Author: Circadence

The team at Raytheon Emirates helps young people with Computer Sciences backgrounds get real-world experience to prepare them to make the leap into their future careers.

Raytheon Emirates is a subsidiary of Raytheon Technologies, headquartered in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Raytheon Emirates focuses on cybersecurity and empowering future technology leaders in support of Abu Dhabi’s Economic Vision for 2030. This vision includes fostering a cyber-secure digital transformation of the UAE for economic diversification, growth, and development of a highly-skilled, productive Emirati workforce.

The mission of Raytheon Emirates Cyber is to collaborate with the UAE government, commercial partners, and the education sector and provide them with innovative and robust cybersecurity capabilities.

Raytheon Emirates is passionate about giving back to society, and it’s part of its vision to provide undergraduate students from across the UAE with hands-on cyber learning opportunities. To accomplish this goal, the company provides training that empowers students to learn cutting-edge technical skills through a highly selective and elite internship opportunity. The goal for these interns is to practice cybersecurity skills and build upon the Computer Science theory they have studied throughout their time in colleges and universities. When these students leave Raytheon, they will have learned valuable skills to bring to the job market, solidified their career goals, and developed new technical skills in their internship program.

The central theme of this internship program is the hands-on practice in a cyber range. Raytheon felt that students in the UAE didn’t have frequent access to high-quality cyber ranges and wanted to offer that experience to their internship participants. To address this technology skills gap, the Raytheon team leveraged Project Ares as an educational tool to bring the practical hands-on keyboard learning element into their internship program.

The team at Raytheon choose the Project Ares Digital Forensics scenario as the learning lab and arranged for cybersecurity expert, Michael Kaplan of Phase 2 Advantage , to tutor the students. Mr. Kaplan was able to bring expert insight to their virtual classroom, clarify topics when there were questions and continue to expand upon the lessons contained within Project Ares.

As a result of this intensive Forensics learning experience, the interns found that Project Ares not only tested their skills but also taught them new skills when they used the hints contained within the Forensics course.

The team at Raytheon Emirates feels that having a structured-skills learning program is the heart and soul of an internship program that prepares students to be successful as they transition into their specialized careers.

Many of the student interns are soon to graduate and this internship is usually the final requirement for them to complete their degree programs. However, they often don’t know what to do next or even what jobs might be a good fit. There are countless options, but they’ve had limited exposure to the professional working landscape.

Fatma and her team encourage them to reflect on some challenging questions during the internship program:

Would you fit better into Digital Forensics or Security Analytics ?

Do you prefer government work or penetration testing?

The program leaders are always eager to give their interns more insight into what these career fields hold in store for their futures. They bring in experts from various disciplines and backgrounds to offer their real-world insights into their fields of expertise as well as discuss areas of opportunity for new graduates to find roles that interest them. They firmly believe that the experience of learning from technology experts coupled with the real hands on the keyboard experience that the interns get from Project Ares is helping students find where they fit into the professional world.

This Success Story was Interviewed & Written By Laurie Webb-DesJardins and Giuseppe Scalamogna

What are you doing now that your internship program with Raytheon Emirates ended?

I’m a new graduate and recently landed a job working for the government. I’m thankful to Project Ares for giving me something interesting to talk about in my interview! I have relevant hands-on experience and I found a passion for forensics as a foundation to build on.

Today, as a Security Analyst, I focus on threat intelligence and I handle security for information systems. Our team does proactive security defense as well as forensic reviews after security incidents.

What programs were you in that used Project Ares labs?

My first experience with Project Ares was in Raytheon’s cybersecurity internship program. We did a Network Forensics course that featured Battle Room 9 (Digital Forensics (opens new window)) and Battle Room 8 (Network Traffic Analysis (opens new window) to focus on incident response scenarios related to IoT and SCADA.

We acted as an incident response team and investigated a cyber-attack in a simulation: how did the breach happen? What are the vulnerabilities of this computer system? Then we worked to recover the computer system back to its normal state of operation.

Now I’m working towards an incident response management certification with the British University in Dubai (BUID) and the forensic section of the course uses Project Ares Battle Room 9. This time as I revisit the challenges, I am using different forensics tools. The course also has a penetration testing section using Battle Room 11 (System Security Analyst (opens new window)). It’s exciting and I’m learning a lot from the experience.

Do you feel that the internship helped you to get the job you’re in now?

Definitely. During my second year at university, we had on campus trainings to reinforce the theories in our software security classes. Most of the work related to software development and best practices for security.

The last part of the process was an internship where we learned what it’s like to work in the real world. My internship with Raytheon exposed me to the job market and helped me understand what’s in demand right now within cybersecurity.

What inspires you to learn about cybersecurity?

I’ve always been interested in computers. I remember that my first operating system was Windows 98 and even when young, I wanted to understand how computers work.

The world is becoming an increasingly digital place where everything we do is related to computers and devices that we program to do something for us. Computers are an essential part of our daily lives.

During the pandemic, many businesses moved to remote work and struggled through online cyberattacks. I understand that cybersecurity is the future and that we need to protect the technology we use every day.

How did you hear about the Raytheon and BUID?

I learned about Raytheon (opens new window) as I researched companies for internships and I was impressed with what they do. It was an amazing experience to be an intern there and learn from their team.

I received a recommendation for the BUID program from Raytheon. They were my sponsor because I did well during their internship and they thought that I deserved to be a part of the BUID program.

What’s your dream cybersecurity role?

There’s no specific role I’m aiming for because I love cybersecurity. I’m willing to work in different roles to learn as much as I can about all responsibilities.

Currently, I focus on threat intelligence, incident handling & response, and digital forensics. I also try to penetrate web applications and find vulnerabilities.

I’m drawn to threat detection, but I enjoy assignments related to other fields like penetration testing. Being drawn to one field doesn’t mean that a professional should make it their entire focus. We need to be current on all aspects of cybersecurity.

Do you have any advice for new students looking to study cybersecurity?

Cybersecurity is exciting and you can see its applications everywhere. If you’re interested in cybersecurity, just go for it! Read books. Take online courses. There are lots of them that can help you. It doesn’t matter where you start; you just need to be serious about making the effort to learn.

I had no background in programming or cybersecurity but I managed to learn a lot and land a job! And, I’m still learning. Others can do it too.

Is there anything about Project Ares that sticks with you?

There’s clearly been a lot of effort made to make the user interface look attractive. I’m a gamer and I enjoy the presentation. It’s exciting when virtual machines load as I enter a Battle Room.

Also, I thought the hints were extremely helpful. At some point it can get frustrating when you don’t understand a specific problem and how to solve it. The hints helped me look at things in a different way that I hadn’t considered.

The Project Ares team appreciates all we learn from our students.

We’re excited by their passion, drive, and desire to be successful! Thank you MohamedAmmar, and best of success in your cybersecurity career journey.

Check out other success stories (opens new window) where we continue to explore what inspires and motivates Project Ares (opens new window) students and why cybersecurity is important to them.

What if you could teach professional-level cybersecurity skills that focus on knowledge retention through hands-on learning? Would you like to empower and educate your students with realistic cyber scenarios? Would you like to equip your cybersecurity classroom with the right cybersecurity tools and techniques so that successful cybersecurity teaching could be within reach?

What if we told you all of this is possible?

Meet your solution known as Project Ares, a gamified cybersecurity teaching platform that’s born from 20 years of research and development. Backed by a comprehensive catalog of scenarios, this learning experience empowers instructor-led cybersecurity teaching programs to educate and equip cybersecurity students and professionals with real-world experience.

Gamification + Labs = Cybersecurity Learning

When students learn through gamification , parts of their brains like the left temporal cortex, the frontal and parietal cortices, and the auditory cortex are activated. It’s important to realize that these parts of the brain regulate:

• Processing Language
• Association of Ideas
• Memory
• Attention

Another key point is traditional, fact-based learning doesn’t reach these areas nearly as effectively as gamified learning. However, if cybersecurity courses, or training programs and boot camps, from universities, enterprises, or government departments implement gamified learning and cyber labs, these institutions would see an increase in student knowledge retention and engagement!

With this learning model in mind, we made the decision to include three separate scenarios designed to train specific cybersecurity tasks, knowledge, and skills. What’s more, do you know the best part? These real-world cybersecurity environments are realistic. Furthermore, this means the Project Ares experience your students will receive is representative of what they’ll do on the job.

Not to mention that we also understand the importance of teamwork and hands-on learning. In Project Ares’ team play modules, students work with peers to solve real-life simulations, such as data breaches. In addition to this, they also interact with hands-on activities covering classroom theory and tools (Wireshark , Python , and Linux ) with cybersecurity labs.

By using repetitive play, students combine rational information and cybersecurity experience. Because of this learning style, students retain more information! How cool is that?

Now that you know why this style of learning engagement and labs work so well together to encourage successful cybersecurity education, is your curiosity sparked? We hope so. Therefore, let’s take deeper dive into how Project Ares can supplement your cybersecurity training curriculum!

Project Ares: A Cybersecurity Teaching Platform

Specialized Missions

Project Ares’ specialized mission scenarios encourage students to solve complex problems as they play in the context of real-world threat scenarios. Here, they’ll face threats like botnets, phishing and exfiltration, ransomware, etc.

Cybersecurity Skill Assessments

By using virtual machines, our assessments challenge skills that protect against cyberattacks in capture the flag (CTF)-style scenarios. We also offer hints to help students find flags.

For all of these scenarios, you can

• Monitor student progression through the labs with session playback and reporting.
• Coach students in real-time.
• Assess and grade skills by disabling hints and the in-game advisor, Athena.

These assessments also come with a comprehensive media library and a series of arcade-style, cyberlearning games to reinforce basic skills and knowledge.

Cybersecurity Teaching Resources

Once equipped with Project Ares, access the instructor-only area to view the solution guide for every task in a scenario. Here, you’ll find multiple teaching and implementation services to help you get started. Also, make sure to check out our Instructor Services  page to learn how to incorporate Project Ares into your teaching plans. All of these materials are in one place. So, all you need to do is focus on your students!

Now that you know how Project Ares and gamified learning fits into cybersecurity, together, we can effectively bring cybersecurity teaching within your reach. See you on the training ground!

A Cybersecurity Success Story with a NexGenT Alum

I had a great chat with Wajih Bitar – a NexGenT alum who is now working on a Computer Science degree at the University of Houston. We connected when he reached out to me to ask about continuing his access Project Ares even though he’d completed the cybersecurity certificate program.

Wajih, what inspired you to want to use Project Ares again?

I love how realistic Project Ares is. Other platforms seem more like games to me. They give you similar commands, but they aren’t the real thing. Project Ares is the actual process, actual commands, and the actual work… just like you’d really be doing at a job in the industry.

How did you become interested in studying cybersecurity?

I was born in Iraq and my family moved to Jordan when I was young. In 3rd grade, we had to do a class presentation and my teacher assigned me ‘hackers’. Ever since then I’ve been super intrigued with hacking, computers, and cybersecurity.

When I moved to America at age twelve, I first had to learn English. As I started to catch on, I thought OK, now I’m going to study programming, thinking it would lead to cybersecurity. I studied programming for three years in high school before eventually deciding to pursue a degree in Computer Science. But studying Computer Science was sort of a different world. It’s related to cybersecurity, but my classes lacked the hands-on skills I wanted to work on.

Then I found the cybersecurity bootcamp at NexGenT. When I got started in the course, I fell in love and thought – this is my passion. This is it.

What’s next for you?

My immediate goal is to finish the last credits I need for my Computer Science degree; to close out that chapter and to make my parents proud. After that, I’d like to work as a cybersecurity analyst and study for a Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) certificate to see how I fit in with Red Teams and penetration testers.

Do you have any words of inspiration for other students?

It’s never too late. No matter where you are or how old you are. Always chase your dreams. Don’t let any obstacles stop you. There’s always a way to make it work.

Project Ares Appreciation

We’re excited by our users’ passion, drive, and desire to be successful! Thank you Wajih, and best of success in your cybersecurity career journey.

Check out other success stories (opens new window) where we continue to explore what inspires and motivates Project Ares (opens new window) students and why cybersecurity is important to them.

A Cybersecurity Success Story with a NexGenT Student

Recently, I had a conversation with Rashad Wilkins – a Project Ares enthusiast and former student at NexGenT . I wanted to learn how he became interested in cybersecurity and what he’s been doing since finishing his Cybersecurity Specialist program.

I hope that you’ll enjoy learning about his experiences as much as I did!

Rashad, it seems like you’re excited about all things cyber, so I’m curious about what inspired you to get involved in cybersecurity?

As far back as high school, I was always looking things up on the internet that I thought were interesting. One of my instructors recognized that I had already knew a lot about cybersecurity and thought maybe I should become one of the security guys!

How did you hear about NexGenT Cybersecurity Specialist program?

I saw an ad on Instagram and started doing some research on the NexGenT program. At the time, I was already in a college program but it wasn’t really working for me. It felt like I was trying to learn for a grade instead of really learning the material.

Eventually, I started the Cybersecurity Specialist program at NexGenT. It helped me build real world skills, improve my abilities, and learn more about how to navigate the business world. When I wrapped up the program, I got a certification and it felt like I’d won a gold medal too.

What’s next for you?

My dream job is to be a cybersecurity researcher. Currently, I’m working as a website design consultant. I’m learning Lua which is a scripting language and working on a passion project of Roblox game development. Both of these things are helping me stay sharp and concentrate on improving my IT skills.

What do you want other people to know about Project Ares?

I used Project Ares exercises (opens new window) to focus on subjects like Threat Intelligence, Defending and Attacking Computer Networks, PowerShell, and many other skills that are needed in cybersecurity today. For example, it had a mission that was about hacking an Industrial Control System (opens new window) which reminded me of the water treatment plant hack that happened in Florida.

That level of realism is unique to Project Ares. It is simply something I never saw in some of the other platforms that I tried. Project Ares lets you interact with a virtualized network environment and it covers both red and blue team situations that you would be likely to see in a real world working situation.

The Project Ares team appreciates all we learn from our students.

We’re excited by our users’ passion, drive, and desire to be successful! Thank you Rashad, and best of success in your cybersecurity career journey.

Check out other success stories (opens new window) where we continue to explore what inspires and motivates Project Ares (opens new window) students and why cybersecurity is important to them.

“Don’t think twice – it’s a no brainer. To not provide these opportunities for students would be doing them a disservice. Our economy is so knowledge-based driven, students need to know how to be consumers of tech but also how to be creators and developers. It makes sense that we’re focused on the emerging career field of cybersecurity, so we can give students an opportunity to foster innovation.” ~ Dawn Morrison, Alabama State Department of Education

The Situation

When Dawn Morrison, Education Administrator with the Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE), heard that the state was going to be a participant of the SkillsUSA job and training initiative a couple of years ago, she quickly identified cybersecurity as an emerging field for Alabamians.

“Providing students exposure to cybersecurity and helping them understand what high tech jobs are available in their own back yard was of significant importance,” said Dawn. When students have the awareness and abilities to pursue careers in cyber, “it can be a life changing opportunity for them and their families…building a path from poverty to opportunity and wealth,” she said.

The overarching goal of the Alabama SkillsUSA program is to place 500,000 new Alabamians in the workforce by 2025. Dawn knew that technical skills training and building student employability through hands-on practice would be critical to meeting that objective—especially in the Information Technology sector. SkillsUSA Championships provide competitive events for students to showcase their skills and the “cybersecurity” category was one of the competition areas that students could participate in.

“My participation in the SkillsUSA Cybersecurity competition was an amazing learning experience. Project Ares is a platform that was very engaging and fun while still incorporating the educational aspect. The two games I played —Trivia Loot and Port Flow— were intriguing and helped set the stage for what I would experience in the battle rooms.” ~ Destiny, Talladega County Schools, Alabama.

The Solution

For her students to participate strongly in the SkillsUSA Championship events, they needed to have a solid cybersecurity learning experience. Dawn saw potential for those needs to be met with Project Ares labs. Dawn learned about the hands-on labs in the Project Ares platform at an event. She saw how easily students could use the tool to learn fundamental and specialized skills in cybersecurity with hands-on-keyboard experience.

“I was blown away by the fact that it was a gamified environment [but also] how realistic [the scenarios] were for students. That’s always important. They may be ‘playing a game’ but [the scenarios] are so real and authentic.” ~ Dawn Morrison, Alabama State Department of Education

To prep for the SkillsUSA cybersecurity event, Alabama student participants used the “Systems Integrator” lab to learn network configuration and they played cyber learning games Trivia Loot and PortFlow to learn ports and protocols, and cybersecurity concepts and history.

The Benefits

“Students who used Project Ares in the SkillsUSA Championship challenge in cybersecurity were exposed to real cyber practices and inspired to pursue careers in the emerging industry. This competition has expanded my knowledge and proficiency in Cybersecurity. It gave me a head-start on my journey towards becoming a Cybersecurity specialist in the United States Air Force.” ~ Destiny, Talladega County Schools, Alabama.

The Alabama Department of Education used Project Ares to attract and introduce students to cybersecurity to dissolve any perceptions that learning cyber was boring or too challenging. The competition using the Project Ares labs helped students understand that there are training tools out there to help them build skills for cyber jobs. As an emerging hub for Information Technology, the Alabama Department of Education is taking the right steps to prepare a growing talent pool to enter the cyber workforce.

Project Ares is an award-winning EdTech platform that provides hands-on cybersecurity labs that enhance competency-based education for teachers and reinforce readiness objectives for trainers. Its library of threat scenarios is immersive and reflects contemporary threat incidents. Learners have the ability to use real security tools, tactics, and procedures in Project Ares to effectively perform offensive and defensive activities to build cyber skills and competencies. 

Dawn Morrison, Education Administrator with the Alabama State Department of Education. Dawn has been a leading collaborator on Computer Science expansion efforts across Alabama for over a decade. She serves as a member of the Governor’s CS Advisory Council, the Governor’s Advisory Council for Excellence in STEM, Governor’s STEM Executive Council, and was a member of the K-12 Digital Literacy/CS Standards writing committee. Dawn also serves as the secondary education advisor on the Information Technology Technical Assistance Committee for the Alabama Committee on Credentialing and Career Pathways (ACCCP) and she recently received an appointment on the CompTIA National CTE Advisory Council.

Teach a Cyber Forensics Study Unit

with Project Ares

New learning content in Project Ares creates a beginner’s entry point to learn about the key topic area of cyber forensics.

1. Flashcard-like study questions for cyber forensics are now part of the Trivia Loot learning game in seven new categories.
2. A new Trivia Loot feature enables players to select the categories for the game board. Users can set it up to tackle the cyber forensics categories.
3. A new Cyber Forensics Study Guide in the Media Library will be available soon. It will introduce basic forensics concepts that can then be tested in Trivia Loot.
   

When you teach Forensics this term or next:

• Add new beginner information to your cyber forensics course as prep for the Project Ares Forensic Scenario (battle room 9)
• Have us bring it all together for you when you contract for our packaged introduction or certification course in Forensics
• Encourage your students to grab snacks and headphones and use the material to self-start their cyber forensics learning. (Aka: a cram session  )
  

Enrich Your Cyber Labs

with Project Ares Instructor Tools

To help you teach better with Project Ares, new tools are available in a new web app.

Teaching a course: How’s my class or cohort doing in Project Ares?

A dashboard on Student Progress (beta) gives you an at-a-glance view of how students have progressed (or not) with their Project Ares assignments. Use this real-time data straightaway to pinpoint students that are both ahead of and behind the curve.

This helpful dashboard widget is available through a new Project Ares web application. Keep reading!

Preparing for class: How do I align a scenario to my lesson plan for lab assignments?

Instructor Information for all Project Ares scenarios includes the hints, answers, scoring, and solution videos. You’ll find these materials after you log in to the Project Ares web app and click on the Learning Catalog (formerly the Curriculum Guide).

Setting up Curriculum: Which Project Ares Scenarios are right for my program?

The improved Project Ares Learning Catalog has a new filter and search capability to help you explore Project Ares scenarios.

To research the best scenarios for your cyber courses or training programs, use the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE Framework) categories and competencies to filter the catalog material.

Quicker Log In and Navigation

with a simpler Project Ares interface

New Home

Announcing the new Project Ares web application— the now and future home of the Project Ares learning platform. Watch us enhance compatibility, accessibility, and performance as our app continues to evolve!

Bookmark the app at https://app.projectares.academy

Log In and Start Project Ares

 

Navigation

The Project Ares interface is sleeker. Enjoy direct access to your learning destination through a new interactive world map, a prominent list of Project Ares Mission scenarios, and quick-click tabs for the Battle Rooms, Media Library, and Cyber Learning Games  The main Mission screen has been revamped too and essential Mission information is easier to find.

You’ll spend more time learning and less on globe-trotting.

• Up front navigation tabs reduce time to locate and access scenarios, Cyber Learning Games, and the Media Library.
• Scrollable, easy-to-read tiles make finding Missions a snap.
• Less load on computers (CPU and graphic processors) means more hardware can run the Project Ares game client.

Teaching and learning with Project Ares is ready for the new school year!

Forgetting what was taught at the beginning of class, two weeks ago, or even yesterday is a common challenge educators experience in their classrooms. It’s also a frustrating experience for students when their success requires remembering material mentioned once or outside of its useful context.

Struggles with Knowledge Retention

Wouldn’t it be a lot easier if students memorized every aspect of our lectures? Absolutely! Unfortunately, that’s an unlikely scenario.

Why? People are wired to forget things. Why? Hermann Ebbinghaus , a 19th-century psychologist, has that answer. Ebbinghaus conducted memory experiments that revealed an exponential forgetting curve . He proved that his subjects forgot nearly two-thirds of the information he exposed them to 24 hours earlier. After a couple of days without a review, his subjects remembered only one-fifth of the material.

For biological reasons, it’s important to forget. However, it’s not desirable when we, as educators, need our students to retain knowledge. Today, many instructors

1. Hand out all of the material on one topic at once.
2. Assess their knowledge of the information.
3. Move on to the next topic.

Common student responses to this curriculum style are cramming for tests. While this is effective for a short time, it doesn’t foster long-term retention. Neither does our strategy of mass repetition when we’re delivering our course material.

There are many approaches to optimizing linear efficiency and knowledge retention. For example, EdTech products, like Project Ares, use a whole collection of them. However, rushing to adopt modern technologies without understanding the pedological concepts behind them will set you and your students up for disappointment.

Teaching Cybersecurity Using Spaced Repetition

Going back to Ebbinghaus’ study, there is one approach for achieving knowledge retention. It’s called Spaced Repetition , and it has a great deal of supporting evidence. This teaching technique involves supplementing initial exposure to learning material and then re-exposing it over longer time scales. It empowers our brains to retain knowledge and demonstratively improves the learning experience.

The spacing effect  is one of the most well-proven phenomena in memory studies and a fundamental capability that we should take advantage of to become better educators. Traditionally, the ideology around this effect applied only to memorization tasks. Modern studies now show that this approach is also beneficial for learning principles. To implement it, spread out material over time and occasionally revisit old content to maximize learner retention. Now, this may seem counterintuitive. Many curriculums have students try to fully master one topic before moving on to the next or deliver the material close to testing time. To maximize long-term knowledge retention for our students, we need to apply spaced repetition into our teaching.

If you’re teaching cybersecurity or any other subject, there’s a role for spaced repetition in your

• Lectures
• Homework assignments
• Hands-on engagement
• Test-driven exposures

Building spaced retention methods into your syllabi will help students retain knowledge longer.

Five Spaced Repetition Tips

Below are five helpful tips to help you introduce spaced repetition in your lessons.

1. Include Intermittent Recaps of Past Concepts

Connect assorted topics to create student-teacher dialogue and give students a direct opportunity to recall that information.

2. Build Engaging Spaced Repetition Exercises into Your Homework Assignments

Include slight variations of earlier exercises into later assignments or add them in as extra credit. Don’t make them time-consuming or difficult.

3. Consider Simpler Problems

Basic questions will put your students in a position to recall earlier concepts.

4. Use Hands-on Engagement

Reading articles, papers, or blog posts to refresh our knowledge on a topic is not enough. Actively engage your students to re-learn, recall, and refresh previous information. For example, add steps in your lab that reintroduce a tool used in an earlier semester.

5. Offer Feedback on Test-driven Exposures

Point out where students struggled on an exam or in the lab. Students like to see this type of feedback as it offers opportunities for additional dialogue and knowledge retention.

Explicitly tell students that the learning material is focused on lifelong habits to improve knowledge retention when the material is delivered. That step is quite important.

Now there’s no definitive evidence that suggests a best spaced-repetition strategy, but the empirical evidence is clear that the overall process of having multiple exposures over time is effective. How long do you want your students to retain a particular fact, a piece of information, or a principle? The desired length of retention will inform the recommended spacing intervals from a functional and practical perspective.

Based on Ebbinghaus’ research, if you want your students to retain classroom material for:

• A week, then consider spaced repetition one to two days from initial exposure.
• A month, then consider repetition intervals of one to two weeks from initial exposure.

The goal is to have students retain your teachings beyond the end of the three to four-month semester timeframe. Therefore, your curriculum should revisit material every three to four weeks to encourage re-engagement and retention.

How to Use Project-Based Learning in Teaching

There’s no substitute for a hands-on, project-based experience when teaching cybersecurity. EdTech products like Project Ares allow students to work through labs with available hints to guide them. Here, students can revisit and reengage with labs that they’ve completed previously to get a hands-on refresher.

Instructors can also engage in their students’ learning by disabling the hints and use the labs  to perform assessments. Just make sure to offer your students hands-on practice before performing them. Upon completion, Project Ares will show you an accurate, granular valuation of where your students are in terms of their skills and how much course material they’re retaining.

Develop Life-long Learning Habits

It’s a naïve expectation that all students will engage in these spaced repetition exercises or recall the material voluntarily. We, as educators, can encourage them to develop lifelong learning habits that focus on knowledge retention through our spaced repetition strategies.

To get the full scoop on the Project Ares pedagogy series, watch Dr. Brad Hayes, Chief Technology Officer at Project Ares, in-depth talk on Spaced Repetition !

Watch Now!