Welcome

Last updated on 2026-03-10 | Edit this page

Overview

Questions

  • What is The Carpentries and how do we approach teaching?
  • What should you expect from this training?

Objectives

  • Identify common ground with some of your fellow participants.
  • Understand a general structure and core goals of The Carpentries.
  • Predict what will and will not be covered in this training.
  • Know where to find The Carpentries Code of Conduct and how to report an incident.
Discussion

Pronouns and Names

Using correct names and pronouns (e.g. “she/her”) is important for setting a respectful tone. Learning these is hard to do quickly, so we recommend displaying it prominently during the training.

In an online training, give everyone a moment to update their display name to reflect how they would like to be addressed.

At an in-person event, we recommend supplying name tags and markers, or using plain paper to create table-displayed name placards.

Note that pronouns are personal and some participants might prefer not to share them. Do not force people to share their pronouns. One reason to avoid pressuring people to share them is to allow people to share their gender identity only when they feel ready to. It is, however, necessary for all participants to use pronouns and names as listed when participants provide them.

The resources below can provide additional guidance on respectful pronoun usage:

Photo of an Icebreaker ship, named Stephan Jantzen
A different kind of “icebreaker.” Photo credit: Grand-Duc, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Grand-Duc

Before The Course Begins

Discussion

Getting to know each other

If the Trainer has chosen an icebreaker question, participate by writing your answers in the Etherpad.

Code of Conduct

To make clear what is expected, everyone participating in The Carpentries activities is required to abide by our Code of Conduct. Any form of behaviour to exclude, intimidate, or cause discomfort is a violation of the Code of Conduct. In order to foster a positive and professional learning environment we encourage you to:

  • Use welcoming and inclusive language
  • Be respectful of different viewpoints and experiences
  • Gracefully accept constructive criticism
  • Focus on what is best for the community
  • Show courtesy and respect towards other community members

If you believe someone is violating the Code of Conduct, we ask that you report it to The Carpentries Code of Conduct Committee by completing this form.

Introductions

Hello everyone, and welcome to The Carpentries Learner-Centered Teaching. We are very pleased to have you with us.

Discussion

This Event’s Trainers

To begin class, each Trainer should give a brief introduction of themselves.

(For some guidelines on introducing yourself, see some content from the Introductions section later in the training.)

Now, we would like to get to know all of you.

Discussion

Reviewing The Carpentries Experience and Goals

For the multiple choice questions below, please place an “X” next to the response(s) that best apply to you. Then find yourself a spot in the Etherpad below to write a short response to the last question.

Which of these most accurately describes your teaching experience?

  1. I have been a graduate or undergraduate teaching assistant for a university/college course.
  2. I have not had any teaching experience in the past.
  3. I have taught a seminar, workshop, or other short or informal course.
  4. I have been the primary or responsible teacher for a university/college course.
  5. I have taught at the primary or secondary education level.
  6. I have taught informally through outreach programs, hackathons, libraries, laboratory demonstrations, and similar activities.

Why are you taking this course? What goals do you have for this training?

This exercise should take about 5 minutes for responses, with an optional 10 for additional discussion as time permits.

To make sure everyone has the same context, we will give a brief overview of The Carpentries organisation before starting the training.

A Brief Overview of The Carpentries

Image of action figures in a workshop with Instructor, Co-Instructor, helper, and Sticky Notes labeled

The Carpentries is a global community of volunteer researchers, educators, and others oriented around improving basic computing and data skills for researchers through intensive, short-format workshops.

The main goal of The Carpentries is not to teach specific skills, per se - although those are covered - but rather, to convey best practices that will enable researchers to be more productive and do better research.

Learner-Centered Teaching Overview

Learner-Centered Teaching equips participants with the strategies and tools necessary to use effective, hands-on teaching practices in short-format trainings. This 8-hour interactive program introduces key principles of educational psychology and evidence-based teaching. Through a blend of short lessons and hands-on practice, participants develop their instructional skills while engaging with a cohort of peers who share their interest in teaching and learning.

The goals of this training include: - Introduce you to evidence-based teaching practices. - Teach you strategies to foster positive, inclusive learning environments. - Provide opportunities to practice and receive feedback on teaching techniques. - Prepare you to lead effective short-format training sessions.

By the end of this training, participants will: - Understand and be able to apply core concepts from educational research. - Recognise the importance of creating respectful and inclusive learning environments, and know how to apply related policies and practices. - Gain experience with the lesson delivery and assessment methods most effective in short-format workshops. - Be familiar with and understand how to apply research-based teaching principles, especially as they apply to adult learners. - Understand the importance of a respectful and inclusive classroom environment;

These goals are broken down into the following three themes of content:

How Learning Works

One of our main emphases will be discussing the best practices of teaching. We will be introducing you to a handful of key educational research findings and demonstrating how they can be used to help people learn better and faster.

Building Teaching Skill

Just like learning a new language, a musical instrument, or a sport, teaching is a skill that requires practice and feedback. We will have an opportunity to practice and give each other feedback during this training.

Creating a Positive Learning Environment

One part of making this a productive experience for all of us is a community effort to treat one another with kindness and respect. The Code of Conduct is one piece of this. We will also be discussing and practicing teaching techniques to create a positive and welcoming environment in your classrooms, and will spend some time talking about why this is important.

What We Leave Out

We will not discuss how to become a Carpentries certified Instructor and become integrated into the Carpentries community to teach Carpentries workshops. If you would like to learn more about becoming a Carpentries Instructor, you must attend Instructor Training. Please visit the Become an Instructor page on The Carpentries website for details on admission.

We will not be going over Data Carpentry, Library Carpentry, or Software Carpentry workshop content in detail.

We also do not discuss how to develop lessons, although we do mention some aspects of lesson design. We include this information to help you as an Instructor identify the important components of lessons for high impact, inclusive teaching. The Carpentries now has a growing subcommunity dedicated to lesson development, and offers additional training in lesson development.

If there is a particular topic that you would like us to address, let the Trainers know.

What Questions Do You Have?

We hope and expect that you will have many questions during this training! Please do not keep them to yourself. If you find something unclear, chances are good that others will have the same question, too. It is ok to ask even if you think you might have missed an answer already given (e.g. during a distracted moment or a dropped connection)! Depending on the time available, your Trainers may ask you to share your questions verbally, in the Etherpad, or otherwise.

Now that we have a road map of what we are covering we are ready to begin our training. Our goal is that by the end, you will have acquired some new knowledge, confidence, and skills that you can use in your teaching practice in general and in teaching Carpentries workshops specifically.

Key Points
  • The Carpentries is a community of practice. We strive to provide a welcoming environment for all learners and take our Code of Conduct seriously.
  • This episode sets the stage for the entire training. The introductions and exercises help everyone begin to develop a relationship and trust.
  • This training will cover evidence-based teaching practices and how they apply to general teaching environments.
  • Learner motivation and prior knowledge vary widely.