Learning CyberSecurity with Story-Driven CTF Challenges: CyberTrials 2023

CyberTrials 2023 is a game-based educational program designed to counteract the gender gap prevailing in the STEM field by equipping Italian high school female students with knowledge and skills in computer science and cybersecurity while also providing them with relatable female role models. The program complements 11 theory-driven lectures with 9 hands-on training modules, consisting of a series of CTF challenges organized following an innovative, game-based narrative-driven framework. The program successfully engaged students, as indicated by the low dropout rate and the self-reported measure of interest. We employ an online survey to examine the relationship between higher engagement in innovative educational activities and students’ educational outcome. Our results indicate the existence of a positive relationship between higher engagement in training modules and students’ educational outcomes and a null relationship between higher engagement in lectures and students’ educational outcomes. Our results suggest the importance of complementing theory-driven lectures with hands-on, gamified activities for computer science and cybersecurity education.