33rd VenTESOL National Convention

"Breaking Paradigms and Borders in ELT" Universidad Gran Mariscal de Ayacucho. Edificio Juan Pablo II. Barcelona

May 30th (Sat) and 31st (Sun), 2015.

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

TOPICS

Innovative proposals on classroom practices, connections between teaching and learning, language interaction, integration of skills, cultural differences and similarities applied to language learning,

technology supporting teaching – learning processes, teaching English for translation, linguistics and activities which improve the language skills, outcomes of own research or investigation are

solicited.

TYPES OF PROPOSALS

Participants from all TESOL contexts and related fields are invited to submit proposals. Unless otherwise noted, all sessions are refereed by the TESOL interest section designated on the proposal.

Presenters are expected to provide handouts and encouraged to use audiovisual aids.

Colloquium (90 min.): A forum for a group of scholars to formally present and discuss

current TESOL issues. Presenters exchange papers in advance and formally respond to each other’s positions. The colloquium organizer is responsible for securing participants who

represent various viewpoints in the field before submitting a proposal. A colloquium may not have more than seven panellists, including the leader.

Commercial Presentation (45 min.): Such sessions are presented by publishers’

representatives or authors on the use of materials and resources in language classrooms.

Demonstration (45 min.): In a demonstration, most of the time is used for showing, rather

than telling, a technique for teaching or testing the second language. Normally, the presenter’s statement of the theory underlying the technique takes no more than five minutes.

In-Progress (20 min.): This type provides research graduate students, teacher trainers, administrators, teachers and other interested persons the opportunity to report on an original

research that is “in progress”. It also allows those interested in a common topic to meet. The oral presentation should include all steps covered in the research: Title, introduction,

purpose, research questions, methodology, first results/ primary findings, bibliographical references, author contact information.

Paper (45 min.): A paper is a brief summary of an original research done. It is presented

orally. The presenter discusses and describes something he/she is doing or has done in relation to theory or practice. The presenter often has handouts and may use some audio-

visual aids. The oral presentation should include: Title/topic, introduction, purpose/objectives, research questions, methodology/procedures, results/ findings,

conclusions, recommendations, bibliographical references, author contact information.

Workshop (90 min.): A carefully structured, hands-on professional development activity.

The leader helps participants solve a problem or develop a specific teaching or research technique.

Poster Session (1 hour, 15 min.; 2 presenters max.): A visually explanatory exhibit that

allows for short, informal discussion between the presenter(s) and attendees, as attendees circulate within the poster-session area. Poster sessions serve as an important and interactive

forum for sharing professional ideas and for receiving feedback. Poster exhibits are set up side by side within the session area during the hour before the session and dismantled within the hour afterward. The poster is mounted on a 4-foot-by-8-foot display board that includes

the session title, the name and institutional affiliation of the presenter(s), and very brief text with clearly labelled photos, drawings, graphs, or charts. Presenters are expected to be

available for discussion during the entire midday session as attendees circulate among the posters. No AV equipment or electrical access will be available. Detailed guidelines will be sent to accepted presenters.

Show-and-tell Session (20 min.): A session that shows, as well as tells, a technique for teaching or testing. This session is an oral summary that discusses the presenter’s work in

relation to practice.

FACTORS AFFECTING SELECTION

The convention brings together individuals working in diverse roles to benefit English language learners of all ages and at all stages of language development. Therefore, an important factor in

selection is program balance. The Convention Program Committee seeks such balance in:

• range of topics

• level of expertise

• interests covered

• relevance of the proposal to the needs of English language teaching professionals and the convention’s theme.

Another important factor is how well the summary is written. Summaries should be clearly and

concisely written, and should convey the session’s importance and appropriateness to the field:

• significance for the intended audience

• evidence of a high standard of research and/or practice (where applicable)

• evidence that the presentation will be well prepared

You should carefully read the Proposal Rating Rubric (provided in this call) and refer to it as you

are drafting your proposal.

FACTORS DISQUALIFYING A PROPOSAL

• The presentation promotes commercial interests.

• The proposal is not completed according to the guidelines outlined in this call for

participation (see below).

• The proposal was not received at VenTESOL by the appropriate deadline: February 1st,

2015 for all proposal types.

• The same (or a very similar) proposal is submitted to more than one interest section.

PRESENTERS’ ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

A presenter will be presenting the proposal at the convention. A presenter can also serve as the organizer and correspondent for the session. The presenter’s name will appear in the Convention Program Book.

A contributing presenter contributed to the proposal and will be presenting at the convention. All presenter(s) will:

• Refrain from changing the conceptual content of the session after it has been accepted.

• Provide handouts for the anticipated number of attendees.

• Specify how many people they expect for their session and confirm the room capacity after they have been notified of their room number.

Additionally, the organizer will communicate in a timely manner with all presenters about the status

of the proposal and other information sent by VenTESOL.

SUBMITTING A PROPOSAL In order to submit a proposal, you need to complete two (2) Proposal Forms. The first one implies

gathering information to be exposed in the Convention Program Book and the second one for the Evaluating Committee.

Proposal Form 1 (Convention Program Book)

The following information will only appear in the program book.

Presenter(s): If there is more than one presenter, one person must be responsible for receiving, collecting and distributing information on the presentation. Contact numbers and addresses for this person should be provided.

Title: The title may NOT be more than 8 words.

Biographical Statement: Prepare a biographical statement of 50 words to be included in the program book. Such information must include your place of origin, education and titles, teaching

experience, publications, and any other relevant information.

Abstract: The presenter/s must provide a clear description of the presentation. Please use A4 or ‘letter’ size paper, with the following information typed: Title of Presentation; topic of interest; scope of presentation, intended audience; audio-visual equipment to be used; context of

study/research/technique; method of presentation; relevance for intended audience; conclusions. Font: Times New Roman

Size: 12 Spacing: Single line

Intended Audience: Be sure to highlight or underline one or more of the options provided. This will be included in the program book and indicates the participants whether your presentation is relevant

to them or not.

Topic of Interest: Be sure to indicate by highlighting or underlining the topic that your presentation

addresses. Again, this will be included in the program book and will once more help the participants decide on the relevance of the presentation for them. Size of Audience: This will help the organizers place your presentation in the room most suited to

your needs.

Proposal Form 2 (Evaluating Committee) The information required in this proposal form (abstract and summary) should cover two (2)

complete pages.

Abstract: It is the same abstract explained in the proposal form 1. It must be typed or pasted in the proposal form 2.

Summary: It requires the development of the abstract in a deeper way. It should contain the following information:

a clearly stated purpose and point of view

supporting ideas and examples

evidence of current practices and/or research

a variety of techniques (e.g., activities, visuals)

reference citations

conclusion

This proposal form 2 will be sent to the Evaluating Committee and will appear in the Proceedings of

the Convention at http://www.ventesol.org and http://ventesol.ning.com/

DEADLINE

All Proposals

Deadline: Received by February 1st, 2015. Proposals received after the deadline will not be

considered. NOTES:

1) All participants must submit proposals online. Both Proposal forms should be emailed to

proposals@ventesol.org until February 1st, 2015.

2) Title each file as follows: Lastname-Firstname (number).doc, for example: Flores, Ana1.doc (for Proposal Form 1) and Flores, Ana2.doc (for Proposal Form 2).

3) Acceptance will be notified via e-mail by April 15th, 2015. More than one proposal from

the same individual may be accepted based upon space availability

PROPOSAL EVALUATION CRITERIA

Three peer referees will blind review all proposal submissions and will have the opportunity to provide comments to the submitting author. All reviewers’ identities will remain confidential. All

proposal referees will use the evaluation criteria and scoring rubric below. Total possible score is based on a scale of 30 points.

Proposal Rating Rubric

Evaluation

Criteria

Poor

1

Fair

2

Satisfactory

3

Good

4

Excellent

5 Total

1. Proposal Title

The title gives little

information

about the

session’s

content.

The title has

some indication

of the session's

content.

The title generally

describes what the

session will be

about.

The title clearly

describes the

session.

The title gains the

reader's interest,

describes the

session.

2. Purpose &

Session type

The proposal is

inappropriate for the session

type, or the

objective is not

stated, implied,

or clear.

The proposal

may be

appropriate for the session type.

The objective is

too general and

how it will be

achieved is not explained.

The proposal is

generally

appropriate for the session type. The

objective is stated

or implied, but

how it will be

achieved is not explained.

The proposal is

appropriate for the

session type. The objective is clear

(stated or implied),

and it is clear how

the presenter will

attain it.

The proposal

matches the

session type. The

objective is clear (stated or

implied); there

are specifics that

make the reader

want to learn more.

3. Currency,

Importance, and

Appropriateness of

Topic to the Field

and the Interest Section (IS)

The topic is not

current or not

appropriate to

the field or IS. I

would not attend this

session.

The topic is somewhat related

to issues in the

field and the IS,

but it is not

current. I would probably not

attend this

session.

The topic may not

be current but

focuses on issues

appropriate to the

field and the IS. I may attend this

session.

The topic is current

and appropriate to

the field and/or the

IS. I would

probably attend this session.

The topic is

current, immediately

relevant, or

important to the

field and the IS. I

would definitely attend or

recommend this

session.

4. Focus and

Organization of Content (based on

the proposal type)

The topic is not

focused or there is little or no

organization to

the proposal.

The topic’s focus

is too narrow or

too general. The

proposal shows

some organization, but

it may not

provide

sufficient

guidance for the audience.

The organization

may be

understandable to

the audience, but the proposal could

be more focused

and better

organized.

The proposal is

focused and

explains how the

presenter will introduce and

present the material

in a comprehensible

way.

The proposal is

well-focused. It

previews the

topic, presents the material in an

interesting way,

and shows how it

will be

concluded.

5. Clarity of

Proposal &

Participant

Outcomes

The proposal needs work on

sentence

structure and

fails to give

outcomes.

The proposal

gives some ideas about outcomes,

but needs to

specify how they

will be reached

during the presentation.

The proposal is

adequately written and includes a

statement of

participant

outcomes where

appropriate but needs more detail.

The proposal is

clearly written and provides a general

statement of

participant

outcomes where

appropriate and how they will be

achieved.

The proposal is

well written and provides an

explicit statement

of participant

outcomes where

appropriate and how they will be

achieved.

6. Theory,

Practice, and/or

Research

Contribution to the Convention and/or

to the Field or IS

The proposal

does not

mention theory, practice, or

research.

The proposal mentions that

some theory,

practice, and/or

research was

used, but the abstract is not

specific or does

not relate it to the

presentation.

The proposal

refers to theory,

practice, and/or

research on which

the presentation is based and relates it

to the presentation

to some extent.

The proposal refers

to the theory,

practice, and/or

research on which

the presentation is based in an

understandable way

and relates it to the

presentation.

The proposal

refers to the theory, practice,

and /or research

on which the

presentation is

based and clearly shows how it is

connected to the

presentation in a

relevant and

useful way.

TOTAL SCORE

= 30

BRIEF Overall Comments if necessary:

Total

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