Guest post by Dr Rachel Farrell, Director of the UCD Centre for Cyber Resilience Education
In Ireland, our young people are growing up in an always-online world where every click, share, and login leaves a trace. As Director of the UCD Centre for Cyber Resilience Education, I see daily how crucial it is that cybersecurity is not just the domain of specialists in labs and data centres, but a core part of what we teach in our classrooms.
At University College Dublin, we are working to mainstream cybersecurity education across primary and post-primary schools, equipping pupils and teachers with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to navigate the digital world safely, critically, ethically and responsibly.
This work is driven by an interdisciplinary team at the UCD Centre for Cyber Resilience Education (cyberwise.ie), led by Principal Investigator Dr Rachel Farrell, Research Project Manager Marelle Rice, and project team members Karen Maye (UCD), Declan Qualter (UCD), Dr Michal Wieczorek (UCD and ADAPT), Ciara Molloy (primary teacher and deputy principal), Mark Delahunty (primary teacher), and cybersecurity professional Sudha Alagappan (Founder & CEO, NeuralBI Ltd). Together, we are collaborating with schools, teachers, parents, and industry partners to build a more cyber-resilient Ireland from the ground up.
Introducing SECURE: Strengthening Education for Cybersecurity
SECURE: Strengthening Education for Cybersecurity – Uniting Resilience and Expertise is a new initiative from the UCD Centre for Cyber Resilience Education, funded
by Taighde Éireann/Research Ireland under the Collaborative Alliances for Societal
Challenges (COALESCE) Research Fund.
Now in its fifth cycle, the COALESCE programme supports excellent research across a broad
range of disciplines that tackles pressing national and global challenges. SECURE sits firmly
in that space: it recognises that cybersecurity is not just a technical issue – it is a societal one.
This project is dedicated to fostering cybersecurity education in primary schools, with a
particular focus on 6th class pupils and a bridge into 1st year of post-primary. In a world
increasingly reliant on digital technologies, early engagement with cybersecurity is an urgent
priority. By participating in SECURE, teachers and schools are helping address one of
society’s most pressing challenges: preparing young people to participate in digital life safely,
critically, and ethically.
You can watch a short overview of the SECURE project here: SECURE Project
Overview (YouTube).
What Pupils Learn: Practical, Age-Appropriate Cybersecurity
A core part of SECURE is a set of units of learning designed specifically for upper primary
and early post-primary students. These are hands-on, discussion-based, and rooted in pupils’
real digital lives – not abstract “big tech” case studies.
The SECURE modules currently include:
- Staying Secure Online – Creating Strong Passwords/codes/phrases
Helping students understand what makes a strong password/codes/phrases, why it
matters, and how to manage their digital identities across platforms. - Cyber Hygiene – Protecting My Data
Exploring data privacy, tracking, apps, and devices in a way that is accessible and
empowering for young people. - Cyber Events & Cyber Careers
Introducing real-world cyber incidents and showing pupils the breadth of roles in
cybersecurity – from technical analysts to policy, education, and communications. - Fake vs Real – Spotting an Attack
Supporting pupils to recognise phishing, social engineering, and dis/misinformation,
and to know what to do when something feels “off”. - Codes, Ciphers, Encryption – The Techie Stuff in Cybersecurity
Opening a window into the underlying concepts that keep data secure, from simple
ciphers to modern encryption, in playful and engaging ways. - AI and Cybersecurity in Children’s Lives
Exploring how artificial intelligence shapes the apps, games, and platforms young
people use every day, and what this means for privacy, safety, bias, and making
informed choices online.
These resources are designed so that non-specialist teachers can confidently facilitate them in contest specific environments, and so they map naturally onto existing learning goals in
digital literacy, SPHE, CSPE, maths, and even languages and history.
Versions of these materials are already available at cyberwise.ie and through Cyberwise on
Scoilnet, supporting teachers nationwide with free, curriculum-aligned resources for
classroom use. In time, the full SECURE programme will be offered as a teacher
professional learning pathway through a bespoke online course on the iten.ie platform,
supported by a consortium of seven South East Education Support Centres.
A Community of Practice for Teachers
One of the most powerful elements of SECURE is that teachers are not just end-users of
“finished” materials – they are co-creators.
Teachers involved in the project join an interdisciplinary community of practice, where
they:
- Co-develop and trial age-appropriate ways of engaging children with cybersecurity
concepts. - Share what works (and what doesn’t) in real classrooms.
- Explore how cybersecurity can be integrated across subjects, not just in standalone
lessons. - Shape the language, examples, and activities so they are meaningful for Irish pupils
and school contexts
Through this, SECURE is not just producing “resources”; it is building capacity and
confidence in the system, supporting teachers to become leaders in cybersecurity education
within their own schools and clusters.
Celebrating Phase One @ 2025 Adventures in Cyberland
On Thursday 11 December 2025, we will celebrate the learning and impact from Phase
One of the SECURE project at our Adventures in Cyberland Awards event in UCD
O’Reilly Hall.
The 2025 Adventures in Cyberland Awards is a landmark celebration of innovative
advancements in cybersecurity education in Ireland, organised by the UCD Centre for Cyber
Resilience Education and co-funded by the Research Ireland COALESCE Fund SECURE
project and the Ubuntu Network Partnership.
The event will:
- Showcase the impactful work of teachers who are collaborating with cybersecurity
professionals to enact the Junior Cycle Cybersecurity Short Course in post-primary
schools and to adapt this work to the primary school context as part of SECURE. - Feature student exhibitions, project showcases, and the presentation of Special
Interest Awards from our project partners, supporters, and special guests, including:
Oide Technology in Education, Scoilnet, the National Cyber Security Centre
(NCSC), Cyber Ireland, Block W, NeuralBI, the ADAPT Centre, the Central
Statistics Office (CSO), and MS Education Ireland. - Offer interactive experiences for students, including XR activities, VEX robotics,
First Lego League, and a range of digital and unplugged cybersecurity games that
bring core concepts to life.
You can explore highlights from previous years via Adventures in Cyberland @ Adventures
in Cyberland Awards 2024 – Cyberwise
Professional Learning for Teachers with Janice Richardson
A key feature of Adventures in Cyberland 2025 will be a dedicated professional learning
session for teachers led by Janice Richardson.
Janice Richardson is an internationally recognised expert in digital citizenship and child
online protection, and a long-standing consultant with the Council of Europe. She was the founding member and coordinator of the European Commission’s 30-country Safer Internet (Insafe) network and the ENACSO network, and has co-authored numerous Council of Europe publications on digital citizenship and children’s rights online.
She has advised global platforms through roles on Facebook’s Safety Advisory Board,
Twitter’s Trust & Security Council, and the Power of Zero steering committee on early
childhood education. Janice is also the founder of Insight S.Å and the original driving force
behind Safer Internet Day, now celebrated in over 140 countries.
At Adventures in Cyberland, Janice’s session will draw on this rich international experience
to:
- Explore current trends and challenges in young people’s online lives
- Offer practical, classroom-ready strategies for embedding digital citizenship and
cybersecurity education across the curriculum - Support teachers to balance safety, empowerment, and autonomy in how they
approach online risk and resilience with their students
This session will give Irish teachers a rare opportunity to engage directly with one of the
leading voices in digital citizenship globally, and to connect that insight to the everyday
realities of Irish classrooms.
Connecting Schools with Experts and Experiences
Beyond Adventures in Cyberland, the SECURE project continues to create opportunities for
schools, teachers, and students to:
- Take part in shared learning events at UCD, including workshops and on-campus days
- Connect with experts in cybersecurity, cyber resilience, and education
- Engage in collaborative outreach activities with our project partners
- Showcase pupils’ ideas, projects, and learning journeys
These experiences help to demystify cybersecurity and make it visible as a dynamic, diverse,
and socially important field, well beyond the stereotypes often portrayed in media.
Why This Matters for Ireland’s Cyber Future
Ireland’s digital infrastructure, public services, and economy increasingly depend on a
workforce and citizenry who understand cybersecurity, not just at specialist level but at a
baseline that is shared by all.
By integrating cybersecurity education into primary and post-primary schools, we are:
- Strengthening digital resilience in communities
- Building a pipeline of future talent in cybersecurity and related fields
- Supporting teachers and schools to respond to new curricular and policy demands
- Empowering young people to protect themselves and others online
At the UCD Centre for Cyber Resilience Education, we see this work as part of a broader,
long-term partnership between education, industry, and policy – a partnership in which
Cyber Ireland plays a crucial convening role.
Get Involved
We are always keen to hear from:
- Primary and post-primary schools interested in piloting or adopting cybersecurity
units of learning - Teachers who would like to join our community of practice
- Industry and community partners who want to collaborate on outreach, workshops,
or role-model events
Together, we are building resilience and expertise to strengthen cybersecurity education for
the future – starting where it matters most: in our classrooms, with our young people.
For more information about our work and access to classroom resources, visit cyberwise.ie
or contact us @ cyberwise.ie/contact-us/