November 20, 2015 - Bobby -
The validation of PC Passport took place today in the SQA offices in Glasgow. The Validation Panel was made up of representatives of colleges, employers and SQA. The purpose of a validation event is for fresh eyes to review the proposed changes to a qualification. The Qualification Development Team (QDT) presented a new Group Award Specification and explained the reasons behind the choices that we have made. It was a good meeting, held in a constructive spirit, with both sides trying to…
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November 17, 2015 - Bobby -
The annual cyber security Christmas lectures have been running for a few years now. I attended the first one in 2012 and was struck by the enthusiasm of the presenters and the audience. They’re great fun — and attended by hundreds of school pupils across Scotland. This year’s theme is the new NPA in Cyber Security. But, don’t worry, it’s not about the qualification. It’s about the topics within it. So attendees will hear talks about digital forensics, data security…
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November 9, 2015 - Bobby -
This year’s CAS Scotland Conference was held on Saturday at the University of Dundee. It’s invariably a good event, with a good attendance, and this year was no different. The event is designed for school teachers, although some college and university lecturers also attend. The event is a mix of keynotes, seminars and presentations. There were sessions on National 5 and Higher Computing Science, widening access to university, Google Classroom, games based learning, and object oriented concepts, to name just…
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November 6, 2015 - Bobby -
Education Scotland is organising a workshop for school teachers to help them deliver courses in Cyber Security. The workshop will cover the Cyber Badge and national qualifications in this field. I will be there to present the part about national qualifications. I will talk about the Award in Cyber Security and the National Progression Awards. Education Scotland offered similar workshops last year, which were well received. So much so that they decided to run them again this year. The events…
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October 26, 2015 - Bobby -
PolicyHub Scotland is hosting a conference on Wednesday about Internet Safety. As part of the conference, it’s hosting a series of articles about safety-related issues. I was asked to contribute one about cyber security and Internet safety. I choose the topic “Online safety, cyber security and digital literacy” to show the relationship between these subjects, and to argue that online safety is an aspect of cyber security, which is itself an aspect of digital literacy. The intention is that the discussion…
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I attended this conference today, along with Helen, which was held in the beautiful grounds of the Scottish Police College in Alloa. The event featured in today’s Herald newspaper since it involved cyber crime experts from around the world including the FBI and Interpol. Steven Wilson, of the Specialist Crime Division of Police Scotland, gave the opening address and made specific mention of the importance of education, which he described as the “key” to tackling cyber crime. He, kindly, made…
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October 2, 2015 - Bobby -
The launch event for the new qualifications in Cyber Security took place yesterday in the Stirling Highland Hotel. There was an excellent attendance, on a beautiful day, with 90 people attending both sessions. Sixty five schools and ten colleges were represented at the event, with representatives of regional councils, universities and employers also in attendance. The agenda included a lot of interesting talks, not just about the contents of the awards but also about the growing importance of cyber security, including the excellent…
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August 13, 2015 - Bobby -
Me and Helen attended this event yesterday, held in the Erskine Bridge Hotel, organised by West College Scotland. We enjoyed it a great deal. The aim of the event was to show how digital technologies can be used within teaching and learning. SQA was one of the sponsors. Almost the entire staff attended. There were keynotes and workshops throughout the day on topics such as Open Badges, Moodle and social media. It was interesting to hear how some teachers are using…
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Cyber Security launch event
Don’t forget to register for the forthcoming launch event for Europe’s first national qualification in cyber security.