Hi All! My district is trying to provide students with as much opportunity as possible to earn industry certifications which is great especially for non college bound students. I am at a public high school in Colorado with 90 minute block periods - each class being a semester long. We are going to be using the TestOut curriculum program and I hope to get some old computers and devices to have students practice with. I will also be taking the test along with the first batch of students. The goal would be Core 1 in October at the end of Q1 and Core 2 in December at the end of Q2. Typically I teach programming but have taught networking in the past so some of the information will be new to me. Any words of advice or encouragement are welcome!
High School Teacher - New to A+
- Thread starter mswanson
- Start date
You still got ample time to prepare 
I suggest reading the book content ahead of time, then try to relate any current news to your class discussions so as to make it "timely and relevant". Kids nowadays got a short attention span. So the challenge I guess is how to keep their interests in class.
I haven't seen the TestOut program, but if there are games and activities in there, then utilize them with your students.
All the best!
I suggest reading the book content ahead of time, then try to relate any current news to your class discussions so as to make it "timely and relevant". Kids nowadays got a short attention span. So the challenge I guess is how to keep their interests in class.
I haven't seen the TestOut program, but if there are games and activities in there, then utilize them with your students.
All the best!
Hello! I think you're the person from Reddit who I DMed inviting you to come here. Welcome!
Some advice is that you probably know more than you think you do when it comes to the A+ material. Especially if you've taught networking in the past. It's a lot of information yes but for people like us with experience, it's really only half an inch deep and about a quarter mile wide. I found the A+ to be a curriculum where you have to know something about everything but you never need to know everything about anything.
I'm at the university level, but I bet this works at the high school level too. I had my Sophomores take the AZ-900 certification exam as part of our Web Science course last Fall. I took it with them and told them if they beat my score they'd get extra credit. That sure did motivate a lot of them to study and learn the material. And some of them absolutely crushed my score.
I do think at the high school level though your timeline might be a little condensed. Two months for each of Core 1 and Core 2 is less time than some adults take to prepare for the exams, and less time than the local community college around here gives for the A+ IIRC. I know you may be on a fixed schedule and might not have any flexibility with it, but it might be something to keep in mind. Not saying it can't be done but I would definitely keep a close eye on student preparedness as you get closer to the intended exam dates.
Good luck! Let us know how it all goes.
Some advice is that you probably know more than you think you do when it comes to the A+ material. Especially if you've taught networking in the past. It's a lot of information yes but for people like us with experience, it's really only half an inch deep and about a quarter mile wide. I found the A+ to be a curriculum where you have to know something about everything but you never need to know everything about anything.
I'm at the university level, but I bet this works at the high school level too. I had my Sophomores take the AZ-900 certification exam as part of our Web Science course last Fall. I took it with them and told them if they beat my score they'd get extra credit. That sure did motivate a lot of them to study and learn the material. And some of them absolutely crushed my score.
I do think at the high school level though your timeline might be a little condensed. Two months for each of Core 1 and Core 2 is less time than some adults take to prepare for the exams, and less time than the local community college around here gives for the A+ IIRC. I know you may be on a fixed schedule and might not have any flexibility with it, but it might be something to keep in mind. Not saying it can't be done but I would definitely keep a close eye on student preparedness as you get closer to the intended exam dates.
Good luck! Let us know how it all goes.
I totally agree with JarrelYou still got ample time to prepare
I suggest reading the book content ahead of time, then try to relate any current news to your class discussions so as to make it "timely and relevant". Kids nowadays got a short attention span. So the challenge I guess is how to keep their interests in class.
I haven't seen the TestOut program, but if there are games and activities in there, then utilize them with your students.
All the best!
I am the person from Reddit! Thank you for pointing me in this direction! Yeah I do having the limited time line as I only have students Q1&Q2 of the school year for this course. Q1 ending in Oct and Q2 in December. Unfortunately, I don't have much control over that but I'll have to keep that in mind and perhaps talk to my admin about alternatives next year. I do like your scoring higher then me thing, my school doesn't allow extra credit but kids always are motivated by food so that's worth a shot! Again, thank you so much and I'll keep you all posted!
Thank you! I am going through the curriculum during the summer while my daughter is napping. TestOut does have lab sims for students and I'm trying to get some old hardware from my district. I like the idea of gamification. I'll have to make my own for students to review and practice with. I do have some industry connections so I'm going to try to get them in my classroom to give some real world experience as well as hopefully do a job shadow with our tech department. Thank you for the idea of current news, I will make an effort to include that as well!You still got ample time to prepare
I suggest reading the book content ahead of time, then try to relate any current news to your class discussions so as to make it "timely and relevant". Kids nowadays got a short attention span. So the challenge I guess is how to keep their interests in class.
I haven't seen the TestOut program, but if there are games and activities in there, then utilize them with your students.
All the best!
Hi there,
Have you considered offering them the CompTIA ITF+ before offering them the A+?
How much class-time in total do you have with them for both cores?
Best regards,
John
Have you considered offering them the CompTIA ITF+ before offering them the A+?
How much class-time in total do you have with them for both cores?
Best regards,
John
I agree with John's suggestion. A challenge with A+ is you are dealing with two certification exams in order to obtain this certification, coupled with the fact that it is a challenge to teach hardware concepts without providing actual access to the hardware. ITF+ is a mile wide in terms of content and not as deep. It is a great introduction to the certification pathway and is rewarding for those completing the course and obtaining the certification by passing its single exam.
I did pitch ITF+ to my CTE district office but they said they want A+ because students are more likely to get a job with A+ then ITF+ I did try to convince them but they shut me down... I will have a total of 18 weeks with students. I will have them for 90 minute blocks 4 days a week. We are a four day district and do Mondays off. Do you think it would be better to learn all testing material and take both cores at the end of the 18 weeks?
There is a great deal of overlap with the current exams, so I'd recommend having students take them both with a short time period between exams (in other words take them at the end of the learning process). I've repeatedly suggested to the folks at CompTIA that there be a single A+ exam. The days of separation, where the distinction was you had a hardware-focused exam and then a software-focused exam, are ancient history.
I would agree with Steve. Considering the amount of overlap, I would aim to have them sit both with a break between.
I think it is important to establish an understanding of the fundamentals prior to starting. I would not let them open a book before I gave them them context on the subject matter.
For beginners I explain how we operated offices in the time before computers (I don't know if you go back that far). How Typewriters were replaced, how memos were typed and copied with carbon paper (email format, CC etc.), how the inbox and outbox on the desk were replaced, how the PC reflects the desktop in an old office, how the method of storing documents in folders, stored in filing cabinets was replaced.. how spreadsheets replaced totting machines etc. And then eventually how things improved greatly when two computers could be connected to each other - how files could be shared.. how controls could be put in place to manage this when servers came into play.. how services could be shared. The next paradigm shift for me was databases - moving from flat file DBs to SQL Databases - how these would grow to hold all the data we could put into them and how we could get any relevant answer by querying the database using a structured query language.
I then draw a home network and explain the components and how it connects to the internet and go on to explain that this mirrors an office environment, one that they are likely to support at some stage if they continue this career path.
It helps to put context on the topics they will come across.
You should see little lightbulbs coming on in the learners as they factor in that email replaced paper-based communication and begin to understand how that email is converted into digital data and sent from their PC to an email server somewhere in the cloud which arrives in the recipients device (and almost instantaneously) and is converted back into a format that can be read by a human - and not only that - how it arrives at the correct recipient's mailbox!
Sorry.. I blathered on a little there - a sound foundation of concept will go a long way to keeping them interested in the subject matter.
Hope this helps!
John
I think it is important to establish an understanding of the fundamentals prior to starting. I would not let them open a book before I gave them them context on the subject matter.
For beginners I explain how we operated offices in the time before computers (I don't know if you go back that far
). How Typewriters were replaced, how memos were typed and copied with carbon paper (email format, CC etc.), how the inbox and outbox on the desk were replaced, how the PC reflects the desktop in an old office, how the method of storing documents in folders, stored in filing cabinets was replaced.. how spreadsheets replaced totting machines etc. And then eventually how things improved greatly when two computers could be connected to each other - how files could be shared.. how controls could be put in place to manage this when servers came into play.. how services could be shared. The next paradigm shift for me was databases - moving from flat file DBs to SQL Databases - how these would grow to hold all the data we could put into them and how we could get any relevant answer by querying the database using a structured query language.I then draw a home network and explain the components and how it connects to the internet and go on to explain that this mirrors an office environment, one that they are likely to support at some stage if they continue this career path.
It helps to put context on the topics they will come across.
You should see little lightbulbs coming on in the learners as they factor in that email replaced paper-based communication and begin to understand how that email is converted into digital data and sent from their PC to an email server somewhere in the cloud which arrives in the recipients device (and almost instantaneously) and is converted back into a format that can be read by a human - and not only that - how it arrives at the correct recipient's mailbox!
Sorry.. I blathered on a little there - a sound foundation of concept will go a long way to keeping them interested in the subject matter.
Hope this helps!
John
You should go look at cyber.org and sign up and use some of their material. They are not doing an A+ class right now but they have a lot of labs and information you can take included a free cyberrange for teachers.
Speaking of free (or freemium) learning resources, last week as a career-closing effort, I taught a one-week course with K-12 teachers as my students, that focused on the current Security+ certification. In addition to telling the teachers that they should join CIN, I provided a list of learning resources (crediting CIN as a source for many of the resources identified below). I mention career-closing because this GenCyber funded grant ends my career as a compensated instructor. Yes, I'll keep teaching, but as an uncompensated volunteer.
Tools / Games
Information / Reference Materials / Resources
Tools / Games
- Angry IP Scanner - https://angryip.org/
- Autopsy Sleuth Kit - https://www.sleuthkit.org/autopsy/
- BloodHound (Git) - https://github.com/BloodHoundAD/BloodHound
- CrackStation - https://crackstation.net
- DomainTools WHOIS - https://whois.domaintools.com/
- Empire (for PowerShell) - https://www.powershellempire.com/
- HackTheBox - https://www.hackthebox.eu/
- HelpSystems Cyber Games - https://www.helpsystems.com/blog/break-time-6-cybersecurity-games-youll-love
- Hunter (Find Email Addresses) - https://hunter.io/
- MASSCAN - (Git) - https://github.com/robertdavidgraham/masscan
- md5 Hash Generator - https://www.miraclesalad.com/webtools/md5.php
- Mimikatz - https://www.offensive-security.com/metasploit-unleashed/mimikatz/
- MXToolbox - https://mxtoolbox.com/SuperTool.aspx
- NetScanTools - https://www.netscantools.com
- NIST CVSS Calculator - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln-metrics/cvss/v3-calculator
- OverTheWire Wargames - https://overthewire.org/wargames/
- OWASP Juice Shop (Vulnerable Server) - https://owasp.org/www-project-juice-shop/
- picoCTF - https://picoctf.org/
- Port Authority - Google Play (for Mobile)
- Portswigger Burp Suite Training -https://portswigger.net/web-security
- QuickStego - http://quickcrypto.com/free-steganography-software.html
- Resplendence - System Tools - https://www.resplendence.com/main
- Robtex (DNS Lookup) - https://www.robtex.com/
- SHODAN Search Engine - https://www.shodan.io/
- TryHackMe - https://tryhackme.com/
- ViewDNS - https://viewdns.info/
- Websploit Cyber Range - https://websploit.org/
- Wireless Exploitation Framework - https://github.com/D3Ext/WEF
Information / Reference Materials / Resources
- Alison Free Security+ Course (6-10 Hours) - https://alison.com/course/comptia-security-sy0-601
- AWS Academy - https://aws.amazon.com/training/awsacademy/
- AWS Educate - https://aws.amazon.com/education/awseducate/
- AWS Skills Center - https://aws.amazon.com/training/skills-centers/?nc2=sb_ep_asc
- AWS re/Start - https://aws.amazon.com/training/restart/?nc2=sb_ep_res
- BMC Blogs SLA Template Examples - https://www.bmc.com/blogs/sla-template-examples/
- CIRT.net Default Passwords - https://cirt.net/passwords
- Cisco Training - https://skillsforall.com/
- Cloud Shared Security Responsibility Article (Microsoft) - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/security/fundamentals/shared-responsibility
- CompTIA Cyber Awareness Month - https://www.comptia.org/blog/cybersecurity-awareness-month
- Cryptokait NCL Blog - https://cryptokait.com/blog
- Cyberskyline - https://cyberskyline.com/
- Cyberstart - https://play.cyberstart.com/
- Cyberstart America - https://www.cyberstartamerica.org/
- ExamCompass Free Practice Exams - https://www.examcompass.com/comptia/security-plus-certification/free-security-plus-practice-tests
- FedVTE Courses - https://fedvte.usalearning.gov/
- Firebrand CTF Course - https://firebrand.training/en/cours...ntinuous-testing-foundation-ctf-certification
- Fortinet Training - https://training.fortinet.com/
- Google Dorks List - https://gbhackers.com/latest-google-dorks-list/
- How to Hack Programmable Logic Controllers - https://www.controldesign.com/articles/2018/how-to-hack-programmable-logic-controllers/ (signup required)
- Huntsman Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification - https://www.huntsmansecurity.com/blog/understanding-cyber-security-maturity-models/
- Hybrid Analysis - https://hybrid-analysis.com/
- ICSA Labs - https://www.icsalabs.com/
- Incident Response Playbooks - https://www.incidentresponse.com/playbooks/
- Kaspersky Cybermap - https://cybermap.kaspersky.com/
- KNOB Attacks - https://knobattack.com/
- Linux Foundation Training - https://training.linuxfoundation.org/
- Lockheed Martin Cyber Kill Chain - https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/capabilities/cyber/cyber-kill-chain.html
- Lockheed Martin CyberQuest - https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/who-we-are/communities/cyber-quest.html
- Microsoft Training - https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/
- Mike Bazzell's Intel Techniques - https://inteltechniques.com/
- MISP Open Source Threat Sharing - https://misp-project.org/
- MITRE ATT&CK - https://attack.mitre.org/
- MITRE Search CVE List - https://cve.mitre.org/cve/search_cve_list.html
- National Cyber League - https://nationalcyberleague.org/
- National Cybersecurity Center - https://cyber-center.org/
- National Security Toolkit (NST) - http://www.networksecuritytoolkit.org/nst/index.html
- NICE Challenge https://nice-challenge.com/
- NIST National Vulnerability Database - https://nvd.nist.gov/
- Omar Santos' Art of Hacking - https://github.com/The-Art-of-Hacking
- OSINT Framework - https://osintframework.com/
- Passemall's Free Practice Test - https://passemall.com/free-comptia-security-practice-test
- SANS Ultimate List of Cheat Sheets - https://www.sans.org/blog/the-ultimate-list-of-sans-cheat-sheets/
- Splunk Training - https://www.splunk.com/en_us/training/free-courses/overview.html
- StationX NMAP Cheat Sheet - https://www.stationx.net/nmap-cheat-sheet/
- ThreatConnect Diamond Model - https://threatconnect.com/company/methodology/
- ThreatCrowd - https://threatcrowd.org/
- US Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency - https://www.dcsa.mil/
- VirusTotal - https://www.virustotal.com/
Well, despite the fact that I'm irreplaceable, I'm sure the colleges and universities where I've taught have managed to find qualified individuals to handle my teaching responsibilities.