Smart Contract Lecture — Korea University x Onther

Problem

University-level smart contract instruction often skips the gap between Solidity syntax and the reasoning that separates safe contracts from exploitable ones. A Korea University program in partnership with Onther needed course materials that took students from EVM fundamentals through the security failure modes that drive most real-world incidents, in a form that a working engineer could revisit after the course ended.

Approach

• Progressive curriculum ordering — EVM and Solidity fundamentals first, design patterns next, security last — so each layer builds on verified prior knowledge rather than front-loading vulnerability catalogs students cannot yet contextualize.
• Hardhat as the teaching toolchain for its ergonomics around testing, local networks, and JavaScript tooling that most students already know.
• Pattern-based teaching for design: students learn named patterns (checks-effects-interactions, pull-over-push, proxy, factory) rather than isolated tricks, so the vocabulary transfers to code review.
• Vulnerability-driven security module grounded in historical incidents to anchor abstract risks in concrete consequences.
• Open repository so course materials remain useful reference after the lecture series concludes.

Implementation

Curriculum

• Solidity fundamentals and EVM basics
• Smart contract design patterns
• Testing and deployment with Hardhat
• Security best practices and common vulnerabilities

Outcome

• Delivered the smart contract lecture series at Korea University under the Korea University x Onther partnership.
• Open-source course materials and contract examples published for ongoing student reference.
• Curriculum covering the path from EVM fundamentals through secure contract design for a university audience.

Technologies

• Language: Solidity, JavaScript
• Framework: Hardhat
• Context: Korea University x Onther partnership