Free tool for evaluating pupil competency for a digital life

Charity LGfL-The National Grid for Learning, has launched SafeSkills, a tool which will allow teachers to assess pupils’ online competencies and resilience for a digital life.
 
It's a valuable free resource for all schools featuring an online quiz for pupils in higher primary and lower secondary, and an inbuilt online safety diagnostic tool for staff.  

Teachers register their school at safeskillsinfo.lgfl.net to receive their login details with instructions for importing their classes.
 
The resource covers the digital knowledge and skills outlined in the Government’s Education for a Connected World framework, and as recommended in Keeping Children Safe in Education and statutory RSHE guidance.
 
Designed to promote the development of safe and appropriate long-term behaviours, and support educators in shaping a culture of safeguarding at school and beyond, the quiz covers aspects like self-image and identity – which explores the difference between online and offline identity and the impact of technology on self-image and behaviour, as well as online relationships, online bullying, and managing online information.
 
After using their pupil log in to access SafeSkills, children can select any quiz from the eight themes available. Once the quiz has been completed, they can download a certificate and view a summary of areas of achievement and areas for development. They can also download an overview of their overall progress. Pupil results data can also be exported easily for use in teacher markbooks.
 
As well as completing the quiz in school as part of a classroom activity, teachers can allocate questions for homework, which pupils can access from anywhere.
 
Because SafeSkills is intended as a diagnostic tool for both summative and formative assessment, teachers can monitor progress easily throughout the year - at school, class or pupil level - to identify areas for development. By viewing aggregate scores for each of the themes, teachers can revisit topics that had a low score and dedicate more time across the curriculum. Whilst some schools may concentrate on the high-level eight themes across the whole class, others can drill down to single competencies or individual pupils, so the approach is entirely flexible and needs driven.
 
Commenting on the tool, Mark Bentley, Safeguarding and Cybersecurity Manager, LGfL-The National Grid for Learning, said, “Schools know all too well the importance of teaching their students how to navigate the online world, but with limited curriculum time and a fast-changing threat landscape, it is all the more important to understand where pupils’ needs are and focus time on the most relevant topics. That’s where SafeSkills comes into its own.”