Strengthen Online Security for Students

"S.O.S. (Strengthen Online Safety for Students) is a project that has been conceived from the need to empower the students (Ss) with the necessary skills as to acknowledge and learn to avoid the online risks they may face when browsing the Internet, in an ever-changing world where technology has taken over most of our lives. Given the fact that statistics at European level show that the use of Internet among children and teenagers has dramatically increased over the past few years and that there is not enough focus on online safety taught at school, we consider that this project allows the Ss to acquire the necessary skills to cope with this world.The main objective of our project is to improve our Ss’ ability to use the internet safely, over the 24 months of the project, by focusing and learning about the risks they could face, such as cyber bullying, fake news, data privacy, harmful content and sexting and grooming. Our general objectives are to encourage exchange of good practices and promote international cooperation among schools.S.O.S. will involve 6 partners from Spain, Portugal, Finland, Poland, Croatia and Romania. The project targets a large audience, the whole school community (family, Ss, Teachers(Ts), other school staff and local organizations), although the main beneficiaries are the Ss aged 10 to 15. There will be 137 Ss and 60 Ts involved in the actual exchange visits, but a more considerable number from all partner schools will actively participate in the project.The activities carried out during the project will follow the project management plan, focusing on aspects such as quality, monitoring, dissemination and risk management. Thus, each school will have team members responsible with the smooth operation of each aspect mentioned above. The main activities are:1. A free online course for Ts involved in the project, so as to get a better understanding of the key concepts connected to the topic and to be able to guide the Ss during the activities, towards achieving the expected results and to give them advice and counselling if necessary.2. Six short-term pupils exchanges, each of which will deal with a specific topic, all of them labeled as major risks online:-Cyber Bullying: Let’s Stop it!-Fake News: How to spot it?-Online data privacy risks: the more we know the safer !!!-Exposure to harmful content: 10 tips to be aware of ...-Sexting and Grooming: let's fight them together!-Let’s S.O.S !!! Final activityBefore each activity, there will be preparations, which will cover the methodology to be discussed, the cultural aspects and after the activities, dissemination will be made in each participant school and community.The project will combine physical mobility with virtual meetings, allowing cooperation and exchange of good practice for the transnational teams of Ss and Ts. eTwinning will be the linking instrument in the project, as every activity, from planning, to implementing and disseminating is planned to be carried out on the platform. The Ss’ involvement in the process of planning, discussing, establishing, deciding and implementing will raise their motivation in being activelearners, improve their communication and social skills and help them understand the importance of well being in the online world.The results of the project will be:-""Take a stand against cyber bullying"" campaign/ ""Block and Report"" campaign against harmful content of any kind/ ""Think before you Post"" campaign-Short films/play on cyber bullying-""Fake or Real news"" workshop-Video conference on data privacy and phishing-""Media Smart"" brochure/ ""Be your own Master Online"" leaflet-""How to avoid exposure to harmful content"" presentation-""DO's and DON'TS of the online world"" booklet-""Our European Calendar of being safe online""-""The ABC of Online Safety"": dictionary of the online terms in 6 languagesDissemination of the results will be made via various methods, such as: presentations and workshops at institutional and local level, articles, posts on educational platforms and in the written press, project page/blog, eTwinning portal, Facebook. The project will have a widespread impact in the community, which will ensure its sustainability. Thus, Ss will raise awareness on and try avoiding the dangers online, boost their motivation, improve self-confidence and school performance, increase social skills and language competence. The parents will understand the risks that their children might be exposed to and prevent negative situations through careful supervision of their children's time online. The Ts will improve linguistic and technology skills, become acquainted with different educational systems and approach of various topics. The schools involved will increase reputation and visibility in the community, strengthen local partnerships, develop European dimension, establish long-term partnerships with European schools."