UAlbany School of Business Launches ‘Flipped Classroom’ for Security and Forensics Programs

ALBANY, N.Y. (November 26, 2013) -- University at Albany Associate Professor Sanjay Goel, a cybersecurity expert who directs research at the New York State Center for Information Forensics and Assurance, will launch a ‘flipped classroom’ for UAlbany’s security and forensics programs.

Given the evolving complexity of information systems, the program will provide students with the high level training needed to meet the information forensics and security demands for organizations in all sectors of the economy, including health care, government, financial services, and private industry. The flipped classroom concept is designed to improve the retention of the security student pipeline through earlier intervention.

In the 'flipped classroom' model, students review lecture material and other content ahead of time and work with the instructor in solving problems in the classroom.

Supported by a $298,197 National Science Foundation (NSF) grant, the project will allow the University to create an innovative learning environment, which literally reverses traditional teaching methods. Instead of the instructor giving lectures in class and students solving problems outside of class, students review lecture material and other content ahead of time and work with the instructor in solving problems in the classroom.

Goel is the director of the new four-year undergraduate program in digital forensics at the School of Business - the first of its kind in New York and one of only a handful of such programs in the nation. The 'flipped classroom' model will support the new degree program. The project will require the creation of sophisticated virtual labs utilizing cloud technology. Goel will collaborate with Toolwire, an educational solutions provider specializing in experiential learning. Toolwire will provide resources on the cloud for enabling the labs.

UAlbany will also work with several community colleges to deliver the ‘flipped classroom’ model in their respective institutions. The project also fits into the State University of New York ‘SUNY Education Pipeline’ project, which seeks to provide pathways for students.

Students who enroll in the new forensics program will learn how to investigate cyber and computer-related crimes, as well as identify, recover, and analyze digital evidence from computers, mobile devices, and networks. Students who graduate from the program will be able to work in fields where they may provide expert witness testimony and prepare reports from digital evidence analysis.

UAlbany undergraduates studying digital forensics will also learn to analyze large data sets for auditing financial and accounting data to detect fraud and other anomalies, study in a state-of the-art forensics laboratory, collaborate with leading forensics firms and be provided with abundant internship opportunities. The program also includes articulation agreements with other SUNY community colleges to attract best students from other SUNY schools. It is a highly competitive program with only 25 students admitted each year as direct admits, and 25 students each year through transfers.

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