Iterating on Your Curriculum

The Case for Iteration

The first version of any curriculum is a hypothesis: "I think these readings, in this order, with this framing, will produce genuine understanding."

You can't know if the hypothesis is correct until people use it—including yourself. Iteration is how you refine the hypothesis based on evidence.

The goal isn't perfection. It's better—continuously, sustainably better.

Establishing a Review Cadence

Monthly: Quick Check

Once a month, spend 30 minutes:

• Skim through recent lessons you've written
• Note anything that feels unclear or incomplete
• Check for broken links (especially external resources)
• Review any feedback you've received

Quarterly: Deeper Review

Every three months, dedicate a few hours to:

• Read through an entire cluster as if you were a learner
• Assess whether the progression makes sense
• Look for opportunities to clarify or trim
• Consider if any new foundational texts should be added

Annually: Structural Review

Once a year, step back and ask:

• Does the curriculum still answer its central question?
• Have any clusters become bloated or unfocused?
• Are there gaps learners consistently mention?
• Has the field evolved in ways that require updates?

Gathering Feedback

Make It Easy

If you want feedback, you need to ask for it explicitly. Options:

• Add a feedback link to your site footer
• Include reflection questions that invite discussion
• Create a simple form for suggestions
• Engage with learners where they already are (forums, social media)

Listen for Confusion

The most valuable feedback isn't "this is great" or "this is bad"—it's "I'm confused about X." Confusion reveals:

• Unclear explanations
• Missing prerequisites
• Jargon that needs definition
• Logical leaps that need stepping stones

When someone is confused, resist the urge to explain verbally. Instead, ask: "How could I rewrite this so you wouldn't have been confused?"

Track Patterns

Individual feedback is anecdotal. Patterns are actionable. Keep a simple log:

Date	Source	Feedback	Action Taken
2024-03-15	Reader email	Confused by cluster 2 lesson 3	Rewrote introduction
2024-04-02	Own review	Lesson 5 too long	Split into two lessons

Over time, patterns emerge: maybe all confusion relates to jargon, or lessons over 2000 words always get feedback about length.

Types of Improvements

Clarifying

The most common improvement is making existing content clearer:

• Rewrite convoluted sentences
• Add examples for abstract concepts
• Define terms before using them
• Break long paragraphs into shorter ones

Clarifying doesn't change what you're saying—it changes how well you say it.

Trimming

Curricula tend to bloat. Every revision, ask:

• Does this paragraph advance the lesson's purpose?
• Is this tangent worth the distraction?
• Would a learner miss this if it were gone?

Be ruthless. If content doesn't earn its place, cut it.

Reordering

Sometimes content is good but misplaced:

• Foundational concepts should come before specialized ones
• Abstract ideas need concrete examples nearby
• Referenced content should appear before referencing content

Read your curriculum as a learner would—sequentially—and note where you wish something had been explained earlier.

Updating Sources

External links break. Scholarship advances. When reviewing:

• Check that all URLs still work
• Look for newer/better versions of recommended readings
• Consider if landmark new works deserve inclusion

When to Add vs. When to Revise

The instinct when something is confusing is often "I should add more explanation." But more content creates more surface area for confusion.

Add new content when:

• There's a genuine gap in the progression
• A foundational text was overlooked
• The field has meaningfully advanced

Revise existing content when:

• Explanations are unclear
• Lessons are trying to do too much
• The framing doesn't match learner needs

When in doubt, revise. Adding is easy; maintaining is hard.

Retiring Content

Sometimes the right move is to remove content:

• A reading that seemed foundational turns out not to be
• A lesson overlaps too much with another
• The field has moved on from certain debates

Retiring content feels wasteful, but keeping outdated or redundant content wastes learners' time. Be willing to cut.

Version History as a Feature

Because your curriculum lives in Git, every change is tracked. This is a feature, not just a backup:

• You can see how lessons evolved
• You can revert changes that didn't work
• You can reference old versions if needed

Don't be precious about changes. Try things, measure the result, and adjust.

The Long Game

The best curricula in the world weren't created in a weekend—they were refined over years by authors who kept showing up.

Your iteration practice doesn't need to be elaborate. It just needs to be consistent:

• Notice what's not working
• Make small improvements regularly
• Trust that small improvements compound

A curriculum that's 1% better each month will be unrecognizably improved in a year.

Congratulations

You've completed the meta-curriculum: a curriculum about building curricula.

You now have:

1. The philosophy behind depth-first learning
2. The methodology for defining domains and finding readings
3. The technical knowledge to deploy and customize
4. The practice for maintaining and improving over time

What remains is the work: choosing your domain, curating your readings, and building something that helps others go deep.

Go build.