Standards-Based Cyber Exercises

While many institutions include cyber exercises as a part of their curricula, the outcomes assessment of the exercises do not generally include the mapping of the exercises to specific standards. Thus, while students are obtaining important foundational skill sets in information assurance, the resulting competencies are not as quantifiable as those from more standard types of educational activities such as uniform quizzes and exams. This paper discusses an approach through which cyber exercises can be developed with a focus on measuring performance against specific standards. This method facilitates the use of cyber exercises as a foundational component in the education of the information assurance professional, while providing a consistent outcomes assessment framework.