equipment brought onto their premises by pupils.

Although it is important not to overstate the tensions between the use of new technologies inside and outside school, the findings of this study show a clear association between the use of personal equipment on educational premises (e.g. laptops, mobile phones) and breaches of safety. That is, permitting the use of certain equipment or devices may increase risk. Therefore, educational establishments may need to develop new approaches to monitoring the appropriate use of such technologies on their premises.

5. Teachers require support that is tailored to their existing levels of expertise, but that takes account of the increased capabilities and uses of new technologies

The research found that the support provided to and used by teachers varied in terms of its quality and relevance to their needs. The provision of such support (for example, programmes of education) was variable and more likely to be implemented in Primary schools. The needs of teachers should act as the starting point for a comprehensive training programme in e-safety, made available contingent on teachers’ needs as opposed to their designated roles and responsibilities.

The research findings mentioned have been adopted and included in an updated example of an ICT Policy http://www.ict.oxon-lea.gov.uk/internet.html.