By Joseph Varghese/Staff Reporter


More than 40% of schoolchildren in Qatar have posted their personal details on the Internet, which might be misused by several unwanted elements, according to a presentation by the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology (ictQATAR).
The presentation also discloses that most students are not aware of the need for cyber security and get into different kinds of trouble. It notes that proper guidance and integration of cyber security in the school curriculum can solve most of these problems.
These findings were revealed at the launch of a new educational programme yesterday by ictQATAR in collaboration with the Supreme Education Council (SEC) to raise cyber safety and security awareness among students.
HE Dr Hessa Sultan al-Jaber, Minister of Information and Communications Technology; Fawzia al-Khater, director of the SEC Education Institute; Reem al-Mansoori, executive director, Digital Society, ictQATAR; several officials from ictQATAR and SEC as well as a large number of teachers from various schools took part in the launch event.
The initiative, called Haseen, is an Internet safety and security awareness programme for students. It tackles up to 13 cyber safety topics and aims to empower students in education stages from the first to 12th grade to stay safe online. The programme is available in both Arabic and English.
In the first phase this year, Haseen will be applied in 25% of independent, international and private schools. Based on the feedback, more schools will be covered in the years ahead.
Haseen teaches schoolchildren how to think critically and behave online by raising their awareness and developing an informed and healthy cyber safety culture across the Qatari society. Designed for male and female students, Haseen will educate children and youth on how to use technologies safely, responsibly and ethically.
“ictQATAR has launched Haseen to raise cyber safety awareness among students to pave the way for Qatar’s future ‘cyber-ready’ workforce in harmony with Qatar National Vision 2030. The Internet is part of everyone’s life, every day. It has also become part of our students’ daily lives. Being constantly connected brings increased risks of theft, fraud and abuse,” said al-Mansoori.
Al-Khater from the SEC said, “Haseen is an addition to our social and ethical values. I hope Haseen will be the shield protecting our students from online risks and threats to be able to enjoy the benefits of the Internet safely.
The programme has 347 learning activities and 148 learning resources. It provides comprehensive, customised and interactive information that sharpens schoolchildren’s critical thinking, problem-solving and teamwork skills.” Learning resources include animations, animated quizzes, worksheets, audio and video files and Web 2.0 tools.
Haseen’s learning activities are to be incorporated into the curricula of Arabic and English. It will also be enhancing value-based education across all other subjects delivered to students. Teachers and educators will attend training sessions and workshops on the best practices.
The Haseen programme handles several cyber safety topics, including inappropriate content, Internet and game addiction, mean behaviour and cyberbullying, netiquette, plagiarism, protection techniques, reputation management and social networking.