The document describes a digital skills course for employees at Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) called Digital Security Skills or DigiTarkus. The course aims to improve everyday digital knowledge and skills as society increasingly relies on technology but basic skills are often assumed. It has six modules covering topics such as basics of IT, information work, office software, programming, security and legislation. Each module contains multiple topics that end with a test. The course was launched in Estonian in 2018 and English in 2019 and is designed to raise awareness on important digital issues in a practical way using multiple platforms and open-source software. As of December 2019, over 500 employees had completed parts of the course.

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DIGITAL SURVIVAL SKILLS:
A COURSE FOR TALTECH EMPLOYEES
Kaido Kikkas
Associate Professor
IT College, School of Information Technologies
Tallinn University of Technology 06.12.2019

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THE PROBLEM:
WELL-EQUIPPED
IGNORANCE
(IN MATTERS DIGITAL)
https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/pebkac

3. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
… OR, MORE ACADEMICALLY
 The society keeps relying more and more on ICT
 The related skills/knowledge is assumed to come ‘naturally’, especially for
mobile devices and IoT
 For comparison: steps required to get a car
 At schools, computer science (informatics) seems still in many places to be
limited to mechanical learning of MS Office basics. Areas of neglect include
– Cyberspace (in the wider sense)
– Security (from practical maintenance of devices to avoiding online threats)
– Privacy (from Facebook to Big Data)
– Platforms other than Microsoft
– Legal matters (who has read and understood the EULA of Windows 10?)
– ...

4. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
DIGITAL SECURITY SKILLS
 In the initial Estonian version, DigiTarkus (DigiWisdom)
 An e-learning project to improve everyday IT knowledge and skills among
the employees of Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech)
 Chronology so far:
– First ideas – late 2017
– Design - 1st
half of 2018
– Launch of Estonian version – September 2018
– Development of English version - 1st
half of 2019
– Launch of English version – September 2019
 At first, envisioned as mandatory for all employees (to be completed
within 3 years), the requirement was dropped later

5. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
STRUCTURE OF THE COURSE
 Six modules (can be expanded later on):
– Basics of IT
– Information work
– Office software and collaborative working environments
– Audio, image and video editing software
– Foundations of programming (using Python)
– Security, ethics and legislation
 Each module consists of 12 topics and ends with a test
 Moodle is currently used for the platform

6. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
MODULE 1: BASICS OF IT
1) The Fly and the Elephant: the Colourful World of Computers
2) Boxes and Screens I: Components of a Personal Computer (Part 1)
3) Boxes and Screens II: Components of a Personal Computer (Part 2)
4) Cyberspace: the Basics of the Internet
5) The Foundation: Operating Systems
6) I Want IT! Shopping for a Computer and an Internet Connection
7) I'm an Administrator! Managing a Personal Computer
8) But Software? How and Where from?
9) The Brain in the Pocket: Managing a Smart Device
10)Information Preservation: Storage, Backup and Cloud Services
11)The ID Stuff: the Estonian E-Government Infrastructure
12)There Is Always a Way: Assistive IT for People with Disabilities

7. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
MODULE 2: BASICS OF INFORMATION WORK
1) Information Retrieval
2) Web Based Information Services
3) Bibliography Management
4) Source Evaluation
5) Referencing Systems
6) Content Creation Portals
7) History of the World Wide Web
8) Educational Software
9) Web Editing
10)HTML Basics
11)CSS Basics
12)PHP Basics

8. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
MODULE 3: OFFICE SOFTWARE AND COLLABORATIVE WORKING
ENVIRONMENTS
1) Word Processing
2) Spreadsheet Processing
3) Presentation Software
4) Other Components of Office Software
5) Concept and Concept Card Software
6) Document Formats
7) Document Export-Import between Different Environments
8) Document Management Principles
9) Collaborative Environments
10)Tools for Real-Time Communication
11)Telework Solutions
12)Social Media as a Collaboration Tool

9. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
MODULE 4: AUDIO, IMAGE AND VIDEO EDITING SOFTWARE
1) Audio File Formats
2) Sound Editing
3) Image File Formats
4) Image Editing (Raster Graphics)
5) Image Editing (Vector Graphics)
6) Photo Editing
7) Video File Formats
8) Video Editing
9) 3D File Formats
10)3D Modelling (beginner)
11)Web Environments and Services
12)Audio, Image and Video Transmission across the Web

10. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
MODULE 5: FOUNDATIONS OF PROGRAMMING
1) Algorithms and Algorithmic Thinking
2) Programming and Programming Languages
3) Creating a Program
4) Structure of a Program. Python in General
5) Variables and Expressions
6) Conditions and if-statement
7) Loops and Iteration
8) Data Structures in Python
9) Code Style
10)Documentation
11)Testing
12)Version Control

11. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
MODULE 6: SECURITY, ETHICS AND LEGISLATION
1) Software: What, Who, Where and Why
2) IT Security: Why and Whom
3) Malware: the Trojan Horse Does Not Have to Be Wooden
4) Social Engineering: the Problem between the Keyboard and the Chair
5) Cyberattacks and Cyberwar: for Real or Not?
6) Privacy: Customers and Goods
7) Online Communication: Tarzan in New York
8) Social Media: Ups and Downs
9) Law and Internet: Introduction and Overview
10)Copyright: Books, Movies and Software
11)Software Licences: What's OK and What's Not
12)Online Content: If, How, and How Much

12. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
SOME PRINCIPLES USED TO DESIGN THE COURSE
 ’Human language’ rather than technical slang
 Practical necessity rather than just academic endeavour – many hands-
on topics, yet many others with potential tangible impact
 Hands-on topics aiming at deeper understanding of actions rather than
„click here”
 Everything and everyone matters (not just IT professionals)
 Awareness-raising stressed in various issues (security, privacy,
storage/backup, accessibility, legal matters)

13. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
...
 Widening the horizon in some topics (there is more in IT than Microsoft
Office)
 Stressing the danger in indifference
 Multi-platform (implemented somewhat less than was intended in the
initial vision)
 Includes a module in programming (Python) – not so much for actual
skills but for grasping the essence of software
 FLOSS (Free, Libre and Open-Source Software) included in both technical
(what and how) and legal/ethical aspects (why) – many similar courses
tend to ignore it altogether

14. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
COMPLETION STATISTICS AS OF DEC 2, 2019
(ESTONIAN AND ENGLISH VERSIONS COMBINED)

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THANK YOU!
THESE SLIDES CAN BE FOUND UNDER CC BY-SA AT
HTTPS://WWW.SLIDESHARE.NET/UNCLEOWL

16. TALLINN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
TALTECH.EE/EN KAIDO.KIKKAS@TALTECH.EE