[curriculum-eval] 04-github-actions-intro.md: concept_overload + checkpoint_quality — 25 concepts, no checkpoint section

[github-actions]

File: workshop/04-github-actions-intro.md
Overall Score: 5.4 / 10.0 (corpus mean: 6.1)

Flagged Dimensions:

Dimension	Score	Benchmark	Delta
checkpoint_quality	0.0	10.0 (≥4 items under ✅ Checkpoint)	-10.0
cognitive_load	7.5	10.0 (≤15 new concepts)	-2.5
active_learning	4.6	≥6.6 (density ≥3/100 words)	-2.0

Root Cause (≤ 2 sentences):
The page introduces 25 new concepts in 645 words — 10 over the ideal ceiling — because it attempts to define triggers, jobs, steps, runners, reusable workflows, matrix strategies, and caching in a single "5-minute" introduction. The ## :white_check_mark: Checkpoint heading is absent; a 5-item checklist exists but is not under the required section heading, so checkpoint_quality scores 0.

Evidence (quoted from the file):

"A GitHub Actions workflow is a YAML file in .github/workflows/ that tells GitHub: when to run (on), what to run (jobs), how each job executes (steps)."

Learning Science Rationale:
Mayer's Coherence Principle states that learning is improved when extraneous material is excluded rather than included. Packing 25 concepts into a 5-minute refresher violates this principle: learners who already know Actions are overloaded with reminders, while true beginners lack sufficient elaboration to form stable mental models. Restricting the concept count to ≤15 and adding a verifiable checkpoint aligns the step with the Apply level it targets.

Improvement Prompt (for an agent):

In workshop/04-github-actions-intro.md:
1. Audit all new concepts introduced. Remove or defer to a side quest any concept not directly used in the next two workshop steps (05-agentic-workflows-intro.md and 06-install-gh-aw.md). Target ≤15 remaining concepts.
2. Add a "## :white_check_mark: Checkpoint" section at the bottom of the file with 4–5 specific verifiable checklist items (e.g., "- [ ] You can identify the `on:`, `jobs:`, and `steps:` keys in a workflow file").
3. Confirm the checklist items use observable outcomes ("can identify", "can explain", "can distinguish"), not vague statements.
4. Run `npx --yes markdownlint-cli2 "workshop/04-github-actions-intro.md"` and fix any lint errors.

Expected Score After Fix: 7.2 / 10.0

Warning

Firewall blocked 1 domain

The following domain was blocked by the firewall during workflow execution:

• awmgmcpg

To allow these domains, add them to the network.allowed list in your workflow frontmatter:

network:
  allowed:
    - defaults
    - "awmgmcpg"

See Network Configuration for more information.

Generated by 🔬 Curriculum Quality Evaluator · 120.2 AIC · ⌖ 8.64 AIC · ⊞ 6.2K · ◷

• expires on Jul 31, 2026, 1:26 PM UTC

[github-actions]

This issue was automatically closed because it expired on 2026-07-31T13:26:29.322Z.

Closed by Workflow