Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

Group -learning is one of the teaching styles in distance education of TV university. It serves for the teaching with other styles such as self-learning, invidual assistant, face-to-face classes and classes on net. In this paper, the author analyzes the characters and the roles. From this aspect the writer also give out other related opinions on teaching methods,the orqnization and guiding of group-learning.

On Group- learning

Cyber Ranges and Security Testbeds: Scenarios, Functions, Tools and Architecture

A framework for competence development and assessment in hybrid cybersecurity exercises

Cyber security exercises are believed to be the most effective training for the training audiences from top professional teams to individual students. However, evidence of learning outcomes is often anecdotal and not validated. This paper focuses on measuring learning outcomes of technical cyber defense exercises (CDXs) with Red and Blue teaming elements. We studied learning at Locked Shields, which is the largest unclassified defensive live-fire CDX in the world. This paper proposes a novel and simple methodology, called the “5-timestamp methodology”, aiming at accommodating both effective feedback (including benchmarking) and learning measurement. The methodology focuses on collection of timestamps at specific points during a cyber incident and time interval analysis to assess team performance, and argues that changes in performance over time can be used to evidence learning. The timestamps can either be collected non-intrusively from raw network traces (such as pcaps, logs) or using traditional methods, such as interviews, observations and surveys. Our experience showed that traditional methods, such as self-reporting, fail at high-speed and complex exercises. The suggested method enhances feedback loop, allows identifying learning design flaws, and provides evidence of learning value for CDXs.

Improving and Measuring Learning Effectiveness at Cyber Defense Exercises

Cybersecurity exercises are gaining in popularity in university curricula and professional training paths and are seen as an effective teaching method. Such exercises provide digital datasets to facilitate a learning analytics approach such as by using the traces that learners leave behind to improve the learning process and environment. While there are various learning measurement efforts from digital datasets in the existing literature, a holistic learning analytics approach incorporated into cybersecurity exercises is still lacking. We propose a practical reference model for incorporating a learning analytics approach into the cybersecurity exercise life-cycle. To facilitate this application, we have performed an extensive review of existing academic research on applying learning analytics in the context of cybersecurity exercises. We specifically focus on the learning indicators used to measure empirical impact and training effectiveness that could indicate achievement of defined learning outcomes. This reference model and overview of existing learning analytics use cases and learning metrics in various types of exercises can help educators, organisers and cyber range developers. This results in more adaptive exercise design and measurement using evidence-based data and connects digital learning traces to skills and competencies.

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Learning Analytics Perspective: Evidencing Learning from Digital Datasets in Cybersecurity Exercises

Cybercrime is on the rise and it’s widely believed that an appropriate cyber hygiene is essential to secure our digital lives. The expression “cyber hygiene” appears in conversations, conferences, scientific articles, legal texts, governmental publications and commercial websites. However, what cyber hygiene is, what is appropriate or optimal cyber hygiene, or what is really meant by this expression and related practices—that is often varying and even somewhat contradicting. We review and analyze selected academic papers, government and corporate publications with the focus on implicit and explicit definitions of what cyber hygiene means to the authors. We also draw parallels and contrast the expression in cyber security context and terminology (cyber awareness, behavior and culture). We present a conceptual analysis and propose a definition to assist in achieving a universal understanding and approach to cyber hygiene. This work is intended to stimulate a clarifying discussion of what appropriate “cyber hygiene” is, how it should be defined and positioned in the wider cyber security context in order to help changing the human behavior for achieving a more secure connected world.

Cyber Hygiene: The Big Picture

Cyber Defense Exercises have received much attention in recent years, and are increasingly becoming the cornerstone for ensuring readiness in this new domain. Crossed Swords is an exercise directed at training Red Team members for responsive cyber defense. However, prior iterations have revealed the need for automated and transparent real-time feedback systems to help participants improve their techniques and understand technical challenges. Feedback was too slow and players did not understand the visibility of their actions. We developed a novel and modular open-source framework to address this problem, dubbed Frankenstack. We used this framework during Crossed Swords 2017 execution and evaluated its effectiveness by interviewing participants and conducting an online survey. Due to the novelty of Red Team-centric exercises, very little academic research exists on providing real-time feedback during such exercises. Thus, this paper serves as a first foray into a novel research field.

Frankenstack: Toward real-time Red Team feedback

The threat environment is rapidly changing and the cyber security skill shortage is a widely acknowledged problem. However, teaching such skills and keeping professionals up-to-date is not trivial. New malware types appear daily, and it requires significant time and effort by a teacher to prepare a unique, current and challenging courses in the malware reverse engineering. Novel teaching methods and tools are required. This paper describes an experience with an automated hands-on learning environment in a malware reverse engineering class taught at Tallinn University of Technology in Estonia. Our hands-on practical lab is using a fully automated Cyber Defense Competition platform Intelligent Training Exercise Environment (i-tee) [1] combined with typical Capture-The-Flag competition structure and open-source tools where possible. We describe the process of generating a unique and comparable reverse-engineering challenge and measuring the students’ progress through the process of analysis, reporting flags and debugging data, recording and taking into account their unique approach to the task. We aim to measure the students’ using the Bloom’s taxonomy, i.e., mastering the art of malware reverse engineering at the higher cognitive levels. The presented teaching and assessment method builds foundation for enhancing the future malware reverse engineering training quality and impact.

Kaie Maennel

Papers

Improving and Measuring Learning Effectiveness at Cyber Defense Exercises

Learning Analytics Perspective: Evidencing Learning from Digital Datasets in Cybersecurity Exercises

Cyber Hygiene: The Big Picture

Frankenstack: Toward real-time Red Team feedback

Art and Automation of Teaching Malware Reverse Engineering