Abstract:

The present study aimed to investigate and compare school principals’, classroom teachers’ and ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) teachers’ perceptions regarding risky internet use among school-aged students. Furthermore, it was examined, separately for each group of participants, if their training on students’ secure cyber-navigation and their demographic characteristics affect their perceptions under study. Six-hundred and seventy participants (237 principals, 295 classroom teachers, 138 ICT teachers), mainly from randomly selected schools of Central Macedonia and Attica in Greece, participated in the study. They were asked to complete a self-report online questionnaire that examined the variables mentioned above (demographic characteristics, training, and perceptions). According to the results, the majority of participants, although expressed positive perceptions on risky internet use in school age (e.g., high perceived awareness), declared unable to manage this issue. However, among the three groups of participants, school principals supported to a greater extent the holistic intervention of the school in preventing risky internet use in school age, classroom teachers felt less able to manage it, while ICT teachers considered their university studies as more adequate regarding the management of the issue under study. Furthermore, school principals and classroom teachers who declared that they have received a long-term training, after university studies, on how to secure students’ cyber-navigation, tended to adopt positive perceptions on risky internet use in school age (high perceived awareness / confidence to manage / school involvement). On the contrary, ICT teachers’ related training did not seem to affect at all their perceptions under study. Finally, no demographic characteristics of the participants (e.g., sex, age, working experience) seemed to differentiate significantly their related perceptions. The findings of the present study reveal that school staff of primary education, depending on their duties and specialty, tend to perceive and approach risky internet use in school age in a different way, highlighting in that way the necessity for applying differentiated training programs for teaching staff.

Keywords:

Risky internet use, school age, school principals, classroom teachers, ICT teachers, perceptions, training, demographic characteristics.