Conference Proposal Guidelines

Several types of information will be requested when you go online to submit your proposal, but the "Long Description" is the central and most important component. It contains the information which reviewers use to evaluate the proposal and, if your presentation is ultimately published in the journal, serves at the Abstract of the journal article. While each proposal should address the purpose, methods, and implications of the scholarly work, the content within these general categories will vary somewhat, based on the type of scholarly work to be presented and the type of presentation you choose. Illustrations of the topics, or elements, to be addressed in the proposal are presented below. Please note that all proposals and presentations must be in English.

Type of Scholarly Work: Research, Practice, or Theory

Research Focus

Thesis statement: the hypothesis, research statement, statement of the problem or issue being explored.
Methodology: brief overview of research method used to address the research question identified in the thesis statement. For the proposal, include information on the type of data collected (e.g., surveys, interviews, tests, literary analysis or critique, observations) but not on design, sampling, or data analyses techniques (these should be explained in the full paper).
Results: the main findings of the study, resulting from the methods used.
Conclusions and Implications: what the results mean for the field of study or for society; relate back to the thesis statement.

Practice Focus

Framework: the scholarly knowledge base--theoretical framework, previous research, or conceptual approach--upon which the practical application is based.
Description of practical application: what was designed or developed, how was it implemented, in what setting and with whom?
Outcomes: what has been learned from the implementation, what strengths and weaknesses have been identified?
Implications: what are the next steps or the implications for future practice or for society.

Theory Focus

Statement of the hypothesis, theoretical perspective, or philosophical idea being asserted.
Relationship to existing theories or perspectives in the field.
Contribution: how proposed idea advances knowledge in the field or benefits society.

Type of Presentation: Paper, Workshop, Poster/Exhibit

The type of presentation you plan will also have implications for the information you include in the Long Description.

Paper Presentation

Accepted papers will be organized into thematic sessions or roundtable discussions and, while the preparation for your presentation may be different for these two formats, the content of your proposal should include all of the elements of a research, practice, or theory-focused work listed above.

Poster/Exhibit

Generally most appropriate for "practice-focused" works (or works in progress), a poster/exhibit proposal may concentrate on one aspect, for example, "description of the practical application". The proposal should clearly describe the type of information (or product) that will be displayed.

Workshop

The most critical element of a workshop proposal is the description of the activity and how the participants will be engaged. A workshop is not a "long paper" and therefore the interactive or instructional nature of the session must be clearly defined.