precious said:

Thanks my favorite Author - Network Guide To Networks

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Aww, thanks

So, I don't think you can push both Core 1 and Core 2 into one week and have an effective class. In all the time I've taught A+ (disclosure, I have not taught v12), I have never seen both sides taught properly in a week, even in a bootcamp scenario. Perhaps the only way I would suggest it would be for established professionals that are merely reviewing content. Even then, that's an overly ambitious pace.

Mathematically, 90 hours divided by 5 is going to be 18 hours per day if we're understanding it correctly. Perhaps the schedule is a 5d/wk schedule across two weeks, making it 9h/day, which may be more reasonable?

Well, it looks like this has been very well covered. For my contribution to this discussion, I'm going to focus on lecture didactic. Hands on is ALWAYS going to be better for learning, but it's nigh impossible to avoid lecture.

One of my favorite things to do when teaching any class, not just Sec+, is something that @BrianFord alluded to - where have I seen this before. For me, what I like to do is randomly toss a question from "the last module", as I move through a day's worth of material. So, for example, let's say I spent an hour or so talking about basic cryptography and now I'm, say, going into PKI. About midway into the PKI conversation, I'll toss out a question from basic crypto - just to see if they are short-term retaining things.

The human brain requires about seven exposures to the same information, and in different methods, such as visual, auditory, or kinesthetic, in order to process it into long term storage. Further, it has to connect to something that the student already knows, which creates that neurological connection.

I've also been known, in classroom situations, to toss candy for correct answers. It's amazing how much an incentive a tiny treat like that can have.

At the end of the day (although hardly the end of the conversation), it's all about engaging the student in a two-way fashion, not just the ol' sage-on-the-stage, when lecturing. Feedback and questioning, engaging the learners directly will do a lot to engage them.

/r

Jill West said:

Wow, that's amazing--congrats!!

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Thanks my favorite Author - Network Guide To Networks

jasoneckert said:

I recently visited a Canadian National Park. While in the visitor's centre, I stopped to take some of the pamphlets at the at the round information kiosk:

Lady behind kiosk: If you like, you can sign our visitor's guestbook over here.
Me: Sure, I'd like that.
Lady behind kiosk: So, where are you coming from today?
Me: Cambridge, in the Kitchener-Waterloo area of Ontario.
Lady behind kiosk: That's great - I have family who live in Waterloo and Guelph.
Me: So you know the area well, then!
Lady behind kiosk: I do. What does your shirt mean?
Me: Oh, that's a tech pun - I work in the tech industry and the shirts they give out at tech conferences usually have punny slogans.
Lady behind kiosk: You work in tech? Would you know why this iPad we have can no longer connect to the printer here?

Yes, I ended up fixing the DirectPrint settings in the app for their Brother printer.
If you work in IT, remember: No matter how far you go, the printers will find you...

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Was it out of Cyan? Have you tried throwing it on the ground and hitting it with baseball bats?

And now I have received a survey from CompTIA about considering making Tech+ a CE course as well.

Gregory Childers said:

There are multiple threads on Reddit (I know I really shouldn't keep visiting that site) that claim CompTIA has sent out notices that Project+ and Server+ are changing from "good for life" certifications to CE certifications on October 1, 2025. I personally did not receive any notification, nor can I find any reference to it outside of Reddit.

Can anyone definitively confirm or deny this claim?

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Yes, this is confirmed.

For those who didn't get the email, see link for reference:

imsrj.cse said:

Like the coursecontent and labs are properly balanced so that you can complete labs and coursecontent in 5 days, compared to other courses where there are more labs for some modules

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For personal study, yeah sure.
For classroom delivery, maybe not; especially if you intend to deliver it in a short time frame.

There are 10 modules:
Module 3 - 4 labs
Module 4 - 6 labs
Module 5 - 3 labs
Module 6 - 7 labs
Module 7 - 14 labs
Module 8 - 1 lab
Module 9 - 9 labs

Depending on the amount of time for training, you may not be able to do all labs. So, choose wisely.

I use AI, whether for personal use or in the classroom. It's a tool. It helps with my productivity. So I use it.

• Do I recommend it for my students? sure. I even encourage them to use notebooklm by Google, to help them with their studies.
• Do I let them use AI in quizzes? NO.
• Can they use AI in their assignments? Not a great idea, but I know that the students do it. So, to counter it, part of the assignment is that they need to provide a reflection on the assignment.
• To further counter the brain drain, I ensure that the students actually do the labs, so I can be assured that they know how to do the work, and that it is not all theory-based learning.

As for interview-preparation, can we use AI for that? sure. AI can help prep you with possible questions in the interview. But I always tell my students, that in real-world scenario, it is their personal stories and experiences that counts. AI can't replace that.

With all that said, should we use AI? I'd say, why not? As long as, people know how to properly use it, to increase productivity, but limit the brain drain.

M. Shehata said:

Greetings,
I am preparing to start a new class for the Security+ certification and would like to ensure that students remain engaged, active, and participative throughout the course. While I am aware that there are labs included in the course materials, I am curious if you might have recommendations for additional ideas, tools, websites, or hands-on activities that could further enhance student involvement and enjoyment during the class.

Your advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

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As with any other courses, don't kill the students with powerpoint slides.

Security+ has lots of interesting topics, and the world has lots of news related to cybersecurity. Merge the two - theory and practical. In that way, the students will get to see the value of what is being discussed - and they get to remember the details more, in my experience.

You also don't need to do the talking for the entire time. There are good PBQs and quizzes in the CompTIA material. Let the students talk between themselves either in pair or in groups - depending on the amount of training time, that is.

The labs are good, only if the instructions are clear enough for the students to follow. So, I do recommend you running the labs yourself, then find the possible pain points for the students, so that in class, you can give an intro spiel about the lab, how it connects to the lesson, and what the students may learn or need to know in doing the lab, i.e. how to use Wazuh for the first time, or how to learn the various options for nmap.

There are heaps of tools and websites for Security+. Too many to identify. I suggest that you create threads for each question or topic that you'd need help with.

In any case, I hope this helps

Wow, that's amazing--congrats!!

Hi M. Shehata.

Kudos on choosing the best possible forum for that question. Hope to see you here often. I started training Security+ in June, 2023 and have polished my presentations to keep students engaged. Here are some items that may work for you.

1. Home network scan. When you get to the NMAP section, scan your network, share the results, then have students scan theirs. This could be in class or as homework. Have them record the results and then share them with the class. I am attaching a .PDF of an NMAP scan result that I copied and pasted into MS Word and then made beautiful. I usually introduce this task with "This is a fair and objective request you may see when interviewing for a job. Might as well practice here..." The CIN forum did not let me attach a .DOC :-(
2. Memory leaks. Show that many programs, including web browsers, open multiple processes. The challenge is to make sure all processes clear out of RAM when the user closes the hosting program. I open Task Manager then a) launch Firefox, b) visit https://online-stopwatch.com and c) exit Firefox. Students see how many processes Firefox opens and then see them clear out of memory within 75 seconds. Explain that if any Firefox processes remained up and running, that would be a sign of a memory leak.
3. Take them into AI. They've already chosen a favorite AI LLM. I take them in Perplexity then follow a progression of initial prompt and then a series of follow-ups. An example that is highly appropriate here is a) Tell me about the CIA, b) tell me about the CIA in cybersecurity, c) tell me about the CIA in cybersecurity at a 6th grade reading level... You can experiment with more specific prompts. Everybody pays attention.

Onward and upward.

I was able to get the guides from a webinar that was held on Linux+ v8 here on the CIN. Uploading for others!

Here is the upcoming Webinar I found! https://cin.comptia.org/threads/cin-ttt-series-linux-v8.2441/

One challenge you will tackle and find interesting to ask is how they will manage obvious usage of AI in assignments, papers and classroom deliverables.

Students will absolutely challenge an instructor who speaks of policy but turns around and uses the technology themselves. That's one glaring item I see missing from above. Optionally, asking a leading question around how they would use AI in an educational setting to establish and promote critical thinking skills and development which I thought was the whole point of going to college and graduate school anyway.

Welcome M.Shehata!

I'm a big fan of active learning and always try to use different techniques to make sure my learners are and stay engaged. I try to mix up my methods offering some from within a lesson and others at end of a lesson. For the Security+ course a couple of ideas might be:

• Ask students to connect topics back to the CIA triad (Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability),
• Ask the students to connect methods back to the Security Controls (categories and functional controls), and
• Something I call 'Where have we seen this before?' where learners connect topics (important to mastering compare and contrast questions).

I do demos using basic OS installed tools (Windows Event Viewer) and web browsers (examine the CompTIA.org site certificate in Chrome). I take students to the NVD to investigate CVEs and to the FIRST.org site to see a CVSS calculator.

I caution about using too many tools or visiting too many websites. Adult learners can only recall for or five things in a day. If you try to do too much in one day they may not be able to recall the topic the next day (but they may remember the site or the tool).

As far as learners hands on activities in Security+ I stay with the PBQs and Labs in CertMaster. I may walk through the Exploring the Lab exercise with a class but if it's not a bootcamp and time allows I try to organize small teams to complete a lab and then present it to the class. I use teams because if one person is leading a demo and goes blank or has a tech issue it becomes awkward and stops the learning for all. In bootcamp courses the students should do the labs on their own time. I try to fit in a walk through of the Vulnerability Assessment and Packet Capture labs.

I hope this helps.

Brian
.

Luis Almeida said:

Sorry, "the Annoying One," but if you actually read my post, you'll easily understand that I'm talking about knowledge refreshers.

I mentioned vouchers because CompTIA sometimes offers them, and the exams are very expensive, even for us trainers. But if I was really annoying, I apologize for hurting your intelligence.

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I did read and understood your posting. Your intenions are really clear. This Answer did not provide a better opinion about you.
Sorry.
So far all TTT had a free voucher for all CIN Members that did fullfill the requirements. That is a goody from CompTIA . But i get the Feeling that more and more abuse this. Don`t konw if and when this offer ends, but i believe the rules will change somehow in the near future.

Are CompTIA Exams expensive? Depends to which Vendor you compare the Price. I have taken Exams from free over 50 Euro up to 1000€ per Voucher.
If you are employed, it is your company that wants you to take the exam and they pay for it.
If you are a Freelancer like me, it is a company expense.
Beside CompTIA i spend around 1000-2000 Euro each year on Exams to take them. Germany is usually consider premier Country for Exam Fees. Others have Examprices that are 50% or so lower compared to the US or Germany.
So i do not agree on the Argument "they are expensive".

TraceyO said:

It was great! I'll rewatch it again when I get a moment. They went over a lot of info. Take care, Rick!

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You too, Tracey - it's good to see you out here on CIN again...been a while!

Stephen Schneiter said:

It is time for the next TTT series! Join the CompTIA Instructor Network and special guest @jasoneckert as he Leads the Linux+ TTT series. Jason will cover the exam objectives and provide hands on examples as you strengthen your Linux skills. We will discuss how to cover the content with students and suggest various labs to let students gain hands-on experience as they prepare for certification.

What: CIN TTT Series: Linux+ V8
When: September 9 - October 9, 2025 (Ten sessions), 6:00 - 8:00 PM CDT
Who: Jason Eckert
Where: ON24
Register Now

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Thank you for posting this! I'm really looking forward to this training!

Stephen Schneiter said:

The new CompTIA Data+ V2 (DA0-002) will launch in October 2025. Join the CompTIA Instructor Network and special guest @James Stanger and @Kwabena Fred as they take a Sneak Peek into changes with the new exam vs. the current version. We will discuss how to cover the content with students and suggest various labs to let students gain hands-on experience as they prepare for certification.

What: CIN Sneak Peek: Data+ V2
When: Thursday, August 28, 2025, 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM CDT
Who: Dr. James Stanger and Fred Anaafi
Where: ON24
Register Now

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I Have registered and the webinar is very interesting