Utilising the teaching of international formal technical standards to inspire confidence in networking students

Transcription

1 Utilising the teaching of international formal technical standards to inspire confidence in networking students Gill Whitney Middlesex University

2 My Background I have worked to use the practical use of regulation, legislation and standardisation to support Digital Inclusion (or the belief that these are tools which should be used when relevant).

3 Students Final year students on the BSc Computer Networks - familiar with a range of networking standards, interested in the creation and updating of those standards. First year students on BSc Information Technology - require more guidance on what technical standards are used for.

4 Ambition Relevant academics have expressed concerns about the students inability to see themselves as future leading professionals. They are studying factual courses making use of a wide range of formal standards and protocols.

5 European Qualifications Framework Level Knowledge Skills Responsibility and autonomy Level 4 Factual and theoretical knowledge in broad contexts within a field of work or study a range of cognitive and practical skills required to generate solutions to specific problems in a field of work or study exercise self-management within the guidelines of work or study contexts that are usually predictable, but are subject to change; supervise the routine work of others, taking some responsibility for the evaluation and improvement of work or study activities Level 6 Advanced knowledge of a field of work or study, involving a critical understanding of theories and principles advanced skills, demonstrating mastery and innovation, required to solve complex and unpredictable problems in a specialised field of work or study manage complex technical or professional activities or projects, taking responsibility for decisionmaking in unpredictable work or study contexts; take responsibility for managing professional development of individuals and groups

6 Why Standard Writers? Standard writers have strong technical knowledge and expertise in the subject matter of the standard project, and understand and respect diverse points of view IEEE Standards Association (2018). IEEE-SA - Who Can Participate?. [online] Available at: [Accessed 6 Mar. 2018]. Professional organisations testify that members are the driving force behind the development of standards, providing technical expertise and innovation, driving global participation, and pursuing the ongoing advancement and promotion of new concepts. IEEE. (2018). What are Standards? Why are They Important? [online] Beyond Standards. Available at: [Accessed 23 Mar. 2018].

7 Beyond Standards. (2018). IEEE Ethernet Working Group Honoured by Ethernet Technology Summit. [online] Beyond Standards. Available at:

8 Two Stage Research Process First Session Cake Blogs BS 8611:2016, Robots and robotic devices. Guide to the ethical design and application of robots and robotic systems. BS EN ISO/IEC 27001:2017, Information technology. Security techniques. Information security management systems.

9 Two Stage Research Process Second Session Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA) The British Computer Society (BCS), The Chartered Institute for IT The IET: The Institution of Engineering and Technology Chartered Engineer (CEng) Questionnaire on future plans

10 Results Question 1 - Have you considered how you will follow a professional career after you leave Middlesex University? All but two students expressed a desire to follow a professional career although the majority of them had only very limited ideas on what they wished to do. The third year students described greater time spent on considering their careers.

11 Results Question 2 Are you considering joining a professional Computing or Engineering body such as BCS or IET? One student was already a member of the BCS, one planned to join the BCS all the rest stated they were considering joining a professional body.

12 Results Question 3 Have you considered sharing your expertise in the future by becoming a writer of standards? The majority of students were not interested in becoming a standards writer, with five of them expressing in more detail their dislike of writing. One student expressed a strong desire to be a writer of standards and one expressed an interest in the team work element of the task.

13 Conclusion This activity, made use of examples of `real standards writers to show how a career can develop and lead to a student turning into somebody who writes standards and transforms the field. It can be seen that there will be a continual requirement for experts in networking technology to be involved in standardization activity to ensure continual technical progression and the future security of network systems.