Collaborative Research: Enhancing Curriculum and Faculty Development on Information Assurance and Security through Real World Relevant Portable Laboratory

Tennessee State University, Nashville TN

Investigators

Abstract

Southern Polytechnic State University (SPSU), and Tennessee State University (TSU) are jointly developing a new information assurance and security (IAS) teaching methodology. Curricular materials based on a portable lab are being developed and integrated into Computer Science (CS) and Information Technology (IT) courses. This work is renovating the content of the IAS curriculum by emphasizing mobile security through hands-on experience using a portable Lab. The result is a full set of materials covering the core knowledge area on IAS, and a portable lab that can be used in online courses on IAS, providing hands-on experience with real-world situations. This work is having a significant impact on the national IAS workforce and is targeting students from underrepresented groups. The labware is designed according to the IAS curriculum recommendations in the IEEE/ACM Computer Science Curricula 2013, and based on the PIs? teaching and research experience in information security. The labware consists of 5 self-contained learning modules. Learning modules may be tailored to accommodate an instructor's need based on content and time of a course. The labware covers fundamental concepts in security and important mobile threats/attacks along with countermeasures. Each module includes pre-lab activities (concept introduction and lab preparation), hands-on lab activities (pairs of hands-on labs on domain concepts and security issues in each subject), and post-lab activities (review questions, assignments, and case study). The project is being evaluated to determine the impact of the learning modules on student learning outcomes and teaching effectiveness. Both internal (self) and external evaluations are being used. Internal evaluations are conducted by each of the PIs for the project and external evaluations are conducted by individuals from academia and industry. Evaluation data is assessed by a team of external evaluators consisting of an evaluator from academia and an evaluator from industry.