Introduction


Figure 1

A graphical representation of the schedule and structure of collaborative lesson development training.
Collaborative Lesson Development Training is taught over three days (six half days), with an extended break between the first two days (“part 1”) and the last day (“part 2”). The training in part 1 focusses on good practices in lesson design and development, and the concepts and skills needed to build a lesson website with The Carpentries lesson infrastructure. Part 2 of the training begins with a reflective discussion of lesson deisgn and iterative development, before shifting focus to the skills required for effective collaboration on open source projects.

Lesson Design


Figure 1

A flow diagram presenting the Nicholls' five phases of curriculum design as a cycle.
Nicholls’ five phases of curriculum design, presented as a cycle to reflect that all aspects of the design should be revisited in response to the results of the evaluation that takes place at step 5.

Figure 2

A flow diagram presenting the process of lesson design and development used in this training.
An overview of the iterative process of lesson design and development , adapted from Nicholl’s five phases, that will be presented in this training.

Figure 3

Diagram of the life cycle of a lesson in The Carpentries ecosystem. A lesson is proposed at the beginning of the pre-alpha stage. It enters alpha when it is taught for the first time. In beta, it is taught by other instructors. A full release of the lesson is made when it is stable. Pilot workshops take place during the alpha and beta phases.
The life cycle of a lesson

Identifying Your Target Audience


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Defining Lesson Objectives/Outcomes


Figure 1

An overview of the iterative process of lesson design and development, adapted from Nicholl's five phases, with step 1, 'Define desired learning outcomes' highlighted.
In this episode we will begin the first step of our iterative design process: defining the skills and knowledge we want learners to leave with.

Figure 2

An example learning objective, "import data into an indexed DataFrame with read_csv", with emphasis placed on the action verb ("import") and the specificity ("indexed") of the objective.
This diagram highlights the most important elements of a learning objective.

Episodes


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The Carpentries Workbench


Figure 1

Directory structure of a new lesson repository created from a lesson template
Directory structure of new lesson repository created from a lesson template. Note that new repositories created from the R Markdown lesson template will include an additional renv/ directory.

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Defining Episode Objectives


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Stay on Target


Figure 1

An overview of the iterative process of lesson design and development, adapted from Nicholl's five phases, with step 2, 'Design assessments for these outcomes' highlighted.
In the next two episodes, we will design assessments to measure learners’ attainment of the objectives we defined previously.

Figure 2

An example misconception from everyday life (borrowed from The Carpentries Instructor Training) is, knowing that a bigger object (more volume) pushes out more water out of a basin than a smaller object (less volume), assuming that the similar principle will apply for objects of different weights. Surprisingly, heavier objects of the same volume as lighter ones will not push out more water. Four sets of words inside rectangles, with labeled arrows connecting them. "Ball" is at the left, and "Water", at right. "Big Ball" and "Small Ball" are stacked vertically between them. Arrows from "Ball" are labeled with "Heavy Ball" and "Light Ball", and arrows to "Water" are labeled as "Pushes out MORE" and "Pushes out "LESS. There is a red "X" over the arrows labeled "Pushes out MORE" and "Pushes out LESS"


Wrap-up


Designing Assessments


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Example Data and Narrative


Figure 1

An overview of the iterative process of lesson design and development, adapted from Nicholl's five phases, with step 3, 'Develop relevant content' highlighted.
Now that we have designed assessments to measure attainment of the objectives set for the lesson, it is time to begin developing teaching content to give learners the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in those assessments.

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How to Write a Lesson


Figure 1

Line graph of increasing carbon dioxide at the Mauna Loa Observatory from 1958 to present
Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide at Mauna Loa Observatory

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How we Operate


Figure 1

The life cycle of a lesson in The Carpentries ecosystem, annotated to indicate the platforms provided for lesson projects at each stage of the cycle. In the diagram includes the pre-alpha, alpha, beta, and stable stages described earlier, and icons showing that pre-alpha through beta development of lessons happens in The Carpentries Incubator, while The Carpentries Lab hosts peer-reviewed lessons and provides a platform for open peer review. Stable lessons may also be adopted into an official lesson program of The Carpentries.
The life cycle of a lesson, annotated to indicate the platforms provided for lesson projects at each stage of the cycle.

Preparing to Teach


Figure 1

An overview of the iterative process of lesson design and development, adapted from Nicholl's five phases, with step 4, 'Assess learner progress' highlighted.
In this episode, we will discuss how you can measure learner progress and gather feedback about the effectiveness of your content by teaching the lesson.

Wrap-up


Reflecting on Trial Runs


Figure 1

An overview of the iterative process of lesson design and development, adapted from Nicholl's five phases, with step 5, 'Evaluate curriculum' highlighted.
In this episode, we will discuss the final step of the iterative lesson design process: how you can use the notes, information, and feedback you collected when trialling your lesson to identify ways that the design and content could be improved.

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Collaborating with Your Team


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Collaborating with Newcomers


Project Management and Governance


Final Wrap-up