Innovative model for information assurance curriculum: A teaching hospital

A novel idea for information security education created by the New York State Center for Information Forensics and Assurance (CIFA) is presented. This new approach incorporates a teaching hospital model originally developed for medical training. In this model, information security problems from industry and government are solved and abstracted into living-cases used for training and education of university students and public-sector employees. Such a model helps ensure that the curriculum stays current even as the field of information assurance continues to evolve. Solving industry problems hones research skills, while exposing students to living cases helps build context for concepts in information assurance. The success of this approach is contingent upon strong partnerships with government and private organizations that have real security issues as well as an active research program in information security that involves faculty and students. This article presents an implementation of this approach at CIFA. Development of the curriculum, observations gleaned through dissemination of the curriculum, and the infrastructure developed to support this concept are discussed. Evaluation of students has demonstrated the effectiveness of the teaching hospital concept and provided us with feedback to further refine its implementation.