CALL FOR PROPOSALS
Academy of Teaching Spring Conference 2024:
Celebrating Creativity in the Classroom
Tuesday, May 7
8:30 am – 3:00 pm
The Blackwell Inn & Conference Center, 2110 Tuttle Park Place
The Academy of Teaching invites members of the Ohio State teaching community to submit proposals for its Annual Conference on Excellence in Teaching & Learning. The deadline for submissions has been extended to: Friday, March 1 (end of day).
CONFERENCE THEME:
This year’s theme is “Celebrating Creativity in the Classroom.” From designing entire courses and individual assignments to delivering content and assessing student work, teaching is inherently creative. Likewise, student learning is the embodiment of creative activity, seen in the wide range of thinking, actions, and products students generate during a given term. More than simply a strategy for staving off classroom boredom, creativity is essential to the kinds of innovation and problem solving that defines the educational mission.
Preference will be given to proposals that emphasize active engagement with the audience over more passive presentation styles. Proposals might consider the following possible topics (among others):
- Course designs that explicitly position creativity at their center (thematically, as area of research and study, as a core tenet of instructor’s teaching philosophy)
- Imaginative applications of Artificial Intelligence (Large Language Models, AI art generators, etc.) in the classroom
- Innovative approaches to integrating culturally responsive teaching practices that meet the needs of an ever-changing student population
- Creative approaches to assessment, evaluation, and/or grading
- Novel applications of technology in the classroom.
PRESENTATION FORMATS:
The conference schedule will consist of multiple concurrent 50-minute sessions. When you submit your proposal, you will have a few options for presentation formats:
- A standalone 20-minute presentation. (These presentations typically feature individuals or small groups of 2-3; when scheduling, conference conveners will pair you with another 20-minute session with a similar theme)
- A roundtable of 50 minutes w/several presenters (These presentations typically feature larger groups of 4 or more presenting on a central theme or topic)
- In addition to longer presentations, we invite submissions for “Take My Teaching Tip, Please!”—shorter presentations highlighting the practical dimensions of teaching. if you’ve got a great idea for a teaching activity, a snappy assignment, or an effective way of facilitating student collaboration in group projects, this is the place for you! A slightly new format this year, “Take My Teaching Tip, Please!” presentations will be judged by a panel, the winning presenter receiving a modest prize. Additionally, given the shorter, timed format of this presentation type, conference conveners will offer to consult with presenters before the conference. These presentations should adhere to the following guidelines:
- Lightning Round Presentations should focus on topics related to teaching and learning practice (e.g., novel assignment designs, innovative approaches or methods, and the like)
- Presentations should be 3-5 minutes in length
- Presentations should include visuals and/or other media that can be incorporated into a common slideshow
PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS:
SUBMIT PROPOSALS HERE (Links to a short Qualtrics form)
DEADLINE: Please submit your proposal no later than February 16 at 5 p.m.
FORMAT: The following information will be needed to complete the form:
- Presentation Title
- Presenter: Name, academic unit(s), and email address
- Presentation Type: 20-minute individual, 50-minute multi-person panel, or “Take My Teaching Tip, Please!” talk
- Specific learning outcomes for the session, grounded in research and scholarship germane to teaching practices in your field or teaching and learning more generally (i.e., What takeaways will you offer the audience, and what sources help contextualize your perspective?).
- Draft outline of how you will spend your time, including specifics on audience engagement/active learning
- Summarize the purpose/value and content of your session as well as any evidence (scholarship, assessments) to support your claims. Also, briefly address how your session connects to the theme of the conference. The abstract will serve as the description used to help participants decide which sessions to attend and should be worded as such. Please write in the third person. Limit: 250 words.