FACTORS OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS FOR IMPROVING THE LEVEL OF DIGITAL SECURITY OF PUPILS

Abstract

The relevance of educating of pupils on internet safety is indisputable, given the data that indicate an increase in the time spent by children on the internet and the spread of the facts of their encounter with online risks, including the risks of sexual violence. At the same time, the lack of research on the effectiveness of preventive programs, which mostly take the form of education sessions, negatively affects the possibilities of improving and scaling such programs. The article present the results of the first stage of the research of the effectiveness of the educational campaign #stop_sexting on the safety of children in the digital environment, aimed at determining the factors that influence the effectiveness of the educational program and should be taken into account in the process of its evaluation. In the course of the research, an analysis of the existing scientific literature on the prevention of digital risks for children and the evaluation of the effectiveness of educational programs for children was carried out, as well as a content analysis of 1,200 feedback questionnaires from teachers regarding their experience of conducting educational classes for children within the framework of the campaign. It was determined that the evaluation of the effectiveness of educational interventions carried out within the framework of school educational and preventive programs should take into account the peculiarities of pedagogical activity, its complex structure and focus on creating conditions for the formation and development of pupils' competence. The participants of the learning process – the pupil and the teacher – organize a specific system of objective and subjective conditions and factors during the education process, which make influence to the education, such as: formation of the learning content in accordance with the pedagogical tasks set (selection, design and application of its elements); selection and application of forms, methods and techniques of learning, use of material and technical means and environmental resources; the teacher’s professional knowledge and skills, his personal characteristics, their implementation in the education process and the teacher’s ability to influence to the pupils learning in specific contextual conditions; pupil’s knowledge and skills, his individual and age cherecteristics. The article presents the results of the first stage of the research of the effectiveness of the educational campaign #stop_sexting on the safety of children in the digital environment, aimed at determining the factors that influence the effectiveness of the educational pr ogram and should be taken into account in the pr ocess of its evaluation. In the research results, key factors that can affect the quality of preventive education programs were identified: 1) the content of the educational program; 2) the student's current level of knowledge in the topic; 3) the level of expertise of the teacher in the topic; 4) conditions of holding the education. Further research involves a detailed, qualitative study of the manifestations and actions of these factors, as well as an assessment of the impact of the lessons conducted as part of the #stop_sexting educational campaign on children's knowledge and skills The proposed research results can be used at the stage of developing preventive educational programs for pupils and as a tool for evaluating the effectiveness of existing educational programs.