Before I entered college, I had heard a lot about GitHub in my technology courses and used it a little bit in my free time. However, once I entered college I began to utilize a tool I never realized GitHub had in GitHub Classroom. GitHub Classroom is a workflow tool that educators can use to set up GitHub repositories for code examples, student assignments, and more. As a Computer Science major, I interact with GitHub Classroom on an almost daily basis and I have found it to be extremely helpful in enhancing my education.
While in high school, I had used GitHub very infrequently. However, in college, all of my Computer Science classes have utilized GitHub Classroom and I feel it has been a great tool in my learning. GitHub Classroom allows students to complete assignments in private repositories which means that if a student is struggling or isn't exactly proud of their work, it is not public meaning nobody else has to see it. It is also helpful for both professors and students in that it is easy for professors to access their students' assignment repository and grade them, meaning students get their grades quicker and professors save time.
The GitHub Classroom tool also does a good job at exposing students to the GitHub flow model and industry ideas. It offers students a safe space to learn about how commits, pulling, pushing, pull requests, and the issue tracker work. As a student, I have found this to be very beneficial because after utilizing these tools in GitHub Classroom through several courses, I now feel that I have a very good understanding of these industry tools. Additionally, as a teaching assistant in a course that uses GitHub Classroom, I have seen students learn more and more about how GitHub works throughout the semester. At the beginning of the semester some students were struggling to commit code to their repositories, but now these students are having no issues and have a greater understanding of the GitHub flow model.
Another great tool that GitHub Classroom offers is the ability to have free teams. When placed in teams for assignments you are forced to work together with team members to complete software projects. I have really enjoyed this experience as you get to work with other people and see their insights into how they would solve certain coding problems. Additionally, when in teams, students can create pull requests and other students can complete code reviews on them. Teamwork is often used on coding projects in the industry so by offering free teams, GitHub Classroom has been very helpful in learning the skills necessary to be successful in a team-based setting.
Overall, GitHub Classroom has been very helpful in helping me understand the GitHub flow model and skills needed in the software development industry. I am very appreciative the experience GitHub Classroom has provided me as a student. I feel that all institutions should consider trying out GitHub Classroom and seeing if it fits their needs as it could be very beneficial to Computer Science students.