The LabSim Experience

Developing Key Skills Beyond Technology

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 17:51:00 +0000

No matter what IT job you have, and no matter what industry it’s in, you will have greater success in your role if you develop certain key skills that will benefit your organization. The catch: these aren’t just IT skills. While your technology expertise is critical, organizations need to see you, hear from you, and understand your vision for how technology can drive the organization forward.

Converge Magazine’s Philip J. Brody recently wrote about IT leaders in the education sector and the need for them to function in more ways than just as technology expert for their school districts, but his advice is wise in all industries, not just education. He said, “It is naive to assume that simply because you have a good idea, people will buy into it. No, just as our political leaders do, you must sell your vision to the district leadership, so they buy into both you and your vision. This means getting out of your office to meet with a variety of district personnel and stakeholders, including those on the instructional side of the house, for without their support you are in competition with them for resources.”

Similarly, Denise Dubie of Network World wrote about the need for IT professionals to develop vertical skills that reach further than technology alone. She quoted Lily Mok, vice president of Gartner’s CIO Research: "Companies looking to fill internal IT roles will focus more on crucial business-facing positions. There is no longer a blurring between IT and the business; those barriers are broken down now. IT will be expected to take more of a leadership role and make decisions for the business. IT needs to look for opportunities to really help the business transition from recession to recovery. IT needs to do more than support the business now; it needs to prepare an organization to return to growth and show how technology can be used to help the business shine."

If the “barriers” between IT and business are “broken down now,” it will be wise for you as an IT professional to develop the other skills—communication, project management, and leadership—to be an overall contributor to your organization.

How Do You Choose Which Certification to Go After?

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 16:14:00 +0000

So many certifications . . . where to start?

When you’re working on your IT education, you know that certifications are an important step, but you may not know where to start. Do any of these scenarios sound familiar to you?

• When I start interviewing for jobs, companies will want me to have certifications. But which ones are most important?
• I know I want to be a network engineer (substitute security professional, database administrator, etc.). Which certifications will I need for that?
• I’ve been so focused on getting through my college courses that I haven’t had time to think about certifications. Now I’m about to graduate. Where do I start?

Many college IT programs train their students for certifications, but others don’t, leaving students with questions about what certifications they need and how to prepare. Doing some research on your own is the place to start. In an article for Certification Magazine, analyst Howard Nicholson suggested, “One of the most important steps when making a decision about which designation to pursue is to understand the objectives of the certification. Take the time to research as much about the certification as possible, and ensure you understand what the certification is designed to do, what an organization would expect to gain from you having the certification, and what it does for your professional career.”

As you put in the time to research certifications, you’ll understand which certifications will work toward your career goal. Depending on your desired career direction, it may be CompTIA’s A+, Network+, or Security+; Microsoft’s MCTS (Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist); or Cisco’s CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate). Start doing some research on these sites:

CompTIA
Cisco
Microsoft
(ISC)2

Certification Magazine’s Luis Carselle offered useful ideas to further prepare for certifications and careers. He wrote, “At work, volunteer to help on projects that may be only tangential to your main duties; talk to colleagues during lunch breaks and at industry events to learn how they handled different situations; read publications that offer best practices; review award-winning programs; and scan industry magazines and Web sites for the latest tools and solutions.” The more knowledge and experience you gain, the better you’ll understand the certifications you need.

Emily Howard, TestOut

Blended Learning Is a Natural Fit in IT

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:05:00 +0000

Blended learning—the learning that happens through a combination of instructional methods—has a natural home in information technology. For example, instead of relying solely on the traditional approach of a teacher standing in front of a class and lecturing, IT training—including the new LabSim A+—incorporates computer-mediated instruction with face-to-face instruction.

While IT learners frequently seek instructor-led training, they utilize self-study materials just as often. The wealth of information available online and in print, videos, and even practice tests makes it possible for IT learners to gain valuable knowledge from many sources. Additionally, the dimension of knowledge gained through hands-on experience is invaluable in IT; practicing or experimenting with real equipment is an irreplaceable learning tool.

All of these learning methods contribute to IT learners’ training and overall preparation for the workplace. Vincent Lowe and Avis Beiden, in Converge Magazine, wrote that “true learning is realistic, applied, collaborative, and multi-sensory.” They suggested further:

“True learning is achieved by providing a realistic context . . . and opportunities to collaboratively explore, investigate and challenge new concepts. This must be supported by a variety of experiences: visual diagrams and demonstrations, printed explanations, interactive discussions and hands-on application.”

The new LabSim A+ certification training courses are an example of an effective blended learning solution for IT learners, and when coupled with a teacher’s own instruction, LabSim A+ is a fierce tool for IT training. The virtual labs—all new and created for the most realistic learning experiences—combine hardware and software tasks in each lab. Videos, written lessons, and practice exams round out the training experience and contribute to what Lowe and Beiden call “true learning.”

Have you ordered your new LabSim A+ courses? If you’re still wondering, give us a call and learn about evaluating the A+ courses for free at your institution.

Emily Howard, TestOut

10 Tips for IT Training in 2010

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:42:00 +0000

Make 2010 your year to expand your knowledge of IT subjects, seek IT certifications, or improve your IT job performance. Follow these tips to make your training experience most effective.

1. Use training that includes online lab simulations for practical experience. Your training is for more than just passing an exam, right? If you want to learn how to do your job well, make sure you invest in training that gives you real practice performing tasks with hardware, operating systems, and networking.

2. Find training software that combines hands-on experience with practice exams, expert video instruction, and written reference material for a complete training package. There’s more than one way to learn, so be sure to incorporate different methods in your training. Each method will build on the others and reinforce what you’re learning.

3. Use online training to have the flexibility to study wherever you are. Computer-based training gives you flexibility in your training schedule and allows you to review the training again and again so that you really master the concepts.

4. Take an intense on-campus course for quick completion. If you’re working on a tight deadline to receive a certification, a “boot camp” may be the way to go. These intense courses cover a lot of material in a short time, and they’re designed to help you pass a certification exam.

5. Only use training that follows IT certification course requirements exactly to help prepare for certification exams. Make sure you pass your certifying exam the first time by preparing with materials designed according to exam objectives.

6. Utilize training that tracks every action and scores results accordingly. The only way to gauge your readiness both for a job and for a certification exam is to track your progress. Find a training that keeps track of your scores as you go. You’ll be able to see where your strengths are and where you need additional training and practice.

7. Practice on physical hardware if it’s available to you. Do you have access to computers or components that you can practice on? Many people don’t, but if you do, be sure to use it!

8. Take advantage of on-the-job training whenever possible. Every job comes with opportunities to learn and practice new skills as part of your job responsibilities. Never pass up a chance to receive additional training—formal or informal.

9. Follow a schedule to maintain steady progress in your training. Without a plan, you may find the months passing by without making progress toward your training goal. A schedule will help you stay on track.

10. Focus on the fundamentals. Learn processes, how things should be done, and how things work. Good training will help you really understand your job and prepare you to do it well.

Emily Howard, TestOut

Report Shows High Demand for Online Learning in Higher Education

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 20:38:00 +0000

Online courses continue to grow in popularity and relevance, and a new report (“Learning on Demand: Online Education in the United States, 2009”) available from the Sloan Consortium offers insightful data about the growth. More than 2,500 colleges and universities—both 2-year and 4-year institutions—in the United States were included in the survey that researched online offerings in higher education. The results showed that more than 25% of college and university students took at least one online class in the fall 2008 semester. This number is staggering because it represents a 17% increase over the previous year. Since the overall growth rate in higher education was only 1.2%, a 17% increase in online learning shows a dramatic trend.

Elaine Allen, professor at Babson College and co-author of the newly released report, discussed the findings in a short video that can be viewed on YouTube. In the video, she said, “When we have a downturn in the economy, we tend to see people going back to school. They go back to school because they have been laid off or lost their job; they go back to school to improve their credentials in case they’re going to get laid off. So we see a higher demand for all types of classes in higher education.” Further, Allen shared that 75% of schools that offer online classes said their demand went way up, and 2/3 of schools that don’t offer online classes said their students were asking for them.

Many colleges and universities that currently use LabSim training in their IT courses have told us the same thing: they’ve seen many more adult learners in the past year returning to school to learn a new skill set or deepen their knowledge in hopes of finding better work. Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Michigan—a suburb of Detroit—told us their story just last week. Professor William Schlick said, “We have many students who are out of a job and mad at the world. Using LabSim, we turn that around and help them find new skills.” IT courses can be highly effective for online delivery when a tool such as LabSim is used to provide hands-on learning while allowing students to work at their own pace and on their own time.

Have you used LabSim in an online college or university course? If so, we'd love to hear about your experience. Leave a comment or email experience@testout.com.

Emily Howard, TestOut

New A+ and What Makes LabSim So Great

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:37:00 +0000

If you’ve ever spoken with a TestOut salesperson, you know what an “open” simulation is. We’ve gone to great lengths to get the word out about our simulations because they set our training apart from all the other materials you could purchase. When you train with TestOut's LabSim, you’ll have real-world experience because our simulations require you to perform real tasks without forcing you down a specific path.

I’ll give you an example, and I think you’ll see exactly what makes LabSim so great…

Just imagine that you are learning what to do when helping someone fix a computer that can’t access files on a corporate network. This kind of problem can be related to any number of things: perhaps the computer hasn’t been configured with the correct TCP/IP settings, the DHCP server may not have been configured to accept the computer's MAC address, the computer may need to be joined to a domain, or the network cable may have even come loose. In the real world you would investigate all of those possible causes. So why use a simulator that doesn’t allow you to check every one of those possibilities as well?

With LabSim you can do it all. Our simulators won’t give you extra assistance that isn’t available in the real world either. Our video instructors will teach you everything you need to know to perform all the tasks the simulator will throw at you. Changing the simulated computer’s Bluetooth settings probably won’t help with the networking problem I just described, but the simulator will let you try it anyway, without ever letting on that you might be on the wrong track.

And just in case we haven’t made a fan out of you yet, we’ve just enhanced our simulators with new capabilities. We’ve just released an updated version of our A+ Essentials course, our first course to combine Hardware, BIOS and Operating System tasks into a single simulator!

Now when you assemble a computer in the hardware simulator, you can actually plug the power cord into a power strip, push the power button and watch the computer boot up. If you’ve put together a bad configuration, the BIOS will let you know and you’ll have to return to the hardware bench. But when you get everything assembled correctly, it’s a thing of beauty. You’ll actually see the simulated operating system installing all the drivers for the hardware you’ve installed and you’ll get real-world results for any issues.

Remember that networking problem I described before? In our new simulators, you could actually view the Network and Sharing Center in the simulated computer, then switch to the hardware view and plug and unplug cables to your heart’s content. Be careful about the power cords though; you can actually shut down the simulated computer that way, but you’ll lose points for that! Once you get both ends of the network cable plugged into the right places you can return to the simulated Windows system (unless you killed the simulated computer and have to go back through BIOS), and voila—the Network and Sharing Center will update with any simulated network it is now able to find.

The only thing closer to the real world would be… the real world.

--Nate Garner, TestOut Lead Software Engineer

New LabSim A+ Course: An Interview with Don Whitnah, Part II

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 17:41:00 +0000

Read Part II of my interview with Don Whitnah, TestOut vice president of product development, about the new A+:

How does the new LabSim A+ course prepare students for practical, hands-on application? What are some examples in the new course?

Don: We’ve designed the lab scenarios in the course to expose you to as much hardware and as many operating system tasks as we can. For instance, we have piles of hardware we’ve purchased to make sure our labs cover lots of different hardware. In class or at home, you may have one computer to work with, and you don’t get to see all the components. How many classes show you a BTX or an NLX motherboard? They’re covered in the exam objectives, but where would you get experience working with them? Texts might give descriptions of them, but our labs let you perform configuration tasks on them.

See what happens when you unplug the network cable; what does it look like in Windows? Get practice identifying problems and taking all the necessary steps to correct the problems. There are also troubleshooting questions on the A+ exam. In our labs you work through the scenario, so you don’t just memorize the solution, you’ve actually practiced doing the solution.

Why is A+ such a popular certification?

Don: A+ is popular because it’s an entry level certification and covers the basics that people need to know. Many people just want or need to learn about computers and how to manage and use them. There are also college courses that teach basic computer management repair tasks and use the A+ objectives as a basis for what they teach. So, A+ training is popular even if you’re not going to take the certification exam.
Another reason A+ certification is important is that many employers in the field of building and repairing computers require it. CompTIA is an industry trade association. Companies can belong to the association and then CompTIA takes their input for what to cover in the exam. They say to the company, “We want the exam to be useful to you, so what are you trying to accomplish? What do your employees need to know?”

Another reason A+ is so relevant today is the Department of Defense initiative 8570 that requires government employees to prove certain competencies. While it’s geared a lot toward security, A+ is also a part of what will satisfy requirements, depending on your job role.

Why should IT students consider becoming A+ certified?

Don: A+ certification might be required by an employer, or an employer may give a bonus or a raise if you get certified. Also, the Department of Defense requirement for certification may affect your job.

When you’re applying to jobs, some employers won’t even look at your resume if you don’t have certain certifications. Basically, they make certification a job requirement.

Two candidates may be equally qualified, but certification shows initiative and depth of understanding. It’s an extra factor to help you get the job. Certifications don’t substitute for experience, but they may be the one thing that gets you the interview or differentiates you from other candidates.

New LabSim A+ Course: An Interview with Don Whitnah

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 16:04:00 +0000

With TestOut preparing for a release of the new LabSim A+ course this month, we spoke to Don Whitnah, vice president of product development at TestOut, to learn about the new A+. Read our conversation. (First half of our conversation is posted here; watch for the second half in a few days!)

Why did TestOut create new LabSim A+ courses?

Don: CompTIA updated the exams, so we created new courses. Our goal is to provide training to help you pass the exam.

CompTIA updates their exams for two main reasons. The first is a matter of time. It’s been 3 years since the last exam revision, and new hardware and new operating systems are being used. So, CompTIA updates their objectives to remain relevant. Also, CompTIA works closely with many employers who are using new devices in their companies and want to see that knowledge tested on the certification exam.

Second, CompTIA must remain accredited as a certification exam provider, showing that they use proper processes in creating exams. One process required is that they periodically revise their exams.

What has changed in CompTIA’s A+ objectives and exams?

Don: At first glance, the new objectives look very similar to the old ones. But looking at the details, you start to notice changes. For example, new devices are being tested—new hardware that has come along in the past 3 years, such as Blu-ray discs, solid state hard drives, SATA hard drives, Crossfire or SLI video cards. Also, new operating systems have been released, and the new objectives include Vista, including 64-bit computers and operating systems. The focus is shifting to the newer stuff. Similarly, they’ve dropped older, obsolete hardware from the exam.

A+ has always been made up of two exams, but now they’re changing what’s in the exams. Now, the first exam, A+ Essentials, is the theory, basics, and definitions—how things work, what are the pieces, what do they mean. The second exam is the A+ Practical Application and tests more “hands-on” information, such as how you configure, install, and troubleshoot.

The Practical Application test is still a multiple choice exam that they hope will identify the things you know. For example, a question may describe a scenario or problem and ask you how to fix it. Or give you a situation and ask you what to do next or what got left out. They hope you can say, “I’ve done this before, I know how to do this.”

How is this LabSim A+ course different from the last LabSim A+ course?

Don: The new LabSim A+ courses are different because we’ve matched them to CompTIA’s new objectives. But, more than that, the courses are improved on the whole. We now use multiple instructors in our video instruction, which adds variety to the course. We’ve taken our time and analyzed the objectives to make sure everything is there that should be and nothing is there that shouldn’t be.

The biggest difference is that we’ve completely redone the labs. Obviously, we’ve gone through every scenario and made sure everything that’s covered is relevant, new, and important. For example, we teach new hardware, and everything uses Vista as the operating system you work with. We’ve redesigned and rewritten every scenario. Not minor modifications, not a rehash of old stuff, but complete rewrites. We’ve also completely reprogrammed it to be optimized for online delivery.

The other big change is the most relevant for learning. In the past, labs where you install hardware or perform operating system tasks were separate labs. Now, hardware and operating system tasks are all combined in the labs, not separate, so you can see how the hardware installation affects the operating system. For example, a real-world task is to take a hardware component, plug it in, and configure it. That used to happen in separate labs, but now it’s all one activity. It makes the learning more realistic.

What makes LabSim the best choice for A+ training?

Don: One reason is the depth of content included in the course. You can go several places to get info about A+—books, videos, etc. But LabSim offers it all in one course, including text, videos, hands-on labs, and exam prep. LabSim is really the smorgasbord, not the a la carte.

LabSim even teaches stuff you won’t see on the exam. If you’re at home and want to set up a wireless network—you may not be tested on that in the exam—but in the real world, you would need to know. Or if you’re buying a new monitor, how do you know if the $500 monitor is worth the expense over the $200 monitor? It won’t show up on the exam, but you’d want to know. The LabSim course is very applicable and useful, even if you’re not taking the certification exam.

Another thing is the hands-on training. If you went to an instructor-led A+ class, you may get 5 days of classroom training on both courses. If you just want to pass the exam and get out of there, that may be okay. But if you really want to learn and understand, it’s not enough.

Some instructor-led training classes have some hands-on activities you can perform, but how many offer five different motherboards to practice on or allow you to tear things apart and drastically change a system? In a class setting, they’re limited both for time and hardware.

Broaden Skills for Your IT Career in 2010

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 16:08:00 +0000

Now and then I write about the IT job market and the outlook for new graduates. Many students approaching graduation in the near future are looking for insight about the skills employers will expect them to have. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal addresses this topic with useful data and advice. Writer Diana Middleton reports, “Technology, health care, and education will continue to be hot job sectors, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ outlook for job growth between 2008 and 2018.” Additionally, a recent survey conducted by CareerBuilder.com shows that of the 2,700 hiring managers surveyed, one-third plan to add technology staff in 2010. Reports like these should lend confidence to students majoring in IT, computer science, and related fields.

At the same time, data show that employers are looking for specialized and crossover skills in their applicants. A technology degree is still critical, but the applicant who is hired will likely have additional skills and experience that may not have come directly from a college or university course of study. “That's because not all of those jobs will be purely techie in nature,” writes Middleton. She quotes David Foote, chief executive officer of IT research firm Foote Partners, who “advises current computer-science students to couple their degrees with studies in marketing, accounting, or finance.” Foote said, "Before, people widely believed that all you needed to have were deep, nerdy skills. But companies are looking for people with multiple skill sets who can move fluidly with marketing or operations."

What does this mean for you? Find ways to broaden your skill sets, whether through additional coursework that may or may not be a part of your major, or through part-time work experience and personal experience. Certifications are also available that prove competencies. For technology majors specifically, skills in online and social marketing, as well as search engine optimization and marketing analytics combine well with technology education. User-experience design is another high-demand skill, as well as expertise in green technologies.

What have you done to broaden your skills in preparation for your career?

Emily Howard, TestOut

LabSim a Success at DeVry’s SkillsUSA Competition

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:38:00 +0000

Two weeks ago I wrote about the Texas high school students participating in the SkillsUSA practice competition hosted by DeVry University in Irving. The event went off successfully, and word is, teachers and students alike were “very impressed.” Bill McClure, Associate Dean of the College of Engineering and Information Sciences at DeVry, oversaw the computer maintenance competition. “The students really enjoyed being able to use LabSim and thought it was pretty cool they could perform the tasks in a simulated environment,” McClure said. “From our standpoint running the competition, being able to use LabSim made our life much simpler. It worked out really, really well.”

Planning the content for the skills test hasn’t always been easy. With more than 90 students in the competition, it would have been difficult for DeVry to prepare a physical lab and have the hardware available for each student. LabSim simulates a physical lab and allows students to complete real-life, hands-on tasks without needing physical hardware. “LabSim’s simulations made it very easy because we didn’t need to worry about the logistics,” McClure said.

DeVry chose two sections of the LabSim A+ course to test students in computer maintenance: installing a hard drive and creating logical partitions. “Before we started, I asked if anyone had ever used LabSim before, and no students had,” McClure said. But several of the students’ teachers were familiar with LabSim and thought it was a great idea to use it as the test content for SkillsUSA.

Eric Manuel, Electronics and Technology teacher at Duncanville High School in Duncanville, Texas, said, “This was our second year participating in the competition hosted by DeVry, and it gets better every year. They’re including more simulations like we will see at contests—combined with written tests—giving the students questions on command line interface, operating systems, and troubleshooting, modifying, or repairing a computer.”

Quinton King, a senior at Duncanville High School, competed in the computer maintenance tests. He said, “The simulation was really effective because what you do there is what you would do in real life.” King said the students used LabSim’s tutorials to understand the tasks they needed to perform in the simulated environment. For example, even though he had never created partitions before, the LabSim tutorial helped him figure it out and he was able to complete the exam.

Motivation for Competition
Most students competing in the computer maintenance category are enrolled in high school technology courses focused on A+ content, including computer maintenance. Their technology teachers can reference guidelines by SkillsUSA to know what skills may be tested in competition and then help their students train. To prepare his students, Manuel says he teaches his curriculum in class and holds extra tutorials outside of class—but not until after the practice competitions. “I don’t hold extra tutorials until after the new year—on purpose. I don’t set the students up for practice competition. Rather, the practice competition functions as a pre-assessment. It shows the students what they can expect in competitions and gets them motivated.”

In the recent competition hosted by DeVry, Manuel’s students learned where they need additional training. “My students enjoyed the level of complexity in the exams, but they thought maybe they could have done better, especially on the troubleshooting concepts,” Manuel said. “But now I know where to focus in my tutorials.”

Manuel’s students, including King, are looking now toward their next big event: the District 6 regional SkillsUSA competition in February held at Texas State Technical College Waco.

Emily Howard, TestOut

CompTIA's Initiative "Getting America Back to Work"

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:34:00 +0000

College isn’t a bad place to be when the economy is suffering and unemployment rates are high. But as you near the end of your education, you may be glad to learn of programs in place to help graduates and other IT professionals who are looking for work.

CompTIA—a provider of vendor-neutral IT certifications—just introduced their program Getting America Back to Work, designed to help job seekers in the IT field acquire job skills through training and certification. Skills assessment and job placement tools (a database of current job openings around the country) are also part of the Getting America Back to Work program.

CompTIA’s program will include their own certifications, many of which are widely accepted in the IT industry. You’ve probably heard of some CompTIA’s certifications, particularly the A+ certification that many companies require of their entry-level IT staff. Network+ and Security+ certifications are also included as options in the Getting America Back to Work program.

Of course, you can still pursue relevant job skills, training, and certifications on your own if you don’t want to participate in CompTIA’s program. But the idea is clear: additional training will always help your job search, and certifications show potential employers that you’re willing to go the extra mile in acquiring job skills and keeping them current. And that may be just what you need to get a step ahead of other applicants in a competitive job market.

Emily Howard, TestOut

IT Salary Guide: A Tool in Preparing for Your IT Career

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:01:00 +0000

If you’re getting close to graduating from a technology major or course of study, you’re probably already thinking about the job market and wondering what you may find. The 2010 IT Salary Guide was recently published by Datamation, and it gives a useful and fairly comprehensive look at salaries in the IT industry, including how salaries differ by geographic region, as well as the sectors of the IT industry that are experiencing the highest growth and demand.

Although the data presented in the 2010 IT Salary Guide is indicative of the recent overall economic slump, Datamation writer James Maguire wrote, “IT staffers, compared with the overall workforce, remain some of the highest paid professionals. A veteran IT pro who can change with the times—and versatility is more important than ever—can command a good salary even in rough times.”

Twelve IT job roles are assessed in the 2010 Salary Guide, including Developer/Programmer Analyst, Software Engineer, Systems Administrator, Network Engineer, Systems Security Administrator, and others. If any of these professions sound like the direction you want to take, I recommend spending some time analyzing the information presented in the guide. For example, with each professional role in the survey is listed the skills that lead to a pay increase in that role—including the amount of pay increase, by percent, for having each skill.

Many skills that lead to higher salaries are those that are acquired through on-the-job experience, such as Cisco network administration skills, Windows server skills, or database skills. Of course, getting that first job is an important step. Alternately, many of these same skills can also be acquired through certification training that includes realistic simulated labs, instructional videos, and quizzes on the material taught.

However you choose to acquire the skills and experience for your career, the 2010 IT Salary Guide will be a helpful tool for understanding the job market you’re about to enter and determining where you want to focus your time and attention in training for it.

Emily Howard, TestOut

TestOut's Year-End Blowout Sale

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:18:00 +0000

Now is the best time to buy TestOut's LabSim certification training courses. During our 11th Annual Year-End Blowout Sale, you get the best prices TestOut has ever offered on the LabSim library of courses.

If you've been thinking about certifications or waiting for the right time to start training, this offer will help you get started.

The LabSim library of certification training courses includes training for 12 important IT certifications:

MCITP
MCSE
MCTS
SSCP
CISSP
CCNA
CCNP
A+
Network+
Security+
Server+
Linux+

Every purchase of a LabSim training library also comes with TestOut's Update Guarantee that gives you access to every new LabSim course developed in the 12 months following your purchase.

TestOut's Year-End Blowout Sale ends December 31, 2009. Visit www.TestOut.com to make your move!

DeVry Uses LabSim A+ in SkillsUSA Event

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 21:50:00 +0000

High school technology students are participating in a unique, skills-building event today at the Irving Campus of DeVry University, and TestOut’s LabSim A+ course is supporting their experience. Part of a SkillsUSA event, 85 students from high schools around north Texas are competing in the computer maintenance skills test that includes both written and hands-on portions. LabSim’s A+ course is the content used in the skills test, with a focus on the hands-on lab simulations that differentiate LabSim from other A+ courses.

Today’s competition hosted by DeVry is a practice competition to help prepare students for the state and national SkillsUSA competitions in coming months, where winners will be awarded their actual A+ certification. Bill McClure, Associate Dean of the College of Engineering and Information Sciences at DeVry, said, “We set up the same types of scenarios, exams, and skills tests that students will have at the state and national levels. They get exposure to having to complete the tasks within a time limit.” McClure said that students don’t see the requirements for their computer maintenance test until they are at the competition, and they have to “work under pressure” to complete the exams.

Students have been preparing for the computer maintenance competition through the coursework and labs they’ve completed in their high schools. In some of their classes, they’ve experienced building computers or taking them apart—tasks they would face in a real A+ certification exam. “The challenge for us at DeVry is to come up with skills tests similar to what students have been exposed to in high school.” DeVry also receives guidelines from SkillsUSA that help them plan the test content and make it similar to A+.

DeVry knew that LabSim would be their best solution to the computer maintenance test. DeVry uses the LabSim A+ course in their own college courses, and DeVry instructors were familiar enough with it to make suggestions about the specific LabSim modules to include in the SkillsUSA competition. Even though the competing students have never used the LabSim A+ software, McClure and DeVry instructors felt confident incorporating it. “We thought LabSim was a good way to approach this competition because it is really easy to work with,” McClure said.

We’re looking forward to hearing from DeVry and learning the outcome of the competition. Watch for a follow-up entry on The LabSim Experience to read more details about the students’ experiences with LabSim and A+.

More College Students Taking Classes Online

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:08:00 +0000

With rapid growth in online learning, tools for effective online teaching become urgently important. David Nagel of Campus Technology recently reported, “Nearly 12 million post-secondary students in the United States take some or all of their classes online right now. But this number will skyrocket to more than 22 million in the next five years, according to data released recently by research firm Ambient Insight.”

That’s a lot of students taking online courses. But even more interesting is Ambient Insight’s forecast that the number of students who take all of their courses in physical classrooms will drop from 15.15 million in 2009 to just 5.14 million by 2014. The landscape of college education in the United States is definitely changing. What tools of technology will make this change successful?

Penn Foster Career School in Scranton, Pennsylvania, is a school of independent study with many courses offered online. Penn Foster utilizes LabSim training to offer students a course in Crime Scene Investigation. The training in the LabSim course gives Penn Foster students relevant, hands-on technology education. And while LabSim courses are frequently taught in a physical classroom, they are also extremely effective as online curriculum. Online students succeed in LabSim working at their own pace, viewing instructional videos, online lessons, and hands-on lab simulations. Built-in section quizzes and practice exams test students’ knowledge, and LabSim’s reporting system tracks the progress and scores of each student—accessible by instructors any time.

What other tools do you utilize in online courses to make learning successful?

TestOut Wins Gold in 2009 Windows IT Pro Editors’ Best Awards

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:04:00 +0000

Congratulations, TestOut!

TestOut's LabSim is the Gold winner, selected by the editors at Windows IT Pro in the 2009 Editors’ Best Awards, in the category Best Training and Certification Product or Service.

Plus, TestOut was awarded Silver in the 2009 Windows IT Pro Community Choice Awards, thanks to our loyal customers who contributed their votes.

The Industry’s Best Training and Certification Product
We’re honored that LabSim has been recognized as the industry’s best training and certification product. TestOut’s LabSim training courses are developed with thorough planning and research to be accurate, current, and to give IT learners realistic, hands-on experience working with technology. When students train with LabSim, they prepare not only for a certification exam, but for their future career.

LabSim training courses set themselves apart from other training options with high-quality online labs where students work in a simulated environment, utilizing real-to-life hardware, operating systems, and networking components. Video instruction taught by industry experts, written lessons, and practice exams support the complete training experience provided by LabSim.

Your Experiences with LabSim
We'd love to hear about your experiences using LabSim training courses. Email us at experience@testout.com.

Happy 18th Birthday, TestOut

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:14:00 +0000

Happy 18th TestOut!

Eighteen years ago today, TestOut began offering certification training courses. While the courses have evolved with the evolution of technology through the years, the goal has always been the same -- to help individuals be more skilled and marketable in their IT careers. It's been an amazing adventure and we look forward to another wonderful 18 years to come!

Fred Ball of Zions Bank, who does the daily "Speaking on Business" on KSL, shared some of those adventures on the radio back in June. It was a nice early birthday present!

http://www.zionsbancorporation.com/zionsbank/fb/fb20090616.html

This is Fred Ball for Zions Bank, speaking on business.

For nearly 18 years, Pleasant Grove-based TestOut Corporation's mission has remained the same—to make a real difference in people's lives. And it's working.

Back in 1991, the exploding growth in technology was creating a real demand for certifications and training. As a result, Noel (know-el) Vallejo launched the information technology (IT) certification-training company, in hopes he could help individuals be more skilled and marketable in their IT careers. Through the years, Noel has seen TestOut help thousands, including his brother, become trained IT support specialists through extensive LabSim training. So, what's the secret?

TestOut's LabSim software is built around what no one else in the training field offers: online labs. These online labs put students in a virtual environment that lets them simultaneously learn in class and practice the technologies as if they were using an actual $30,000 physical computer lab. And they do it all from their personal computer, whether they're taking courses online or in a traditional classroom setting.

Coupled with video training, practice exams and text lessons, these online labs give students interactive, real-world scenarios that enable them to acquire the skills necessary to succeed in their careers.

Schools such as DeVry University, ITT Tech and the University of Phoenix are just a sampling of institutions helping their students gain experience with LabSim. This hands-on experience is especially critical in an economy with such a high unemployment rate. Who is going to get the job: the candidate who knows how to do it and is certified to do so or the one who doesn't? Noel says it's a no brainer.

Getting the hands-on experience and certification required for an IT career can make all the difference. TestOut Corporation and its LabSim Online Labs make this experience possible. Mission accomplished.

For Zions Bank, I'm Fred Ball. I'm speaking on business.

Free LabSim Practice Exams in November 2009

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:29:00 +0000

Have you wondered how well you would do on an IT certification exam if you took it today? Would you pass?

During the month of November, TestOut is giving you the chance to take LabSim practice exams for free. Every LabSim certification training course includes a realistic practice exam that helps learners gauge their readiness for the actual certification exam. During November, you can have free access to the LabSim practice exams.

LabSim courses include training—instructional videos, hands-on lab simulations, written lessons—and practice exams for the following IT certifications:

Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist. The starting point in Microsoft certifications, MCTS evaluates your skills on key Microsoft technologies, such as Windows operating systems, Exchange server, SQL server, and Visual Studio.
Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer. Evaluates skills for Windows Server and Active Directory administration. Prepares you for jobs such as systems engineer, technical support engineer, and system analyst.
Microsoft Certified IT Professional. Evaluates your skills for professional IT job roles, such as database administrator or enterprise messaging administrator.
Systems Security Certified Professional. Prepares you for jobs such as network security engineer, security systems analyst, or security administrator.
Certified Information Systems Security Professional. Evaluates experience in access control, application security, cryptography, risk management, security architecture, and more.
Cisco Certified Network Associate. Entry-level networking certification, demonstrates your skills in installing, configuring, operating, and troubleshooting networks.
Cisco Certified Network Professional. Demonstrates ability to install, configure, and troubleshoot converged LANs and WANs with 100-500 or more nodes, manage routers and switches, and manage applications that integrate voice, wireless, and security into the network.
Linux+. Demonstrates a fundamental understanding of Linux systems, including command line, user administration, file permissions, software configuration, and management of Linux-based clients.
Server+. Demonstrates technical knowledge in areas such as RAID, SCSI and multiple CPUs, as well as capabilities with disaster recovery.
A+. Entry-level certification, tests the fundamentals of computer technology, networking and security, as well as communication skills, professionalism, and hands-on understanding.
Security+. Demonstrates competency in system security, network infrastructure, access control, and organizational security.
Network+. Focuses on managing, maintaining, troubleshooting, installing, and configuring basic network infrastructure.

Go to www.testout.com/exam to access the free LabSim practice exams. If you pass the LabSim exam, you’re ready to certify. If not, you’ll need some additional training, but you’ll know exactly what your areas of weakness are and where you need to focus your training from now on.

Good luck, and let us know how you do!

CompTIA Survey of IT Professionals Shows Certification Strategies

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:10:00 +0000

CompTIA—the trade association that offers industry-accepted certifications such as A+, Security+, and others—released data from their recent survey of 1500 IT professionals. The survey asked respondents about their certification strategies, and the data they presented should give insight to students planning to pursue technology certifications in the near future. Here are several key points from the survey’s results that may be of particular interest to students and instructors:

Security is a topic at the top of IT professionals’ minds as they consider certifications. 37% of survey respondents plan to pursue a security certification in the next five years. With security threats occurring more and more often in every industry, better training in information assurance and security is a must.
The top two reasons people pursue certifications are 1) to enhance their resume and 2) for personal growth. These reasons, given by 88% of the IT professionals surveyed, probably sound familiar to you and may be the same reasons you as a student pursue certifications.
The average length of time respondents spent preparing for their certification exams was 44.5 hours, and 1/3 of respondents said they spent up to 60 hours preparing. If trained IT professionals are spending this much time in test preparation, these exams obviously aren’t the type to cram for! You may be able to complete your test preparation as part of IT coursework at your school.
When asked who pays for the certification exam, 50% of respondents said they pay for their own, and 38% get their employer to pay for it. CompTIA senior vice president Terry Erdle said, “This confirms that many professionals are truly committed to the IT field and take pride in developing their skills and showcasing their expertise.”

How do the responses given in the CompTIA survey compare to your own strategies for pursuing certifications? Leave a comment or email us experience@testout.com.

Do Your Students Perform Better in Online Courses?

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:43:00 +0000

Some instructors are reluctant to teach online courses because they’re concerned that students won’t receive the same high-quality learning experience online as they would receive in a classroom with face-to-face interaction with the teacher and other students. Especially for technology studies, offering the courses online begs the question: Are students really gaining the necessary practical experience for understanding the technology? At Henderson College in Henderson, Kentucky, instructor Kimberly Conley was asked for years to teach an online A+ Essentials class, but she refused. She said, “I could teach a theory class all day online, . . . but it’s impossible to teach a practical, hands-on application class online.”

Through technology for Web-based video, instant messaging, and collaborative work online, however, opportunities for interaction in online courses are growing, and studies have been conducted with surprising results. A recent report written for the Department of Education in the United States examined 99 quantitative studies comparing students’ performance in online versus traditional classrooms, mostly in college or adult-learning courses. The studies found that, on average, students in online courses ranked higher in tested performance than students taking the same course in a traditional classroom setting.

New York Times technology reporter Steve Lohr suggested that in the past, “Online education amounted to little more than electronic versions of the old-line correspondence course.” He continued, “The real promise of online education, experts say, is providing learning experiences that are tailored more to individual students than is possible in classrooms. That enables more ‘learning by doing,’ which many students find more engaging and useful.”

LabSim certification training courses are a fine example of the “learning by doing” that can be available for online technology courses, and many colleges have incorporated LabSim into their distance IT curriculum because LabSim allows students to actually perform in a simulation the tasks they are taught. At Henderson College, Conley discovered LabSim in 2006, and she was finally willing to teach the A+ Essentials course online. Now she can give her students the practical, real-world environment they need—“all the benefits of a physical lab without the constant upkeep and expense of a physical lab,” she says.

What experiences do you have teaching a course online, and how have technology tools improved your students’ online education? From your perspective, do students perform better in your online class or in your traditional classroom? Leave a comment, or email us your story at experience@testout.com.

Entry-level Certification Training Gives Students What They Need

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:33:00 +0000

Teachers and professors, if you’re giving your students training for an entry-level type of certification—A+, Network+, etc.—you’re giving them exactly what they need, according to reports from certification industry experts.

“Certifications for workers in the information technology industry, historically targeted at professionals with at least a few years of experience on the job, are more and more being tailored for entry-level candidates,” wrote Certification Magazine’s John Venator. And we’ve noticed that at TestOut as well. Our LabSim A+ training course is by far the most studied course.

The A+ industry-standard certification is required by many corporations for their IT and technical support staff because it demonstrates a broad base of knowledge and competency in areas like installation, preventative maintenance, networking, security, and troubleshooting. When schools incorporate training for a certification exam such as A+ into their technology curriculum, they’re teaching students the core concepts that corporations need most in their employees but frequently can’t find. Preparing students with A+ and other entry-level certifications gives them a powerful advantage as they begin their job search.

Higher-level certifications will certainly still be useful for your students, but more important in the future, when they’ve chosen a specialization for their career. “Certification vendors have begun targeting the entry-level crowd, offering certs aimed at proving your starting point rather than your final destination. The traditional, powerhouse, industry-standard type certifications aren’t going away, but they are getting augmented with a throwback to the apprentice levels and a future eye toward the specialization sector,” wrote Certification Magazine’s Matt Walker.

We’re sure many of you have seen your students succeed because of the starting point they received through certification training in your classroom. We’d love to hear your experiences! Leave a comment or email us at experience@testout.com.

Microsoft's Transition from 70-640 to 83-640

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 22:59:00 +0000

You may have heard that Microsoft has updated the 70-640—Windows Server 2008 Active Directory—certification exam within the United States and some other countries to include performance-based questions. The new version of 70-640 is called 83-640. Both versions of the exam count equally toward the MCITP certification, but if you’re in the United States, you’ll only have the option to take the 83-640 when you arrive at the testing center.

What’s the difference between the two versions? Performance-based questions. The purpose of performance-based questions is to measure your realistic skills. Multiple-choice questions can measure knowledge, but performance-based questions go further and ask you to actually perform real tasks.

Even though Microsoft just added performance-based questions to their exam, LabSim has always included training for performance-based exams in our interactive, hands-on lab simulations. We want your training to be complete, no matter what type of exam you take.

Preparing for a performance-based exam requires more than just studying a book about the concepts in the exam. You’ll need hands-on practice to prepare for the hands-on evaluation. Marc Vaglio-Laurin of SAS made a great analogy about it: “When you learned to drive a car, you didn’t just read the book. You got behind the wheel and you practiced, and most of us don’t have our own car to practice on,” he said. “…IT performance-based tests are no different. You have to have seat time with the technology. You have to have experience driving. It doesn’t have to be with a live system. There are lots of training classes out there where they use simulators. ”

Vaglio-Laurin is right; “seat time with the technology” is crucial, but it doesn’t have to mean purchasing all the hardware and components to practice with at home. Training courses like LabSim and others offer simulated environments that prepare you for the performance-based evaluations you’ll face in 83-640. If you do have a home lab to practice with, use it in conjunction with a well-designed training course to ensure you’re fully prepared for the exam.

LabSim Training Course in Crime Scene Investigation

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 19:24:00 +0000

Do you teach criminal justice in a high school or college? If so, how do you give students the hands-on training they need on crime scene investigations? Having a class full of students at an actual crime scene isn’t very practical.

To prepare for a career in criminal justice—as police officer, medical examiner, or crime scene investigator, for example—students need to learn correct procedures for:

• Lifting fingerprints
• Performing DNA tests
• Handling crime scene evidence
• Interviewing suspects
• Working in emergency dispatch centers
• Investigating death
• Photographing and documenting crime scenes

Teaching a full classroom of criminal justice students is difficult to do effectively unless a way can be found to individualize each student’s opportunity for hands-on experience with each procedure.

King Career Center in Anchorage, Alaska—a vocational high school for grades 11–12—solved this issue by incorporating the LabSim Crime Scene Investigation course from TestOut into its Public Safety & Security classes in 2007. The CSI training suite is full of graphics, simulations, and video trainings that give students hands-on, realistic experience for future work in criminal justice careers. With LabSim in the classroom, every student completes each hands-on simulation exercise—realistically practicing each task they’ll need to learn and master for success in the criminal justice field.

Instructor Teena Calkin explains, “After we walk through all of the terminology and bookwork-type material, we pop in the LabSim crime scene scenarios and they actually get to work through them as if they were playing a virtual game. It makes learning fun.” Watch a clip from the LabSim CSI course to see how students learn through simulated experience.

In subsequent entries on our blog, we’ll talk more about the LabSim Crime Scene Investigation course and the benefits of using it or other simulated labs instead of physical labs in your criminal justice classroom. Specifically, we’ll discuss how it can help individualize the instruction for your students and lower the costs of teaching your course. We’ll also discuss situations where the LabSim CSI course is an ideal supplement to a physical lab in your classroom.

How to Prepare for Your IT Certification Exam

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 21:49:00 +0000

Are you preparing for a certification exam? Since it’s our specialty at TestOut to help you prepare for your exams, we’ve spent significant time learning what you need and creating training materials that can best help you. Consider these ideas as you plan how best to prepare for your exam.

What type of exam are you preparing for?
Are you preparing for a skills-based or performance-based exam? Skills-based exams test fundamental understanding of concepts and skills, while performance-based exams go a step further to test your ability to actually perform the functions you know. Examples of skills-based exams are the CompTIA A+ Essentials exam and the CCNA exam (Cisco Certified Network Associate). Examples of performance-based exams are the A+ Practical Application exam and the MCITP 83-640 exam (Configuring Windows Server 2008 Active Directory).

If you’re preparing for a skills-based exam, instructor-led training, written lessons in a book or on the computer, and practice exams will help you. In addition, hands-on simulations can also help solidify your understanding of the concepts you’ve studied, either individually or in a group setting.

Kellye Whitney of Certification Magazine wrote about performance-based exams: “Today’s employers need to know that the candidates they examine for contract and full-time employment have the right skills and are capable of executing a job. Accordingly, preparation for these more intense and rigorous performance- or competency-based exams requires more effort and more time to study.”

For performance-based exams, your best option is to train in a like manner—with performance-based study materials, such as hands-on labs.

What type of learner are you?
Different routes are available for different learning styles. For example, if you are a self-motivated learner and don’t mind working through problems on your own, consider a computer-based training (CBT) course. However, if your learning style is more visual, an instructor-led class might be a better fit. In a classroom setting, the instructor is nearby to answer questions. Knowing what style fits your needs best will be to your advantage in preparing for your certification exams.

How much time do you have?
Many working professionals don’t have time available to attend classes, making CBT courses a great route because they allow for self-paced learning. If you do have time to attend a class over a quarter or semester, many colleges and certification prep companies offer courses. Distance learning programs or boot camps might also be the answer for those who have time; certification candidates can familiarize themselves with testing concepts through instructor-led courses. Knowing your time frame will help you select the right certification training.

Do you have a friend or colleague who is also taking the exam?
We all love a study buddy! “Find someone who is interested in taking the exam, has taken the exam or is maybe at a similar level in terms of experience, and challenge each other,” says Marc Vaglio-Laurin of SAS.

Should Colleges Incorporate IT Certification Training into Their Curriculum?

experience@testout.com (The LabSim Experience.) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 16:21:00 +0000

Many colleges across the nation are beginning to offer their information technology (IT) students more practical opportunities—opportunities for learning not just out of a book, but through hands-on experiences—by actually doing what the textbooks teach. Wise faculty and administrators recognize the need for hands-on training to prepare their students for careers in the IT field.

Administrators at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, Louisiana, were recently featured in an article in Campus Technology for their efforts to make their IT curriculum more current and relevant to the needs of the IT industry. The university is incorporating curriculum from IBM to focus more on practical skills. Nicholls State Professor Neset Hikmet explained that the revamped curriculum will “better prepare our graduates to help organizations use technology to intelligently respond to the global trends and disruptions affecting businesses, while also achieving a sustainable competitive advantage.” Students complete four semesters of practicum that include “work in IT service management, an apprenticeship, lab, and simulation.” Students are also eligible to receive accompanying certification through the program.

Nicholls State University understands that they play a key role in the placement and success of their students in careers after graduation. Incorporating apprenticeships, labs, simulations, and certification into the curriculum serves both the students—who are better prepared and qualified for their fields—and the university—which enjoys a better reputation for its IT program and its job placement for graduates.

Furthermore, incorporating hands-on experience and certification training into a college IT curriculum offers students the best setting for learning and practicing the material companies need them to know. Speaking to Certification Magazine, Marc Vaglio-Laurin, manager of certification test development at SAS, recommended that college settings are the best place for students to prepare for certification exams “because quarter- or semester-long college courses offer a longer period in which to study, practice and acquaint oneself with performance-based tasks.”

TestOut works with many college campuses that have incorporated IT certification training into their IT curriculum because the training teaches their students what they need to know—not only for their IT education, but also for their careers.