How Educators and Parents Teach Kids About Digital Safety

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Key Takeaways

• More than 1 in 4 teachers (26%) report that cybersecurity or digital safety is not included in their school's official curriculum at all.
• Only 32% of teachers have received formal training on how to teach students about online safety.
• 64% of teachers and 59% of parents believe parents should be responsible for teaching kids to be safe online.
• 64% of parents and 52% of teachers believe online safety should be a core school subject.
• 8% of parents understand two-factor authentication or know what it is.
• 36% of parents are completely unaware of smishing scams, while only 3% are unaware of phishing scams.

Teachers and Online Safety

Students are online more than ever, and teachers are on the front lines of helping them stay safe. But without the right resources and training, it can be tough to guide kids.

Most teachers (95%) believed cybersecurity education should be mandatory, with 71% saying instruction should start as early as elementary school. Many (64%) also thought that parents should take responsibility for teaching their kids about digital safety.

Currently, cybersecurity is not included in 52% of school curriculums, and 9% of teachers were unsure if it was. Just over half (52%) believed it should be treated as a core subject, alongside reading, math, and science. 

While 23% of teachers felt very confident covering topics like phishing, password security, or social media privacy, 47% felt only somewhat confident, and 30% had little or no confidence. Additional teacher education could help, as only 32% reported being formally trained to teach online safety to kids.

Teachers also shared the unsafe digital behaviors they see most often in their classrooms. 

Teachers said the most common poor digital behaviors they've witnessed among students were oversharing personal information (52%), posting inappropriate content on social media (50%), and using AI to cheat or plagiarize (47%). These behaviors are not just poor choices. They can also lead to real-world consequences.

A cybersecurity breach caused by student activity was reported by 17% of teachers, while 42% were aware of serious online safety incidents involving a student. More than a third (37%) have had to discipline or report a student for unsafe behavior online.

On average, teachers estimated that just 36% of their students are truly "digitally literate," meaning they can safely and responsibly navigate online spaces, tools, and information.

Parents and Online Safety

Parents are talking to their kids about online safety and taking steps to keep them protected, but their confidence and knowledge often vary.

Two-thirds of parents said they regularly talk to their children about staying safe online, and nearly 80% have reviewed their children's social media privacy settings. However, when it comes to teaching specific digital safety skills, 17% worried they couldn't confidently explain how to spot phishing or smishing scams. Another 14% were unsure how to guide their child through setting up two-factor authentication, and 8% admitted they didn't know what it was.

Phishing is a type of scam in which attackers trick people into giving up personal information through fake emails or websites. It was widely recognized among parents, as only 3% didn't know what phishing was. Smishing (a type of phishing scam that uses text messages) was less familiar. More than a third of parents (36%) had never heard of it.

Nearly half of parents assumed their child was learning about online safety at school. But with many teachers under-trained or lacking curriculum support, this assumption could be risky. A majority of parents (59%) felt the responsibility lies with them, while another 37% believed it should be shared between families and schools.

More than nine in 10 parents believed cybersecurity courses should be mandatory, and 62% thought instruction should begin in K-5. Nearly two-thirds (64%) believed online safety should be a core subject.

Parents also shared the digital threats their children need to be more prepared to handle and the challenges some kids have already faced.

Parents felt their children were least prepared to handle inappropriate online contact (57%), cyberbullying (53%), and AI-generated misinformation or deepfakes (40%). Unfortunately, these threats are not hypothetical.

More than a quarter of parents (29%) reported that their child had been exposed to inappropriate content through links or ads, and 25% had encountered AI-generated misinformation. Almost one in four (24%) said their child had experienced a serious online safety incident, such as hacked accounts, contact from online predators, cyberbullying, viral shaming, or doxing (when someone's private information is shared online without consent).

Helping Kids Navigate a Connected World

Teachers and parents agree that digital safety is essential and should be part of every child's education. Yet, if schools do not have formal cybersecurity curriculum or training, and parents are unsure about how to explain online risks, students are left without the guidance they need.

Teachers could benefits from clear curriculum and training to teach topics like privacy, scams, and safe online behavior. Parents could use help with understanding digital threats and how to talk about them at home. With the right support and stronger communication between schools and families, we can all help kids stay safe and make smart choices online.

Methodology

We surveyed 200 teachers and 800 parents about their thoughts, perceptions, and opinions regarding digital safety and educating students/children about it.

About Prodigy Education

Prodigy Education is a global leader in game-based learning. Our mission is to help every student in the world love learning, motivating millions worldwide via fun, secure, and accessible curriculum-aligned gameplay experiences. At Prodigy Education, we believe maximizing student motivation helps develop a lifetime love of learning. Prodigy's approach to fun, game-based learning means kids no longer have to choose between homework and playtime. Visit www.prodigygame.com to learn more.

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