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GitHub Classroom Roster Automation Kit for CS Instructors

Use CodeTeach.ai's CSV automation kit to create private student repositories from a GitHub template without storing rosters in CodeTeach.

GitHub Classroom's assignment link solved a real problem: it turned a roster into student repositories. The replacement workflow should keep that convenience where it matters, but without making CodeTeach.ai a roster database, gradebook, or student-management system.
That is why CodeTeach now provides a downloadable student-repo-kit after an assignment deploys and GitHub validation passes.
CodeTeach deploy guide showing the CSV automation kit download

What the kit does

The kit is a ZIP file you run locally. It includes:
  • students.csv
  • scripts/create-student-repos.mjs
  • README.md
You edit the CSV with exact GitHub usernames and repo names. The script uses the GitHub CLI to create one private repo per student from the validated template repo, with include_all_branches=false, then invites each student as an outside collaborator.
It is dry-run first:
Terminal dry run for the roster automation kit
node scripts/create-student-repos.mjs --csv students.csv
When the dry run looks right:
node scripts/create-student-repos.mjs --csv students.csv --confirm

Why this stays instructor-owned

Instructors were burned by losing GitHub Classroom. The right replacement should not require them to move student rosters and grade records into another small vendor's database.
With this model:
  • CodeTeach generates and validates the assignment
  • GitHub stores the repositories and Actions results
  • the instructor owns the CSV roster
  • the LMS or instructor workflow stores grade records
CodeTeach does not store student usernames, submissions, or grades.

The collaborator detail that trips people up

In GitHub's repository settings, the search box in the access table is not the invite control. It only searches people and teams that already have access.
To add a student, open the individual student repo and use Settings → Collaborators and teams → Add people.
GitHub collaborator settings showing Add people
Use exact GitHub usernames. Email lookup is inconsistent because many GitHub accounts keep emails private.

Safety rules

The script follows the same privacy rules as the manual workflow:
  1. Keep the template repo instructor-only.
  2. Keep the solution repo or solution branch instructor-only.
  3. Create private student repos.
  4. Set include_all_branches=false.
  5. Invite each student only to their own repo.
This is not a full GitHub Classroom clone. It is a lean, programmer-friendly bridge: generate the assignment in CodeTeach, validate it, deploy the template, then run a local roster script you can inspect, modify, and own.