Findings — SELBI

Phase 1 · Baseline Survey

The Blue Skills Knowledge Gap

A nationwide survey of 967 ECEC educators (n=137, 95% CI) across KG1, KG2, Year 1 and Year 2 revealed a significant knowledge gap and strong demand for support.

Blue Skills Familiarity (1–5 scale)

1 — Not familiar

61%

2

11%

3

17%

4

9%

5 — Very familiar

2%

Mean familiarity score: 1.80 / 5.00

Respondent Profile

State schools

69%

Church schools

23%

Private schools

8%

Year Group Distribution

KG1

32%

KG2

34%

Year 1

18%

Year 2

16%

Educator Attitudes

What Educators Told Us

Percentage of respondents who agreed or strongly agreed with key statements.

82%

want access to training on integrating marine sustainability into learning experiences

76%

report lacking resources such as teaching guides, materials, or digital tools

82%

agree Malta's sea access makes early blue skills education essential

Phase 2 & 3 · Internal Evaluation

Platform Evaluation Results

Two-phase expert evaluation (TRL 4) using an 11-criterion rubric. Phase 1 tested 16 experiments; Phase 2 introduced 20 more complex, scenario-based prompts.

Absence of Hallucinations

5.00 / 5

Perfect score in Phase 2 — zero fabricated content across all 29 ratings

Content Correctness

4.96 / 5

Scientific accuracy confirmed by the blue skills expert

Pedagogical Appropriateness

4.85 / 5

Age-appropriate and aligned with ECEC practice (Phase 1)

Engagement Factor

5.00 / 5

Perfect engagement scores — outputs were pedagogically compelling

Content Accuracy & Relevance

4.71 / 5

Highest-scoring dimension overall across both phases

Grand Mean (Phase 1)

4.74 / 5

78.3% of all individual ratings at maximum score of 5

"A highly competent 3-session sequence that balances curiosity, creativity and environmental awareness."

— Dr Heathcliff Schembri, ECEC Expert

Final Evaluation

Classroom Deployment Insights

Key findings from the final project evaluation with participating ECEC educators across four year groups.

Criterion & Content Validity

Participant educators responded positively to the technology, particularly because it supported curriculum planning by generating fresh pedagogical possibilities beyond routine ideas. The platform adapted shared learning experiences across different year groups and varying levels of participation and competence within each class.

SELBI also supported integrated and inclusive curriculum-making, integrating numeracy, languages and the understanding of the world while offering alternative ways of engaging children with different needs. The prompts were refined through ten iterations, and the final version remained firmly anchored to the curated repository, with expert evaluation confirming no hallucinated content.

"We were never aware of how to integrate blue in the teaching content as was demonstrated by SELBI."

— Participating ECEC Educator

Face & Construct Validity

Participant educators expressed positive perceptions of SELBI as useful and engaging, while suggesting enhancements such as increased interactivity and differentiated modes (teacher, parent, child).

Participant educators found the platform reliable precisely because it was not connected to the internet — reducing the risk of misinformation often encountered with other AI tools.

Educators described how SELBI supported children's understanding through learning invitations, play-based engagement, and cross-curricular experiences.