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# System prepended metadata

title: Planning meeting 2023-06-16 about September 2023 workshop
tags: [Workshop-2023-Sep]

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tags: Workshop-2023-Sep
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# Planning meeting 2023-06-16 about September 2023 workshop

> OFFICIAL Planning HackMD: https://hackmd.io/@coderefinery/2023-Sep-ws-planning

- This document: https://hackmd.io/@coderefinery/2023-september-workshop-planning-meet-2023-06-16
- Lessons learned: https://coderefinery.org/blog/2023/04/12/lessons-learned-mar-2023/
- Blog post summarizing the suggestions below: https://coderefinery.org/blog/2023/06/25/planning-sep-workshop/


Present: Radovan, Diana, Samantha, Sabry(SR) + 2 UiO colleagues, Matias

- to motivate *you* to participate at next workshop, what is the most important change/improvement to make this possible/easier for *you*?
  - RB: focus my time on improving quality and avoid that most time dissolves in coordinating efforts that could be more focused
  - SR: We are planing to build on CR for our course 
  - having few days of focused time for preparation. otherwise with 25% or less, other tasks take over on a day to day
  - online writing/preparation retreat (buddy-system, meeting times booked early)
  - half-day format is nice
  - clear session structure is also nice for specific contributions, instructing, helping
  - clear commitment (put names behind lessons as early as possible)
  - knowing who from organizers to contact with questions
  - Helper: difficult to motivate, unclear role when not organizing own room

- how can we improve the experience for volunteers? Currently "opimized away" :D 
    - SW: think more about how volunteers can actually help, the original idea of a helper does not really exist anymore in the new format (only in own rooms)
    - offer teams in zoom to make it possible for helpers 

- format: stream? zoom?
    - SR: Now hybrid format is possible (people joining from class tooms)
    - SW: it would be nice to offer teams (in zoom) for single learners again, but would need an easy organizable way (how it was done earlier seemed like too much effort and not sustainable (viewed from the outside)), could using another platform simplify the process, what made it soo much work?
    - what made it hard to organize central zoom?
      - binds one person to do that 
          - Could we do less on-the-fly organization, more self organizing in Zoom BO rooms?
      - not prepration 
      - no-shows, empty / overfull rooms
      - -> total uncertainty and embarassment
      - people were confused about the model
    - DI: I also think it would be nice with Zoom BO rooms; it would make it easier if participants choose themselves which BO room they work in
    - self-organized central zoom with free-floating helpers ("expert helpers")
       - we communicate clearly expectations: that we don't really know who shows up
       - also communicate meaning of rooms (topical rooms) 
       - split onboarding into 2: in-person helpers and zoom helpers need different info
    - no exercise below 15 mins, otherwise no room to have discussions with helpers
    - provide easier feedback mechanism to communicate back how it is going in rooms
    - communicate that we can pause stream also
        - and ask questions also later in hackmd 

- how can we move lessons forward but avoid last-minute changes and stress? (improve experience for instructors and learners)
    - SW: The writing retreat :) DI: +1
    - online writing retreat and in-person ASAP

- instructor onboarding (makes it easier for new people to join)
    - currently: instructor coordinator has met with all instructor pairs and went with them through the checklist
    - tech-setup could be done all together
    - keep lesson-related discussions not all together
    - invite people who have taught it earlier to those meetings to provide background and their experiences
    - check questions and feedback from last time
    - switch instructors less often?
    - maybe always have one person who has done the lesson before?
    - instructor training workshop after autumn workshop
        - offer also at conferences

- what organizational changes are most important? what would simplify coordination and planning for all involved?
    - current playbook: https://coderefinery.github.io/manuals/workshop-playbook/
    - early role decisions (commitment)
    - all roles using the checklist (it is good to know what is going on in all roles)

- keep two weeks or split in two or more parts?
    - SW: I would be interested in exploring possibilities of having all git as 3 days as we have now and then spread the second week over a longer timeframe (one or two sessions per week?) as for example small "seminar series"
    - cons: hard to find time? scheduling after CR becomes harder
    - pro: more time -> more material, different installation requirements
    - many topics of second week could also have a hackathon along with them
    - git alone spread over two weeks?
    - 3 day git + one later seminar/hackathon also about git
    - autumn workshop: just leave out 2nd week
        - make git days longer?
        - try spreading out second week?
        - or 4 days of git teaching (we certainly have enough materials) + one day hackathon (same week or later?)

- what lesson/course changes are most important?
    - exercises re-thinking (2nd week), make them more interesting. learners sometimes don't get the point of them.


- Advertising for participants and helpers.
    - SR: Also to get organizational recognision, e.g. University of Oslo should know their students and researchers participate in CR
    - helpers: first clarify helper tasks
    - if second week more spread: more advertisement without the name of the session but rather a more descriptive title (not `Jupyter`, but `How to protoype in Python` or something like that, hope you get the idea ;) 

- Changes to registration process
  - RB: do not try a two-step process
  - timeline: open before end of June
  - where is most confusion coming from? 
    - where to register. because some orgs have own forms. 
  - is there a way to communicate with registrants not via email?
    - they could join zulip where they get updates 


Simplification of registration form, ideas


* remove might questions
    * what does it matter?
    * do we need to know how they are following?
* remove interested in following in person
    * solution: we can share local in-person rooms with all registrations of fitting country? or even all ?
* do we need observer registration?
    * could register as learner (no info on that in registration form, observers are anyway usually people that we are in contact with so can instruct them beforehand to choose learner)
* add something about central zoom?
* keep registration form simple but communicate the different options elsewhere, not in the form
* add small video explaining the options
* clearer and more consistent naming: in-person, breakout room, exercise rooms, satellite events, ...
* for on-boarding we need to know if somebody is interested in being a team-lead/helper
   * ask whether local or central
   * make it clearer that they can change registration

* names need to be clarified, check also other places and choose commonly used name
* learners do not need to be asked whether alone/zoom/local
* tell helpers why we ask for this info
* tell about the options for participating as learner, but we don't care what they actually do
* have overview about local events, have links available to local rooms
* link to partner local rooms in registration form, as a possibility for learners
* 

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I want to join the workshop as 
- [ ] learner/observer
- [ ] helper (CR zoom,jumping around if we have one) (needs better name)
- [ ] helper at "satellite event"
- [ ] organizer of "satellite event"  (needs easier to understand name)
- [ ] instructor (I want to teach a lesson)

- DI: add a box for free text / share additional info with the CR organizers :+1:
- DI: at the top of the registration or next to the registration link, one may add the CR email sugegsting them to contact us should anything be unclear