The call for proposals for the 14th Annual CSTA Conference is now live. The conference will be held on July 14-15, 2014 at the Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles, Illinois (just outside of Chicago).
Serving as a member of the conference committee the past three years, I have been constantly impressed and inspired by the quality of the presentations from you, our members. The 3-hour workshops sessions, which run on the first day of the conference, have provided time for learning through hands-on exploration and extended discussion. The 1-hour sessions, which run on the second day, have provided sufficient time for the presentation and discussion of new technologies, educational initiatives, and classroom experiences. As the CSTA Conference has grown over the years, so has the number of proposals we receive. In 2013, there were 98 proposals for the conference (37 workshop and 61 presentation sessions), up from 55 in 2012. Due to the number and high quality of the proposals, we were able to add more workshop sessions and accommodate even more attendees in 2013.
This year, we are hoping to expand the opportunity to contribute even more by introducing a limited number of 20-minute mini-sessions to the program. These mini-sessions, which will focus on pedagogy and best teaching practices, will allow teachers who have great ideas to contribute without having to fill an entire hour. The plan is to bundle related mini-sessions in groups of three, to conform to the 1-hour time slots. That way, we can get more contributors involved and provide an even greater variety of perspectives at the conference. So, if you have a great idea, a nifty educational tool, a new approach to teaching a topic, or just an interesting experience that you think would be of interest to your peers, consider submitting a mini-session proposal for CSTA 2014.
Whether you submit or not, definitely mark July 14-15 on your calendar for CSTA’s premier professional development event.
Dave Reed
CSTA Conference Chair
College Faculty Representative, CSTA Board of Directors