Instructors on The Carpentries

The Carpentries Partnership Program is Now Live!

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

After many months in the making, we are thrilled to announce that The Carpentries Partnership program is finally launching today!

This is an exciting outcome of efforts by The Carpentries Core Team and broader community to redesign our former Membership program into a program that is responsive and best meets the needs of our partnering organisations and institutions.

Over the coming weeks, we will release a series of blog posts expanding on the value of having a Partnership with The Carpentries. In this blog post we provide an outline of the service offerings that can be included in a Partnership agreement beginning today.

Instats Pilot: What and Why? (and a Call for Helpers)

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

At the end of 2025, we began exploring a partnership with Instats to offer recorded Carpentries workshop sessions. Instats is a mission-driven organisation that focuses on delivering a diverse range of seminars that inspire high-quality, ethical, and impactful research.

Why are we partnering with Instats?

The goal of working with Instats is to create more opportunities for anyone who can’t attend in-person or locally hosted workshops due to availability in their region, and circumstances such as time zone conflicts. An added benefit is the ability for all learners to engage with our lessons at their own pace.

Please Update Your AMY Profile!

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

We have recently released some updates on AMY, our community data management software. We are calling on our Instructors, Instructor Trainers, Maintainers, and all other Carpentries community members with a profile on AMY to please take a few minutes to update your airport location and any other outdated information on your AMY profile.

Active Carpentries community members can log in to AMY via GitHub. The AMY Community User Guide provides step-by-step instructions for logging in to AMY and updating your profile.

Calling Community Pilots: 14 New Open Science Lessons for Library Carpentry

Tue, 10 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Lessons for Librarians in Open Science Principles and Methods project, funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), has reached an exciting milestone. Over the past two years, we’ve worked with 27 expert authors across 14 teams to develop 15 new lesson repositories focused on open science for librarians.

Ringing in the New Year: Instructor Community Accomplishments, Updates and Resources

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

2025 was a year of growth, learning, and achievement for the Instructor community and the Workshops and Instruction Team (WIT). Together, we had many accomplishments, including the delivery of 29 Centrally-Organised workshops with no cancellations, welcoming 294 new Instructors into the community, and hosting two Carpentries-sponsored workshops that were open and free to the public (a long-time goal for WIT!).

Pretix for Community Sessions is now live!

We’re excited to carry this positive momentum into 2026. We already have three Centrally-Organised workshops in progress and filled by Instructors, with more planned for March and April. We’re also happy to share that registration for Community Sessions is now live in Pretix. This includes Instructor Meetings and a new event: Instructor Practice Sessions (more on this below). Pretix is an open-source event registration and ticketing system that offers several benefits, including better privacy, automated email reminders, and the ability to easily add events to your calendar.

Incentivising the Completion of Workshop Surveys: Tips for Instructors

Mon, 18 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

As all Carpentries Instructors probably know, it is very hard to get people to complete workshop surveys. It was time to find a solution, but what can we do to inspire folks to complete yet another boring survey. Despite all my promises to learners that we look at and consider all the comments and feedback we get, it has been a miracle every time we get more than 50 per cent of attendees to complete it. Giving people time, at the end of the lesson, to complete the survey helped a bit, but not much.

Community Session Report: Essential Knowledge and Common Misconceptions

Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

In February, The Carpentries hosted the second of three pairs of AI and The Carpentries community discussion sessions. The topic of this pair of sessions was Essential Knowledge and Common Misconceptions. For the Curriculum Team, the primary objective of these discussions was to identify the aspects of LLMs and their use in programming/data science that are most important to discuss during a Carpentries workshop. This post summarises the main points raised and the perspectives shared by community members who joined the sessions.

Community Session Report: The Ethics of Teaching LLMs in Carpentries Workshops

Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

In January, The Carpentries hosted the first of three pairs of AI and The Carpentries community discussion sessions. The topic of this first pair of sessions was The Ethics of Teaching Large Language Models (LLMs) in Carpentries Workshops. They featured an exploration of various ethical implications of the development and use of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and GitHub Copilot, and a conversation about the scope for engaging with those implications while teaching Carpentries workshops. This post summarises the main points raised and the perspectives shared by community members who joined the sessions.

Teaching LLM Assistants in Carpentries Workshops, part 2

Tue, 21 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Following our previous post summarising a pair of community discussions on the topic of teaching the use of LLM “assistants” such as ChatGPT in Carpentries workshops, here we describe the Curriculum Team’s plans to coordinate relevant updates to lessons.

Including discussion of LLMs in workshops

One key takeaway from November’s community discussions was the observation that learners are using/will use LLM assistants when learning to code, whether we want them to or not. In this context, we believe that our goal as Instructors should be to help learners develop a working mental model of how these tools can be used, the kind of task they are (and are not) suited to, and their strengths and limitations.

Teaching LLM Assistants in Carpentries Workshops, part 1

Thu, 16 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Generative AI “assistants” such as ChatGPT and GitHub Copilot, based on large language models (LLMs), have gained a lot of attention over recent years and are impacting how people learn about and practice coding and data science. Some members of The Carpentries community have reported observing learners using ChatGPT and similar tools to assist them in and after workshops. Others have reported on efforts to educate members of their local communities about the models behind these tools, their advantages and limitations, and how to judiciously approach their use.

The Carpentries’ Handbooks Relaunched!

Mon, 09 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Today, 9 December 2024, we relaunched The Carpentries Handbooks! The Handbooks are compiled for the following community roles: Community Session Hosts, Curriculum Advisors, Instructors, Instructor Trainers, Lesson Developers, Lesson Program Governors, and Maintainers. Each Handbook provides detailed information for our volunteer community members to fulfill the duties of each role, and includes steps to follow when onboarding onto and offboarding from the role, the responsibilities and duties for each role, as well as a list of resources available to members to fulfill those responsibilities.

Piloting Meal Reimbursement: A Way of Saying Thank You

Tue, 08 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

In 2020 we launched the pilot of online workshops, and our Instructor community rallied around this new format. Much effort has gone into organising, coordinating, and teaching these workshops. We are beyond grateful for your continued commitment and support, and we would like to show our appreciation for all of your efforts. Over the next few months, we will pilot meal reimbursements for select online Centrally-Organised workshops as a way of saying thank you.

Join the Monthly Instructor Meetings

Thu, 09 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

As a Carpentries Instructor, how do you get updated information? Through email, slack channel or a blog post? These are all great ways to gather information, however, it is not as conducive if you have questions, concerns or feedback regarding the information shared.

The Carpentries Workshop Administration Team recognized we were missing an opportunity to connect with Instructors and hear from you to make your teaching experience better. To bridge the gap we now host monthly meetings for Instructors!

Developing Support for Instructors in 2023

Thu, 16 Feb 2023 00:00:00 +0000

In this post, we outline some of the activities the Core Team has planned to make the lives of Instructors easier in 2023.

Developing Instructor onboarding materials

The Workshop Administration Team is working with the Instructor Training Team and the Community Development Team to develop a general Instructor Onboarding. These onboarding events are intended to help prepare Instructors to teach their first workshops. During Instructor Training there is a plethora of information being shared and after certification the Instructors may still have questions directly related to workshop logistics. Updates to the development and launch of the Instructor Onboarding will become available as progress is made.

Tell Us What You Think of the Instructor Training Checkout Process

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

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We are improving the Instructor Training Checkout process to remove accessibility barriers and make the process more worthwhile for trainees and the Carpentries community. But, we need your help to make sure we get this right!

The Core Team, in partnership with Trainers Leadership, is working on the first systematic review and improvements to the Checkout process since 2018.

Become an Instructor and help bring data and coding skills to people across the globe!

Tue, 10 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

We often receive inquiries from people who are interested in becoming certified Carpentries Instructors or in recommending an opportunity for certification to a friend or colleague. In this post, we will review a few frequently asked questions and share a new avenue for priority admission to our Open Instructor Training program.

How can I be trained as a Carpentries Instructor?

Carpentries Instructor Training seats can be purchased for groups and individuals through Membership and A-la-carte seat purchases. In addition, we offer free access to individual applicants through our Open Instructor Training program. Anyone with an interest in becoming certified as a Carpentries Instructor can apply to this program. Applications are scored periodically and admitted in order of rank as seats become available.

Teaching Centrally-Organised Workshops

Tue, 03 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

If you are a certified Instructor for The Carpentries, I am sure you have received an email/slack message or two announcing “Upcoming Teaching Opportunites” around the world. Specifically our Centrally-Organised workshops. These workshops are requested by organisations and come with the full support of The Carpentries Workshop Administration Team and Instructors.

Whether you are a newly certified Instructor or an experienced Instructor, this blog post will provide detailed information that will give more insight to Centrally-Organised workshops.

Online Workshops and the Supporting Instructor Role

Wed, 02 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000

It has been a long wait, but the news is finally out…online workshops are here to stay! After two years of implementing workshops online, we know that there is a lot that goes into the planning and execution of these workshops. The Core Team will be making changes over the course of 2022 to make the online workshop process as easy as possible for all; hosts, Instructors, learners, and members of the Core Team. One of these changes is that we will no longer distinguish between Experienced and Supporting Instructors.

Recruiting Instructors for Self-Organised Workshops

Wed, 23 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

The original blog post was posted on 2020-08-05, what follows is an update to the original post

While Self-Organised workshops are not managed by The Carpentries Workshop Administration Team, we want to be able to provide you with resources to make the load lighter. When hosting a Carpentries workshop there are many steps in the coordination process. One of the most important components is ensuring you have Instructors to teach your workshop. This can be even more difficult when you have to recruit the instructors for a Self-Organised workshop.

2020 - 2021 IDC Leadership Call for Applications

Fri, 07 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

We invite you to complete this short form. Deadline for applications is at the end of day, Monday, 24 August 2020, anywhere on Earth.

May 2020 officially marked the close of a year-long term for our 2019 Instructor Development Committee Leaders. We want to take this opportunity to thank Sarah Stevens, Arindam Basu, Tobin Magle, Marco Chiapello, Dr. Megbowon Kemi, and Martin Dreyer for their engagement, and for lending their time and expertise to different activities that served to improve instructors’ experiences in our community.

How to Recruit Instructors for Self-Organised Workshops

Wed, 05 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

It has been nearly four months since The Carpentries started offering online workshops. With the release of version two of the online workshop recommendations, we have been able to offer resources for all instructors to effectively organise a workshop.

The Carpentries Workshop Administration Team has seen an increase in workshop activity, particularly for Self-Organised workshops. Being able to offer Carpentries workshops online allows organisations to reach a wider audience and we are extremely excited.

Welcome to New Trainers

Wed, 14 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0000

This post originally appeared on the Software Carpentry website.

We are excited to welcome seventeen newly badged Trainers to our community. The group recently finished their program with Karen Word and are now certified to teach new Carpentry Instructors.

Join us in welcoming Tania Allard, Anne C. Axel, Mik Black, Murray Cadzow, Mesfin Diro, Caroline Fadeke Ajilogba, Anne Fouilloux, Alejandra Gonzalez-Beltran, Claire Hardgrove, Toby Hodges, SherAaron Hurt, Senzo Mpungose, David Perez-Suarez, Juliane Schneider, Nicholas Tierney, Jessica Upani, Elizabeth Williams.

First African Carpentries Instructor Training of 2018.

Tue, 06 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0000

This post originally appeared on the Software Carpentry website.

On 21-23 February 2018, the fourth South African Carpentries instructor training for African based Instructors took place in Kleinmond, Western Cape. The workshop was funded through the Rural Campuses Connection Project Phase II (RCCPII) Tertiary. The lead Trainer, Erin Becker, is the Associate Director of The Carpentries and currently based near San Francisco, California. Other Trainers included Senzo Mpungose, Scientific Data Center and Infrastructure Manager for Mathematical Sciences at WITS, Caroline Ajilogba, a Postdoctoral Researcher from the Microbial Biotechnology group, NWU Mafikeng Campus, and Martin Dreyer, an eResearch support consultant at NWU IT.

State of the State: Instructor Checkout

Tue, 27 Feb 2018 00:00:00 +0000

This post originally appeared on the Software Carpentry website.

This blog post is the second in a series examining the roles and contributions of the different parts of the Carpentry community. In case you missed it - read the first post in this series, about Maintainers.

Carpentry Instructors are the core of our community. Without Instructors, there would be no workshops. Because of the vital role that Instructors play in advancing the Carpentry mission, we as a community take preparing Instructors very seriously. Before becoming certified Instructors, trainees must show familiarity with our curriculum, demonstrate their teaching skills (with a focus on the Carpentry pedagogical model), and interact with the broader Carpentry community. Software Carpentry Instructors also need to demonstrate familiarity with Git and GitHub.

How do instructors get placed at workshops?

Sun, 14 Jan 2018 00:00:00 +0000

This post originally appeared on the Software Carpentry website.

If you are a badged Carpentries Instructor, you have most likely received emails about upcoming workshops that need Instructors. After the emails go out, we sometimes get questions about how Instructors are actually chosen and placed, so we want to share our methods with you.

First, it is not first come, first served.

That would not be fair, as that just shows who was lucky enough to be online and able to check their calendars at the moment my email went out. Rather, we give it a few days, or sometimes even a couple of weeks, depending on how quickly the workshop may be coming up.

A Year to Build a Software and Data Carpentry Community at the University of Florida - The Impact of a Local Instructor Training Workshop on Building Computing Capacity

Wed, 22 Feb 2017 00:00:00 +0000

This post originally appeared on the Software Carpentry website.

This January was the one year anniversary of our effort to bring regular Software Carpentry and Data Carpentry workshops to the University of Florida. These workshops are aimed at helping students, staff, and faculty gain the computing skills they need to be successful in our data-driven world. The Carpentries are international organizations that provide materials, instructor certification, and organization of multi-day workshops on basic software development and data analysis tools. In January 2016 a Software Carpentry instructor training workshop held at the University of Florida Informatics Institute provided the start of our efforts. Since then, instructors trained here as well as experienced instructors already in the UF community have held four workshops, reaching 98 participants, including 70 students, 14 staff and 11 faculty. The participants received training in programming languages like R and Python, version control with Git and GitHub, SQL database queries, OpenRefine, and Excel spreadsheets.