Open Classes

There are four types of classes to make use of in Steppit. Each provides a unique way to release your course material and mentor your students. They are Personal, Flexible, Intake and Open.

Here we’ll be diving into the Open type, with a use case from Owl Roasters.

Summary: Instant-access, large community classes

All content is accessible from the start and students can post to a community feed shared course-wide. Perfect for a hands-off approach – create a class once and watch it grow. This is available for those looking for minimal mentor engagement while still building a community. 

‘Open’ type features:

• Instant-access course content – All units are unlocked from the course start date
• Course-wide posting feed – includes a photo upload posting feed shared by the wider course community
• No chat – Has no group chat functionality
• Unlimited spaces – No maximum limit on the size of your class
• Low level of teacher support required – Since open classes aren’t on a weekly schedule, you can create one class and let people enroll forever.

Pros

• Lower effort for the creator running the course since there is no group chat to keep up with
• Class type with the lowest effort from an admin perspective - you can create a single class and let people enroll indefinitely

Cons

• Fewer opportunities to connect and engage with your learners

Use Case

Owl Roasters are an independent coffee roaster and shop found in the cobbled streets of Bristol, UK. Though small, they have built up a fierce community and following from tourists and locals alike who fall in love with their beans and share a passion for a good brew.

Owl Roasters have used Steppit and its open class type to create a quirky course all about Latte Art and recreating it at home with any machine and milk steamer. Anyone who purchases a packet of their type 4 latte beans gets a printed QR code which then invites them to the course.

The short, 5-session course has one open feed where those who have taken the course can share their latte art images and exchange tips and tricks for creating a latte better than what you’d find in the Owl Roasters coffee shop (though they’d beg to differ). Different employees of Owls have joined the feed too and regularly chime in with their own creations, banter and two cents from the world of coffee.