Contributing to SCHOOL
These series of guides simplifies the process, helping you understand the project, learn essential tools, and collaborate effectively to make meaningful contributions
TOPSTSCHOOL Development Team
Open Science Contributor
We’re super happy that you’re here and eager to contribute to our mission of promoting open science and accessibility in research. Every contribution you make, big or small, is a step toward empowering a global community of learners, researchers, and educators. This guide will help you navigate the process of contributing effectively to our documentation and resources. From what we see, every contributor plays a vital role in our mission to create tools, tutorials, and resources that break down barriers to scientific knowledge. Your enthusiasm, whether you’re new to contributing or a seasoned professional, makes this community vibrant and impactful.
In this guide, we’ll take you through the complete process of contributing to our project. Step by step, you’ll gain the confidence to dive in, contribute meaningfully, and make a lasting impact.
Why Contribute?
Before we dive into the details, let’s take a moment to reflect on why contributing to this project is so meaningful.
The NASA's Transform to Open Science (TOPS) Training initiative is more than just a project — it’s a movement. It advocates for open science, a transformative approach to research that emphasizes transparency, inclusivity, and collaboration. By contributing you’re helping to:
Empower researchers, scientists and educators by providing clear, accessible resources.
Break down barriers to knowledge by creating tools and lessons that are openly available.
Foster a global community of learners dedicated to science and innovation.
Your contributions, no matter the size, ripple outward, touching the lives of people across the globe and paving the way for transformative scientific discoveries. Every effort you make is a part of something larger than all of us, and we are genuinely grateful to have you on this journey with us.
How to Contribute?
We understand that contributing to a large project like this can feel a little bit overwhelming at first. But don’t worry — you’re not alone! This guide is here to break the process down into simple, actionable steps. By following these steps, you’ll learn everything you need to become a confident contributor. Whether you’r just fixing a typo, enhancing a part of the exisiting tutorial, or adding new content, we’ll walk you through the process:
Explore the repository and code structure. Get familiar with the organization of the project, where to find the files you’ll work on, and the purpose of each directory.
Learn Sphinx and reStructuredText (rST). Master the tools we use for documentation. Sphinx and rST make it easy to create professional, well-organized content.