Workshop on Gamifying Cybersecurity Education

A workshop organized as part of the project “SHIELD: Simulation Game-Based Hands-on Instruction for Enhancing Cybersecurity Learning and Development” was characterized by a pleasant atmosphere, enthusiasm, interactivity, engagement, and collaborative activities. This project is part of the KnowCyber Grants for Western Balkans civil society organizations, led by the e-Governance Academy (eGA) and funded by the European Commission. The workshop was held on 01.02.2025 in Innox Innovation Center in Skopje.

Approximately 40 teachers from primary and secondary schools in North Macedonia participated in the implementation of a creative methodology that combines digital storytelling, AI tools, and game-based learning approach to enhance students’ cybersecurity skills. At the beginning of the workshop, the project’s aims, objectives, and expected outcomes were presented, along with the activities that will lead to their achievement and the project timeline.

Vladimir Trajkovik emphasized the importance of storytelling in creating an interactive and engaging learning environment to foster students’ interest and motivation, help students acquire long-lasting knowledge, and develop their skills. He elaborated on the process of creating a game based on a story that captures students’ attention, as well as the role of artificial intelligence in supporting teachers’ creativity, enhancing their effectiveness, and serving as a learning tool. The methodology to be used was presented, explaining the game elements development process: creating a background story, using AI for greater efficiency, designing elements of educational game that encourage discussion, incorporating multiple levels and challenges, and identifying ways to extend the story of the game.

A demonstration of the designed elements of educational game on cybersecurity, specifically focusing on cyberbullying, was conducted. Participants had the opportunity to collaboratively progress through all levels and challenges of the game. They actively engaged in gameplay, participated in discussions, and were eager to advance through the game. This interactivity sparked great enthusiasm among teachers and motivated them to continue using the storytelling approach and experiment with creating similar educational games themselves. They concluded that this type of game can spark students’ interest, actively engage them, and foster a deeper understanding of cybersecurity skills in a fun and interactive way.

Maja Videnovik presented the importance and potential of AI integration in education. She began by evaluating participants’ opinions, attitudes, and experiences regarding AI use and then demonstrated specific AI tools that can be incorporated into the teaching process. She placed particular focus on chatbots and image-generation tools that can be used for creating elements of educational games. Participants were guided on how to create effective prompts and modify them to achieve the desired results.

Following this, Vladimir Trajkovik provided a step-by-step demonstration of the process of creating the educational game presented to the participants. Each step was thoroughly explained, starting with the creation of an initial prompt, its modification to achieve the desired outcome for a specific game level, as well as the design of challenges and their integration with educational elements of cybersecurity. The importance of human oversight in verifying AI-generated content and assessing complexity levels was highlighted, along with the process of connecting different challenges. Maja Videnovik then compared the generation of prompts using different chatbots, analyzing the differences between creating prompts in English and translating them into Macedonian versus generating them directly in Macedonian. Participants were also shown how the game could be extended with new levels and challenges. The key takeaway was that the design of game levels and challenges should always be guided by educational objectives, ensuring a balance between entertainment and educational value.

The participants showed great interest in the proposed approach to creating elements of educational games and incorporating them in the classroom settings and were eager to engage in hands-on work, attempting to create a educational game elements using AI tools. During the practical session, the instructors provided continuous support, guiding teachers through the process. The presentation of the participants’ game ideas was followed by providing feedback, idea exchange, and suggestions for improvement. The participants’ high level of interest and dedication resulted in the creation of compelling stories, which are expected to develop into educational games for cybersecurity education.

Special thanks to the guest presenters, who inspired participants through their talks. Gorast Cvetkovski from the Macedonian Games Industry Association and Riste Tutureski from the game development studio Intetic encouraged teachers to integrate storytelling and game-based learning into their teaching methods. Additionally, Ivan Chorbev from Faculty of Computer Science and Enginering gave a brief presentation on the MKSafeNet project, highlighting the importance of cybersecurity education.

The feedback from workshop participants confirmed that the event was a great success, and we are excited to see the educational games they will develop and implement in their schools to celebrate Safer Internet Day 2025.