PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS
Pre-Conference Workshops for the 2023 NICE K12 Cybersecurity Education Conference will take place on Saturday and Sunday, December 2-3 at the Grand Canyon University Cybersecurity Center of Excellence in Phoenix, Arizona. Space is limited. Workshops are an additional fee of $50 per 90 minute session above general registration. Registration for workshops will close on Friday, November 24, 2023 at 12:00am EST.
NOTE: you must be registered for the main conference to register for the pre-conference workshops. If you have already registered for the conference, please follow the instructions on your registration confirmation to add workshops to your invoice.
Workshop Descriptions and Schedule
You may also view the workshop schedule, descriptions, and speakers on the agenda
Saturday, December 2 - 10:00-11:30am
Workshop 1: The Internet of Strings: An Interactive Approach to Introducing Networking
Kyle Cronin, Dakota State University
During this workshop, participants will work through an interactive lesson, The Internet of Strings, that introduces the concept of networking. The lesson focuses on the core concepts of how routers on the internet function, while also including an introduction to Dijkstra’s algorithm and experiences with key issues that exist on the internet such as malformed packets, links that have gone offline, and misconfigured routers. The Internet of Strings is a kinesthetic lesson that keeps students actively engaged and has a low-cost barrier to entry. It provides a valuable, visual foundation for students upon which to build and generates multiple opportunities to illustrate and discuss networking and cybersecurity concepts.
Attendees will participate in the lesson as a student, discuss how the activity can be modified and adapted to meet the needs of various learners – including both students and educators – and then try out possible modification and enrichment opportunities.
Workshop 2: The Art of Cybersecurity Engagement through Cyber Robotics
Cori Araza and Joe Urbaszewski, Grand Canyon University
In this interactive workshop, participants will experience how to code a cyber-robot and learn how to mitigate the safety of its structure while driving it. This engaging approach to teaching cybersecurity will allow participants to witness how their robots can be compromised through hacking and how to protect them. Session attendees will leave equipped with the skills to code, drive, and hack into a Cyberbot with hands-on support from GCU cyber students, faculty, and industry professionals from Parallax.
Workshop 3: Teaching Cybersecurity with Minecraft Education
Laylah Bulman, Minecraft / Erik Leitner, Cleverlike Studios
Join us for a hands-on demonstration of Minecraft Education's new Cyber Education Pathway. Our innovative and inclusive approach aims to equip educators from K12 with the knowledge and confidence to integrate cybersecurity curriculum using Minecraft Education. By using game-based learning precepts, this immersive workshop ensures accessibility for all educators, regardless of their technology background, fostering a secure and engaging digital learning environment. Participants will explore CyberSafe, CyberFUNdamentals, CyberExpert (FIU), and CyberSecurity Defender, fostering a deep understanding of cybersecurity concepts through gamified learning in Minecraft Education.
The workshop takes educators on a thrilling journey through the world of cybersecurity using Minecraft Education. Our innovative approach combines game-based learning with comprehensive curriculum modules, enabling educators to effectively engage students in a secure and enjoyable digital learning experience.
Workshop 4: How You Can Build and Solve an NCIS-style, Cyber Forensics Murder Mystery
Mark Estep, Poolesville High School / Christopher Thompson, LunaSec / Luke Griffith, University of Maryland
For the past 7 years, 200 students from around Montgomery County, Maryland, participate in an NCIS-style cyber forensics investigation. NYU’s International Cybersecurity Awareness Month (CSAW) had hosted a similar competition for over a decade, nationwide, for a decade before it came to an unfortunate end. The competition, when it ran, attracted and propelled cybersecurity talent into their future careers from an early age. Many of the competition’s alumni now work in very prestigious cyber institutions, if they are not founders of cybersecurity companies themselves. Running this competition has historically required a great deal of work in order to organize and put it together. By creating the xctf platform with our learnings for running this every year, it has become a battle-tested framework for not just improving the quality of the competition, but also reducing the operational cost. Our vision is to build a system so that any cybersecurity educator in the U.S. is capable of running their own competition locally, while only requiring access to the internet.
In this session, you will use AI to build your own NCIS murder mystery story, with innocent and guilty characters, and create real-world, cyber forensic evidence that will unveil who the murderer is!
Saturday, December 2 - 12:30-2:00pm
Workshop 5: Cyber Pathfinders: Navigating Your Way to a Rewarding Cybersecurity Career
Dalal Alharthi and Paul Wagner, University of Arizona
Cybersecurity professionals perform essential roles in the protection of critical commercial and government infrastructure from cyberattacks. Unfortunately, demand for highly qualified cybersecurity professionals far exceeds supply. Hence, this workshop aims to contribute to resolving this problem by proposing accessible and practical approaches to learning cybersecurity and breaking into the cyber world.
The first section of the workshop will introduce foundational concepts related to purple, red, and blue teams’ activities from frameworks such as the NICE Cybersecurity Framework, MITRE ATT&CK, and MITRE D3FEND. The second section will include hands-on exercises to get attendees started in conducting research on companies, job ads, and work role requirements. Participants will then develop reports to be shared with the group on findings and recommendations. The third section will summarize the following items in a printed workbook that will be provided to all attendees: (1) Tips to nail a cybersecurity job interview; (2) Learning resources; and (3) A proposed learning path that is created in light of the presenters’ experiences in both academia and industry, a systematic literature review, and an analysis of the current cybersecurity job postings.
Workshop 6: Future-Ready Cyber Ed: Design Thinking Workshop Using AI & Emerging Tech
Olivia Blackmon, Oak Ridge Associated Universities
Join our immersive Design Thinking Workshop to leverage AI and emerging tech for the future in teaching K12 cyber. In this session, participants will embark on an exciting journey to discover innovative strategies that will revolutionize K12 cyber learning experiences.
Through a hands-on and interactive approach, you will dive into the realm of AI-enabled open-sourced programs and cutting-edge emerging technologies. Guided by design thinking principles, you will explore creative ways to engage K12 students and prepare them for a future driven by cybersecurity and technology.
During the workshop, you will gain valuable insights and strategies to invigorate cyber learning through dynamic activities, collaborative ideation, and prototyping. You will gain practical knowledge on integrating AI-enabled tools and emerging technologies into your teaching practices, enabling you to create diverse and inspiring learning environments.
Workshop 7: Empowering the Future: Building a Nationwide Cybersecurity Career Awareness
Jiri Jirik, Education Pathway National Center / Kristine Christiensen, Moraine Valley Community College / Mike Qaissaunee, Brookdale Community College / Stephanie Wascher, Rock Valley College
By the end of the workshop, participants will gain a deeper understanding of effective strategies for promoting cybersecurity career awareness. They will have insights into the development of a cybersecurity career exploration toolkit, the impact of co-curricular experiences, and best practices to increase the appeal of the cybersecurity profession to a diverse audience. Participants will leave with free resources and actionable steps and recommendations to immediately implement in their communities, schools, or organizations, fostering a broader awareness of cybersecurity careers and pathways.
Workshop 8: YouScience Brain Games & Aptitude Discovery for Pathway & Career Alignment
Donna Woods, Moreno Valley Unified School District / Ed Mondragon, Granite School District
Get ready to immerse yourself in a fun and challenging Aptitude Assessment with YouScience software platform. Students who understand their aptitudes are empowered. They find relevance and a meaningful direction in school and beyond. In this session, participants will take a series of brain games to discover their aptitudes, interests, and matching best-fit careers that they never knew or thought possible. When students know their aptitudes, they find a whole new world of education options and best-fit in-demand careers to better succeed in school and life. It’s not magic. It’s 50 years of scientific proof and proprietary algorithms that unlock career success. Participants will discover how the presenters utilized YouScience to build stronger Cyber pathways by identifying students from feeder middle schools and high schools that have natural aptitudes for STEM and ICT/Cyber careers.
Sunday, December 3 - 12:30-1:55pm
Workshop 9: RING Curriculum and Courses
Jesse Hairston and Amelia Adkins, The University of Alabama in Huntsville
The RING curriculum is a freely available high school cybersecurity curriculum for educators nationwide. RING includes both a free online course offered to high school students and a full curriculum package available for teachers, including instructional slides, lesson plans, assessments (with teacher keys), hands-on labs, online games and manipulatives, and tons of graphic organizers. RING is a foundational course but progresses students quickly through various concepts including cryptography, networking, and careers. At this session, you will gain access to the RING curriculum, receive demonstrations of resources and activities, and learn about course options for your students. RING was created through partner institutions in the CAE community and is a part of the Education Pathways National Center.
Workshop 10: Back-to-Safe: Restart the Year with Minecraft's new Cyberskilling Lessons
Charity Nix and Nancy Mahlen, NDIT- EduTech
Learn critical digital citizenship and cybersecurity skills, including managing screen time, social interactions, online spending, and recognizing malware. Demo Privacy Prodigy to understand learning cyberskills with Minecraft and how the cybersafe collection can be integrated into classrooms and family support of digital learning.
Workshop 11: Using Network Forensics to Find Ann Dercover
Joseph Urbaszewski and Cori Araza, Grand Canyon University
Join a team of GCU Cybersecurity experts to find Ann DerCover through a hands-on course in Network Forensics. Teachers and leaders alike will leave equipped to bring Network Forensics into their classrooms.
In this session, participants will:
Learn different email protocols.
Use Python to decode Base64 encoding.
Experience packet sniffing.
Discover MD5 hashing.
Use Basic commands in Linux.
Workshop 12: Empowering Cyber Warriors: Professional Development for Cyber Teachers
Candi Ring, Cyber Florida / Julian Maguregui, USF Youth Experiences
In this session, teachers will walk away with a treasure trove of resources and strategies that will enrich their instructional practices and leave them feeling valued in their critical role. Participants will discover an array of curriculum resources and classroom tools curated specifically for cybersecurity education. From hands-on activities to interactive simulations, these resources will equip teachers with innovative teaching solutions that spark student interest and foster a deeper understanding of cybersecurity concepts, but the true power of this session lies in the spirit of collaboration and community-building. Emphasizing the value of networking, educators will have the opportunity to connect with like-minded professionals, sharing ideas and experiences that enrich their instructional practices. This collaborative environment will empower teachers to explore new approaches to teaching cybersecurity, ultimately benefiting both educators and their students.
Sunday, December 3 - 2:00-3:30pm
Workshop 13: Enough Talking About Cybersecurity; Start Teaching Cybersecurity
James Houston II, Jacksonville High School
This session will delve into the crucial topic of how to teach cybersecurity to students. Too often, teachers are asked to teach cybersecurity and they have no background in the subject matter. This leads to teachers talking about cybersecurity instead of teaching it. In today's virtually connected world, it is imperative for educators to go beyond talking about cybersecurity and actively engage students in practical learning exercises.
During this interactive session, participants will discover innovative strategies, engaging activities, and effective resources to introduce cybersecurity concepts within their classrooms. Tangible lessons they can take to their classroom and help students begin to understand the fundamentals of networking, pen-testing, firewall concepts, CIA triad methodology, and much more. Attendees will gain practical insights into how to teach age-appropriate cybersecurity lessons with little to no experience.
Workshop 14: No-Cost Cybersecurity Fundamental Series Academic Courses and Hands-on Labs
Thomas Trevethan, Palo Alto Networks
This workshop is designed for faculty to review the Cybersecurity Foundation, Network Security, Cloud Security, Security Operations, and Secure Access Service Edge Fundamental courses offered through the Palo Alto Networks Cybersecurity Academy program. The workshop will include a review of no-cost content and hands-on labs that can prepare students to become a Palo Alto Networks Certified Cybersecurity Entry-Level Technician (PCCET). This certification exam is available through Pearson VUE and no-cost vouchers will be provided to workshop participants who complete all coursework in 2024.
Workshop 15: Empowering K12 Educators with Essential Cybersecurity Teaching Resources
Yenni Djajalaksana, Kalley Rocca, Camilla Morton, and William New, EC-Council
This workshop is specially designed to empower K12 teachers with valuable resources and techniques to impart essential cybersecurity knowledge and skills to their students. In this interactive workshop, educators will be engaged with a range of free resources and state-of-the-art tools that make teaching cybersecurity both effective and enjoyable.
Throughout the workshop, teachers will be guided by our facilitators into the Essentials courses’ comprehensive syllabus, exploring the wealth of free resources offered by EC-Council, a leading certification body in cybersecurity education. Participants will gain insights into three fundamental courses: Ethical Hacking Essentials, Network Defense Essentials, and Digital Forensics Essentials. These courses have been carefully curated to cater to entry-level learners and provide a solid foundation in the world of cybersecurity.
Workshop 16: Hands-on Hacking: Capture the Flag Workshop
David Raymond, Virginia Cyber Range, Virginia Tech
Bring your laptop! In this workshop, you will learn about Jeopardy-style Capture the Flag competitions and how to use them to drive student interest in cybersecurity and enhance learning in critical cybersecurity topics.
Capture the flag competitions are extremely flexible, and can be used to both assess students’ understanding of cybersecurity concepts and to encourage self-directed learning across a wide range of topic areas. They can be tailored for beginners and advanced players alike, and most can be configured for a variety of uses. We will discuss different ways to use CTFs in class, and even explore how to develop your own CTF challenges. You will also learn approaches to solving different types of CTF challenges and the tools that you and your students can use, with some hands-on challenge-solving along the way. Finally, you will learn where to find CTF competitions for your students to try. You might even get some hints related to the conference CTF!