Insights from a non-academic secondment at Webwise

 

As part of the PARTICIPATE project, every PhD student is required to step outside the academic bubble and complete a non-academic secondment.

This year, I spent three months with Webwise, the Irish Internet Safety Awareness Centre. The centre works in strict collaboration with Oide, a support service for teachers and school leaders, funded by the Department of Education, and in partnership with many other Irish organisations.

Despite its broad reach, the core work of the centre is driven by three incredible women: Jane McGarrigle, Catriona Mulcahy, and Tracy Hogan. They work tirelessly to provide resources, training, and guidance to help schools, families, and young people navigate the digital world safely, especially around issues like online bullying and digital citizenship.

From day one, I was welcomed as part of the team and thrown into the work of digital safety education.

During my time there, I had the opportunity to take part in online training sessions on cyberbullying prevention and digital citizenship, contribute to the development and review of educational resources, attend events and co-write entries for their website.

But more than that, I had the chance to witness the impact that Webwise and the resources produced by this incredible team have on school communities across Ireland – and beyond.

Beyond Academia: Why Working with Local Organisations Matters

Spending time at Webwise made me reflect on how important is to step outside our universities and academic papers in order to facilitate a meaningful impact in practice. Organisations like Webwise helps putting the knowledge produced into action by creating lesson plans, talking to students, supporting teachers, and influencing policy.

Why the work done has been relevant for my PhD journey

Working with Webwise helped me to see the possible tangible application of the theories and data I engage with in my academic work. It pushed me to consider not only what I am researching, but why it matters, who it should reach, and how it can be useful beyond academic journals.

Lessons I will take with me as a young academic

Here are some of the most important things I learned during my time at Webwise:

• Networking is essential and strategic

Local organisations like Webwise maintain close ties with schools, educators and policymakers. These networks are essential to ensuring research can reach the people who need it most. For a young researcher, these connections can open doors that are otherwise hard to access.

• Context matters

I saw how crucial it is to adapt academic knowledge to the real and varied contexts of learners, teachers, and communities. It is not just about making research more digestible – it is about co-designing materials that reflect the everyday challenges people face.

• Co-production leads to sustainability

When academic insights are developed in collaboration with stakeholders, the outcomes are more usable, sustainable, and impactful. They get embedded into practice, updated over time, and actually make a difference on the ground.

• As researchers, we bring more than data

While working with Webwise, I realised that academic researchers bring valuable critical thinking, methodological skills, and rigour that can elevate the quality of practice-based work. We have much to contribute, as we also have much to learn.

Research is a conversation

I am incredibly grateful to the team at Webwise for letting me be part of their work. My secondment was incredibly rewarding, and it reminded me that research should live in conversations with society. Researchers should not produce knowledge in isolation, but as part of a larger ecosystem working towards social change.

 

Giorgia Scuderi