Mixed Reality Based Interactive Cybersecurity Education for Middle School Students

世界各地的个人和组织都在转向信息和通信技术(ICT)，以帮助管理生活和企业的方方面面。与此同时，ICT公司正在不断开发新的方法，以提高在线安全、保障和隐私。网络安全专业人员的短缺给国家和国土安全带来了风险。这些风险因网络安全专业人员缺乏多样性而加剧。网络安全教育项目需要满足更多样化的学生群体的需求，并可由教育工作者轻松实施。这些项目需要让学生从中学时期开始接触网络安全，那时他们开始巩固自己的学术和其他身份。通过加强网络安全知识和积极的动机，这些项目可能会带来未来对网络安全职业的潜在兴趣，从而为强大和多样化的网络安全劳动力创造一条管道。该项目将制定、设计和制作创新混合现实(MR)学习内容的原型，使网络安全概念具体化，并吸引中学生。这项工作将由来自特拉华大学的跨学科学者小组指导，并涉及与计算机科学教师协会特拉华州分会、当地学校和学区的伙伴关系。该项目旨在通过设计、试点和实施工作直接影响10名中学教师和大约350名学生，包括残疾学生。该项目以三个目标为指导：(1)在整个设计过程中反复设计一套针对关键网络安全概念(例如，隐写、网络钓鱼和防火墙)的具体和交互式MR活动；(2)增加学生对关键网络安全概念的知识，了解网络安全的重要性，并对网络安全职业感兴趣；以及(3)为计算领域的MR活动制定一套设计原则。MR活动将根据观察结果、教师访谈和学生调查反馈进行反复改进。简短的预试将测试材料的可用性，并为教师提供评估成功的课堂环境。最后的试点将在中学课堂上进行，采用前后测设计，评估学生的网络安全、学习和动机。基于劳动力对网络安全的广泛关注，这项工作将有助于创建K-12网络安全教育的新模式，同时让学生接触到新的和新兴的技术。这项工作的研究工具、评估工具和成果将通过讲习班、出版物、专题介绍和门户网站进行传播。该项目由学生和教师创新技术体验计划(ITEST)资助，该计划支持建立对实践、计划要素、背景和过程的理解的项目，这些项目有助于提高学生对科学、技术、工程和数学(STEM)以及信息和通信技术(ICT)职业的知识和兴趣。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Individuals and organizations around the world are turning to information and communication technology (ICT) to help manage all aspects of life and businesses. ICT companies are at the same time continuously developing new approaches to advance online safety, security, and privacy. The shortage of cybersecurity professionals creates risks for both national and homeland security. These risks are exacerbated by the lack of diversity among cybersecurity professionals. Cybersecurity education programs that meet the needs of a more diverse group of students and can be easily implemented by educators are needed. These programs need to expose students to cybersecurity starting in the middle-school years when they begin to solidify their academic and other identities. By enhancing the knowledge of cybersecurity and positive motivation, such programs could lead to potential future interest in cybersecurity careers, thus creating a pipeline for a robust and diverse cybersecurity workforce. This project will formulate, design, and prototype innovative mixed-reality (MR) learning content to make cybersecurity concepts concrete and engaging for middle school students. The work will be guided by an interdisciplinary team of scholars from the University of Delaware and involves partnerships with the Delaware Chapter of the Computer Science Teachers Association, local schools and districts. The project is intended to directly impact 10 middle school teachers and approximately 350 students including students with disabilities through the design, pilot, and implementation efforts.The project is guided by three goals: (1) iteratively design a set of concrete and interactive MR activities addressing key cybersecurity concepts (e.g., steganography, phishing, and firewalls) with teacher and student input throughout the design process; (2) increase student knowledge of key cybersecurity concepts, understanding of the importance of cybersecurity, and interest in cybersecurity careers; and (3) produce a set of design principles for MR activities in computing. MR activities will be iteratively refined based on observations, teacher interviews, and student survey feedback. Short pre-pilots will test the usability of the materials and provide teachers a classroom context to evaluate success. A final pilot will be conducted in middle school classrooms utilizing a pre/posttest design with assessments of student cybersecurity learning and motivation. Based on the wide attention on cybersecurity in the workforce, this work will help create new models for K-12 cybersecurity education while exposing students to new and emerging technologies. The research instruments, assessment tools, and outcomes of this work will be disseminated through workshops, publications, presentations, and a web portal. This project is funded by the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program, which supports projects that build understandings of practices, program elements, contexts and processes contributing to increasing students' knowledge and interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and information and communication technology (ICT) careers.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.