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Education Plugin

Teaching aids, code explanations, and student support for IT education.

Version 1.8.1

This plugin provides educational tools for students and instructors, including code explanations, a Java Tutor agent, Markdown formatting skills, FFHS lecture slide generation, and Markdown-to-PDF conversion.

Commands

/education:explain-code

Provide clear, educational explanations of code for students learning programming.

Features:

  • Step-by-step code breakdown
  • Concept explanations with examples
  • Visual flow diagrams
  • Practice exercises
  • Adaptable to student level (beginner/intermediate/advanced)

Usage:

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/education:explain-code

Claude will ask about the student's level and provide tailored explanations.

Agents

Java Tutor

Expert Java programming instructor specializing in teaching students.

Specialties:

  • Java fundamentals and OOP
  • Data structures and algorithms
  • Best practices and clean code
  • Common mistake prevention
  • Exam preparation

Activation: Use /agents and select "Java Tutor" for Java-specific teaching support.

Markdown Syntax Formatter

Expert Markdown formatting specialist with comprehensive knowledge of CommonMark and GitHub Flavored Markdown specifications.

Capabilities:

  • Convert visual formatting cues into proper Markdown syntax
  • Correct heading hierarchies ensuring logical progression
  • Format lists with consistent markers and proper indentation
  • Handle code blocks with appropriate language identifiers
  • Apply Swiss orthography rules for German text
  • Handle linter exceptions for training materials

Activation:

  • Automatic: Triggered when formatting or reviewing Markdown documents
  • Manual: Use Task tool with subagent_type: "education:markdown-syntax-formatter"

Skills

explain-code

Provides clear, educational code explanations adapted to the student's level (Beginner / Intermediate / Advanced). Acts as a patient programming instructor.

Activation: - Automatic: "explain this function", "what does this code do", "I don't understand this", "walk me through this" - Via command: /education:explain-code

Features: - Adapts depth and terminology to student level - Structured explanation: overview → line-by-line → key concepts → flow → pitfalls → exercises - Language-specific focus (Java OOP, Python idioms, JavaScript async)

FFHS Lecture Slides

Create lecture presentations for FFHS (Fernfachhochschule Schweiz) in reveal.js or PowerPoint format.

Capabilities:

  • Web-based reveal.js presentations with Mermaid and code highlighting support
  • Traditional PPTX output with FFHS branding
  • Tailored for PVA sessions and Java Fundamentals (JaF) course materials

Activation:

The skill activates when requesting presentations, lecture slides, or PVA materials.

md-to-pdf

Converts Markdown into a PDF or a ConTeXt source (.tex) with a freely configurable header and footer.

Capabilities:

  • Engine ConTeXt (default) or XeLaTeX
  • Configurable header and footer, font, margins, and page size via CLI or a md-to-pdf.toml in the repository
  • Automatic rendering of Mermaid diagrams (requires npx and @mermaid-js/mermaid-cli)

Requirements: pandoc, Python 3.11+, and the chosen engine (context or xelatex) on the PATH

Activation:

  • Automatic: "als PDF", "PDF erstellen", "md to pdf", "ConTeXt"
  • Manual: /education:md-to-pdf

Direct invocation:

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python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/md-to-pdf/scripts/md_to_pdf.py QUELLE.md ZIEL.pdf \
  --kopf-links "DuA_P · Block 05 · Aufgabenblatt" --kopf-rechts "Binäre Suchbäume"

Markdown Syntax Formatter

Converts text with visual formatting into proper Markdown syntax, fixes formatting issues, and ensures consistent document structure.

Capabilities:

  • Fix heading hierarchies and document structure
  • Convert visual formatting cues to proper Markdown syntax
  • Apply Swiss German orthography to German-language documents
  • Handle linter exceptions for training materials and templates

Activation:

The skill activates automatically when formatting or reviewing Markdown files, or invoke it manually:

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/education:markdown-syntax-formatter

Who This Is For

  • Students: Learning programming at universities and educational institutions
  • Instructors: Teaching programming courses
  • Self-learners: Studying programming independently
  • Code reviewers: Providing educational feedback

Teaching Approach

This plugin follows evidence-based teaching principles:

  1. Progressive Disclosure: Start simple, add complexity gradually
  2. Active Learning: Encourage experimentation and practice
  3. Conceptual Understanding: Focus on "why" not just "how"
  4. Real-World Context: Connect concepts to practical applications

Examples

Explaining Simple Code

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/education:explain-code

Student: Can you explain this loop?
for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++) {
    System.out.println(i);
}

Claude: [Provides detailed explanation with analogies and practice exercises]

Using Java Tutor Agent

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/agents
> Select: Java Tutor

Student: I'm confused about inheritance
Java Tutor: [Provides step-by-step explanation with family tree analogy]

Supported Languages

While the plugin works with any programming language, it has specialized support for:

  • Java (primary focus for computer science courses)
  • Python (data structures, algorithms)
  • JavaScript (web development)
  • C/C++ (systems programming)

Best Practices for Instructors

  1. Use /education:explain-code to generate teaching materials
  2. Activate Java Tutor for consistent Java teaching
  3. Encourage students to ask questions
  4. Use generated exercises for practice
  5. Review explanations before sharing with students

Curriculum Integration

This plugin is designed to complement computer science curricula:

  • Aligned with standard CS programs
  • References course materials appropriately
  • Prepares students for exams
  • Connects to other CS concepts

Installation

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{
  "enabledPlugins": {
    "education@talent-factory": true
  }
}

Changelog

Version 1.8.1 (2026-11-08)

  • md-to-pdf: SKILL.md prose translated to English (profile ffhs-thesis, code blocks, listings, table captions, pitfalls)

Version 1.8.0 (2026-10-12)

  • md-to-pdf: Codeblöcke als umbrechbare Tabelle mit grauem Hintergrund, Listings Listing N: Titel aus dem Info-String, Tabellen-Captions Tabelle N: Titel (: Titel oder : Table: Titel), Abstände um Codeblöcke

Version 1.7.0 (2026-10-12)

  • Added ffhs-thesis profile to md-to-pdf (ConTeXt): FFHS thesis layout, title page from [these] in md-to-pdf.toml, roman front matter and arabic main text, table of contents and optional list of figures and tables
  • md-to-pdf validates [these] (types, required fields, image names) and derives line spacing from groesse
  • Unit and end-to-end tests in scripts/test_md_to_pdf.py

Version 1.6.0 (2026-10-12)

  • Added md-to-pdf skill for Markdown-to-PDF and ConTeXt conversion with configurable header/footer and Mermaid rendering

Version 1.5.0 (2026-05-08)

  • Added explain-code skill for natural-language code explanation activation

Version 1.4.0 (2026-03-28)

  • Added FFHS Lecture Slides skill for reveal.js and PowerPoint presentation generation
  • Added FFHS, presentations, and slides keywords

Version 1.3.3 (2026-02-27)

  • Added keywords and license fields to plugin.json
  • Improved agent descriptions with when-to-use context
  • Translated documentation to English

License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.

Made with care by Talent Factory GmbH