The 2021 Instructor Training Report

The Carpentries Instructor Training Team is excited to release the 2021 Instructor Training Report. This report is an in-depth look at the Instructor Training program and provides an update on its successes, challenges, and growth.

Quick Facts

Instructor Training Outcomes

• Trainees rate Carpentries Trainers very highly.
  • The majority of trainees thought Trainers gave clear answers to questions (97%), were good communicators (97%), considerate (99%), and enthusiastic (98%).
• Trainees report higher levels of ability and knowledge after Instructor Training.
• 98% of trainees agreed that the atmosphere during Instructor Training was welcoming.
• 92% of trainees agreed that Instructor Training was worth their time.
• 74% of trainees report an increase in motivation to learn about teaching after Instructor Training.
• Trainees are very likely to recommend Instructor Training to a friend or colleague.
  • Recommendation scores have averaged 8.43 - 9 out of 10 for the last five years.
• 81% of Trainees hear about Instructor Training through word of mouth.

Instructor Training Growth

• We certified 630 new Instructors in 2019 and 494 in 2020.
• In 2019, 1,168 trainees attended Instructor Training, and in 2020, 895 trainees attended.
• 50 - 60% of trainees become certified Instructors.
• In 2020, we certified 29 new Instructor Trainers and, in 2021 we have certified 14.

Who Are Carpentries Trainees?

• 62% of trainees are located in the United States, followed by the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.
  • Other countries in the top ten include European countries as well as South Africa and Argentina.
• The highest percentage of trainees come from the fields of Computer Science (19%), Bioinformatics/Genomics (16%), and Library Science (12%).
• The highest percentage of our trainees are graduate students (26%), research staff (24%), faculty (16%), and postdoctoral researchers (13%).

Feedback and Assessment

Last year, we shared how The Carpentries uses feedback and assessment to measure the outcomes of our work, demonstrate our value to supporters, and make ongoing program improvements.

The Carpentries has a long history of using assessment and feedback to understand how well our programs are running and where we can improve. We have shared programmatic assessment updates and long-term survey results periodically. You can see many of these previous reports on our assessment page.

This report represents the next evolution of that assessment work. It is a building block to future assessment work, including a deeper exploration into:

• applicant, trainee, Instructor, and Trainer demographics as we continue to focus on equity, inclusion, and accessibility.
• trainee outcomes broken down by paths to training, e.g., through membership vs. sponsored admission for individuals or groups.
• Instructor and Trainer teaching activity, including teaching frequency and retention.
• impact of curriculum updates, policy changes, and other qualitative shifts on survey responses.
• long-term assessment of Instructor Training to evaluate perspectives of Instructors as they begin to teach.

Thank you

Thank you to our Trainers who make this program possible, creating a positive and welcoming experience for the development of teaching skills. Trainees’ satisfaction and eagerness to spread the word demonstrates inspiration sewn by your efforts.

Thank you to anyone who has ever completed – or made time in their class for – our pre- and post-workshop surveys. Reports like this would not be possible without community support in implementation of our assessment tools.