New Course Checklist and Timeline

New Course Checklist and Timeline#

In August#

  • [ ] Before the academic year in which the course will run, you should confirm the topic and high-level overview with CfRR Programme Management

12 weeks before delivery#

  • [ ] Confirm the details of the delivery team from CfRR Admin (CodingForReproducibleResearch@exeter.ac.uk)

  • [ ] Identify materials reviewer for materials appropriateness review (a subject matter expert who will assess whether the content is accurate, complete, and suitable for the intended audience; this review is separate from the functionality and accessibility review conducted later). You may wish to draw upon the CfRR Content Advisory Group described on the roles page here. For new courses, also determine which Content Advisory Group area the course sits within, or identify a suitable advisor if a new area is needed.

  • [ ] Schedule recurring team check-ins

  • [ ] Open GitHub Issue for the new course; create feature branch in CfRR_Courses repo

  • [ ] Draft course objectives and detailed learning objectives for each section of the course

  • [ ] Identify a high-level timeline for content creation

8 weeks before delivery#

Course Confirmation and Scheduling#

  • [ ] Confirm course outcomes and pre-requisites with CfRR Admin (CodingForReproducibleResearch@exeter.ac.uk) to facilitate timely scheduling and promotion.

6 weeks before delivery#

Content Completion#

  • [ ] Submit first complete draft of materials to the branch

  • [ ] Populate programme_information

  • [ ] Populate section_landing_page

  • [ ] Populate where_is_my_understanding quiz

    • JSON files confirmed to render via JupyterQuiz

  • [ ] Add an entry to data/course_style.csv to specify the course style (e.g. Live Coding, Seminar, Hybrid)

  • [ ] Add course pages to _toc.yml

  • [ ] Check for overlapping or missing sections

Technical Validation#

  • [ ] Test interactive plots, embedded HTML, and widgets

  • [ ] Validate quiz rendering (display_quiz("path/to/quiz.json"))

  • [ ] Verify all file paths use relative paths for Jupyter Book

  • [ ] Confirm all assets (images, data files, HTML) load correctly

  • [ ] Include slides/PDFs as required and confirm static content links

  • [ ] Execute all notebooks end-to-end

Review and Quality Assurance#

  • [ ] Website functionality review (navigation, rendering, interactivity)

    • [ ] Assigned to Liam Berrisford (GitHub: @liamjberrisford)

    • [ ] Covers: _toc.yml, interactive elements, embedded content

  • [ ] Materials appropriateness review (clarity, level, pedagogical fit)

    • [ ] Assigned to designated reviewer

    • [ ] Covers: markdown content, exercises, quizzes, learning flow

  • [ ] Code and documentation peer review

    • [ ] Covers: code comments, markdown explanations, notebook structure

  • [ ] Ensure all licences and terms relevant to the course are explicitly documented in the materials (software/packages, services/platforms, datasets/content), including any attribution, redistribution, or usage restrictions.

4 weeks before delivery#

  • [ ] Address all outstanding feedback from reviews

  • [ ] Confirm all assets are correctly linked and functional

  • [ ] Ensure Continuous Integration (CI) build for Jupyter Book passes, including accessibility checks

2 weeks before delivery#

  • [ ] Freeze content

  • [ ] Perform final proofreading and “top-to-bottom” notebook execution

  • [ ] Notify Liam Berrisford (GitHub: @liamjberrisford) that materials are ready for integration into the website

  • [ ] Obtain final sign-off from Liam Berrisford (GitHub: @liamjberrisford)

  • [ ] Merge feature branch into main

  • [ ] Notify Jenny McGarvey of the upcoming course