CodeTeach.aiGitHub ClassroomGitHub ActionsAutograding
GitHub Classroom Alternative for CS Instructors After the Shutdown
A practical GitHub Classroom alternative using GitHub template repositories, GitHub Actions autograding, private student repos, and CodeTeach.ai assignment generation.
GitHub Classroom gave computer science instructors a convenient package: an assignment link, student repositories, and autograding through GitHub Actions. With GitHub Classroom winding down, many instructors are now searching for a GitHub Classroom alternative that still keeps students in GitHub.
Our answer is straightforward: keep the generated assignment in GitHub, keep autograding in GitHub Actions, and move student repo creation to GitHub template repositories. CodeTeach.ai focuses on generating, validating, and deploying the assignment package. The instructor keeps ownership of student repositories, LMS submissions, and grade records.
A GitHub Classroom replacement without a new gradebook
CodeTeach.ai generates and validates the assignment package:
- starter code
- solution code for instructor review
- executable tests
- student-facing instructions
- GitHub Actions autograding
After validation, the instructor deploys a private GitHub template repository. Students create their own repositories from that template using GitHub's native template generation flow.
That means the student-facing link becomes a GitHub template link:
https://github.com/ORG/ASSIGNMENT/generate
This is not a full Classroom clone. That is intentional. CodeTeach.ai stays focused on assignment generation, validation, and deployment. Instructors continue to own student management, repo visibility, LMS submission, and grading records.
Private student repositories
The safest default is private student repositories. Students should create a private repo from the assignment template, add the instructor or TA as a collaborator, and submit the repo URL through the institution's normal LMS or communication channel.
If instructors create repos for students, do it one repo at a time or from an instructor-owned roster script. In each student repo, use Settings → Collaborators and teams → Add people and paste the student's exact GitHub username. Do not use the existing-access search box in the access table; it only searches people and teams already attached to the repo.
Keep organization base permissions at None when possible. Students do not need to be org members for this model; they can be outside collaborators on only their own private repo. Do not add students to the template repo or solution repo.
CodeTeach.ai does not need to hold a roster, receive student submissions, or store grades for this model to work.
Student instructions for a GitHub template repository assignment
At minimum, assignment instructions should include:
- Open the assignment template link.
- Create a new private repository.
- Use the required naming format.
- Do not include extra branches unless your instructor says otherwise.
- Work in the repository and commit normally.
- Check the Actions tab for autograder feedback.
- Add the instructor or TA as a collaborator if required, using their exact GitHub username.
- Submit the repository URL in the LMS.
Advanced automation for CS professors
For instructors who want more automation, the GitHub API can create private repositories from a template. That opens the door to instructor-owned scripts, GitHub Pages forms, or small repo factories built around a CSV roster of exact GitHub usernames.
We plan to publish practical guides for those advanced workflows. The key difference is ownership: the instructor controls the automation instead of depending on CodeTeach.ai to become a student data platform.