Carefully review the session type descriptions below before submitting a proposal. 

1. Education Session** (Traditional – Lecture or Interview)

Education Sessions provide an opportunity for presenters to share their work, innovations, or new opportunities to the OLC community. The presenters are responsible for driving the conversation and encouraging deep thinking about a topic, sharing practical applications of their work, or providing new and varying perspectives. There are two primary formats for this session type: presentations and panel sessions. Although these are more traditional formats, the presenters/panelists should strive to make the sessions as engaging as possible through polls, audience discussions, and other forms of interaction.

Note: When submitting the proposal, the names and affiliations of the presenters, moderator(s) and panelists are required to be included. Please do not include names or institutions in the abstract in order to keep the review process double-blind. All individuals (presenters, moderators, and panelists) will need OLC user accounts and must be listed as presenters on the proposal. (Presenters/panelists cannot be proposed as TBD.)  

Key Features:

• 45 minutes total. Time allotments may vary but each session should include approximately 5 minutes for introductions, 35 minutes for the main presentation, and 5 minutes for questions.
• 1-4 individuals conducting the session (panel sessions must include a moderator).
• Presentation style is similar to a lecture, while a panel session is similar to an interview.
• Interactivity can range from simple to highly engaging. Uses strategies to engage the audience in active learning.
• Accompanied by a slide presentation (important for accessibility purposes and for virtual audience viewing should your session be selected to be live streamed) Please see the Presenter Services and/or IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Advocacy)  web page for more information.

**This session category includes Best-in-Track selections for award and Best-in-Track presentations sessions.
**Best-in-Track Sessions will have the opportunity to submit to the Online Learning Journal for publication.

2. Express Workshop (Exploration)

These sessions are designed to provide the attendees with an opportunity to explore a new skill, strategy, or technology. By offering practical, hands-on learning activities, participants are fully engaged in the learning process. Facilitators provide both group and 1-1 guidance as necessary during the session. Attendees should walk away from the session feeling as though they have acquired a new skill, have developed an action plan, or have gain significant insight into a new technology. Proposals must include measurable outcomes and activities.

Note: Presenters are responsible for providing all Express Workshop materials. Instructions for uploading materials will be provided to all accepted presenters. Presenters are also responsible for ensuring all attendees can actively engage in the session. Please see the Presenter Services site for resources on making the session fully accessible.  

Key Features: 

• 45 minutes total; typically consists of 3-5 minutes of introductions, with the remaining time consisting of multiple explanations/demos and hands on activities.
• 1-3 presenters facilitating a hands-on learning experience.
• Presentation style is similar to an exploration in which the presenters engage the attendees in a “try it yourself” format.
• Interactivity is high. The entire session is focused on activity based learning.
• Facilitators are expected to provide any materials (instructions, worksheets, etc.)  to ensure a successful session.
• Express Workshops are typically not selected for the live webcast program due to the group work and hands-on nature of activities.

3. Gamified Session (Interactive)

These sessions engage both the presenters and the attendees in a fun and unique OLC conference experience. Moving beyond traditional styles of presentations, attendees and presenters of this session type will have the ability to connect with the content and each other like never before. Presenters may draw upon well known games such as Jeopardy and Family Feud as example formats or inspiration. These sessions tend to draw large audiences, please be sure all attendees can be accommodated with the strategies used.

Key Features:

• 45 minutes total; typically includes 5-10 minutes of introductions and 35-40 minutes of presenters or audience competing to provide the most valuable information to the discussion. (Attendees should be able to ask questions during the session or additional time may need to be allotted at the end for Q&A.)
• 1-4 presenters facilitating highly active sessions with an emphasis on competition and interactivity.
• Presentation style can vary, but must include elements of game based learning.
• Interactivity is extremely high. Both presenters and attendees should be actively participating. Proposals must disclose the game format being used and how it will be implemented (Jeopardy, Family Feud, etc.).

4. Discovery Session (Online Conversation)

With social distancing concerns top of mind, we are going to try a new format for Discovery Sessions for Accelerate 2020. Discovery sessions will be fully virtual presentations that allow presenters to share their work, ideas, and innovations in a virtual presenter to virtual audience format. These sessions allow for a greater exchange of ideas and in-depth asynchronous conversations about important topics to the OLC community. These digital presentations can include works in progress, research ideas, collaboration opportunities, best practices and practical applications, or pilot projects.

Note: Each presenter will prepare a digital presentation and upload to VoiceThread. Each accepted presenter will register as a virtual attendee. If you are an onsite presenter, you can also present a Discovery Session in the virtual to virtual modality. 

Key Features:

• An asynchronous opportunity for virtual presenter to virtual audience using VoiceThread. 
• Allows opportunities for interaction using a presentation style that is conversational, sharing concise but impactful information in an online modality. 
• Interactivity is personalized based on audience members visiting your VoiceThread presentation. Allows for deeper connections and more detailed discussions.

5. Graduate Student Discovery Session (Online Conversation)

Proposals may include works in progress or completed research results. Discovery Sessions provide an excellent opportunity to present your ideas to your peers in a community forum. 

We seek submissions by students currently enrolled in or recently graduated (within one year) from a Graduate (Master or Doctoral) program whose research is relevant to online teaching and learning. The proposal submission must follow the guidelines of the OLC Accelerate 2020 conference sessions.  

Be sure to review the detailed Graduate Student Discovery Session page before submitting your proposal. 

Key Features:

• Typically 10-15 minutes of information sharing by the presenter, followed by discussion. (10-15 minute presentation is repeated 2-3 times over a 45 minute timeframe).
• 1-3 presenters engaging in meaningful conversations with attendees.
• Presentation style is conversational, sharing concise but impactful information.
• Interactivity is personalized based on audience members stopping by the presentation display. Allows for deeper connections and more detailed discussions.
• Presenters are expected to bring their own laptops and provide handouts. OLC will provide tables and power strips.

6. Workshop

Attendees should expect to be actively involved during Workshops.

Submissions for this session type should be interactive, 90-minute workshops that align with this year’s tracks and should seek to offer a more in depth exploration and activation of a topic than a shorter, regular conference session would allow. Workshops should be designed with 2-4 meaningful and measurable participant learning outcomes (LOs) with opportunities explicitly outlined by the presenters showcasing collaborative and/or interactive group activities​ that will be used during the session to achieve stated learning goals​. Interactive workshops that highlight effective practices are desired.

Proposals for workshops should clearly address the following questions for reviewers:

• ​​What are the explicit participant learning outcomes for the workshop?
• What types of collaboration or interactivity will occur during the workshop with the instructor-participants and within the participant-to-participant group themselves?​ Please outline time allotments
• for any presentation vs. interactivity (i.e., 15 minute presentation; 65 minute interactive workshop; 10 minute Q & A).
• How will workshop participants be able to apply the effective practices shared in the workshop at their home institution?
• Who do you envision as the primary audience types who would get the most out of this session and why do you believe they will benefit?
• What activities, take-aways, and/or activities will your workshop participants engage in that make your workshop unique, innovative, and relevant to the OLC Accelerate 2020 themes and track you have selected?
• What materials are required for the presenters, and what materials are required of those in attendance? This must be clearly outlined within the proposal submission.

Presenters must provide an opportunity for questions, answers, and/or whole or small group discussion within the course of the workshop and must describe how this element will be used to best engage participants. Elements of the workshop may be flipped to extend the amount of time participants can engage with the workshop content. Sessions that​ ​offer the opportunity to earn a​ ​credential, badge, or certificate are encouraged.

Workshops are offered free to all participants on a first-come, first-served basis. Please note that computers are not provided for this or any session at OLC Accelerate; therefore, all sessions are designated at BYOD (Bring Your Own Device). Each presenter must bring his/her own laptop/device and must specify in advance what device and/or software requirements (i.e., mobile device or laptop required for participation, required apps for full participation) are expected of participants attending the workshop. The program committee reserves the right to change a workshop’s proposed presentation type if another is deemed more appropriate for engagement and participation given its content.

Competition for workshop slots is highly competitive at Accelerate 2020. Please understand that you may be considered for an alternative format session instead of a workshop at the workshop chair’s discretion.

7. Lightning Talk (Short Provocation)

These compressed, 15 minute sessions provide an opportunity for presenters to inspire and engage participants in thinking through compelling concepts and findings in a short amount of time.  Each talk will be arranged in a series of 3 talks within a 45 minute session block, allowing attendees to make connections and extensions across each of the individual talks within the session block. Because of the focused length, these sessions are great for sharing a driving question or provocation that attendees can continue to reflect upon well beyond the talk.

Key Features:

• 15 minutes total. Time allotments may vary but each session should include approximately 1-2 minutes for introductions, 7-8 minutes for the main presentation, and 5 minutes for questions
•  Ideally only 1 presenter conducting the session
• Presentation style is similar to a TED talk
• Interactivity tends to be simple, with very limited external technology due to the short time frame
• Accompanied by a concise slide presentation (important for accessibility purposes and for virtual audience viewing should your session be selected to be live streamed) Please see the Presenter Services and/or our Equity & Inclusion web pages for more information.

The following rubric will be used to evaluate all proposals in the refereed proposal review process.

• Do the title and abstract clearly describe the session?
• Is the proposed topic timely and/or appropriate?
• What are the session outcomes?
• Will this session positively contribute to the conference and to the field?
• Are the format and session type selected for the presentation the most appropriate to the topic and format of the presentation?
• Is the session designed to be interactive and engage the audience?
• Are you sharing research data or assessment information during the session?
• Did you address the specific criteria outlined for each session type? 

Specific Criteria:

Presenters should include active engagement methodology during presentations to encourage audience/participants to ask questions. The CFP ratings are based on the following major categories:

• Relevance to the conference
• Clarity
• Audience Appeal
• Interactivity (Active Engagement)
• Alignment to Session Specific Criteria

During the review process, reviewers are also asked to indicate whether or not your proposal meets Effective Practice criteria and would be a good candidate for EP submission. We encourage, but do not require, Effective Practice submissions from conference presenters.  EP submissions from conference presenters will be eligible for Effective Practice Awards selection; awards will be presented onsite at the conference. With regard to effective practices, reviewers will consider proposals in light of this question:

• Does this proposal include all 5 of the following elements: innovation, replicability, impact, evidence and scope?

If your proposal is accepted, you will be asked to:

• Register for the conference and pay the published fees.
• Edit all materials used in your session.
• Transmit your PowerPoint Slides, Handout (PDF files), data charts, or other presentation materials to the conference repository by the deadline of November 2, 2020.
• Submissions to the Research Track may be eligible to submit their full research manuscript for consideration for the OLC Online Learning Journal.

• Proposals due by 11:59pm ET Monday, June 1, 2020 (Extended from Wednesday, May 20)
• Notification of acceptance by July 27, 2020
• Deadline for presenters to accept is August 17, 2020
• Deadline for presenters to register is September 23, 2020
• Final date for presenters to edit abstracts is September 23, 2020
• Final presentation upload date is Monday, November 2, 2020

Note: The following standard audiovisual equipment will be provided in each room: data projector equipped with an HDMI cable to accommodate both PC and Macintosh platforms, an Internet connection, and a screen (16:9 slide ratio). (Note: Presenters should plan to provide their own computer equipment or other specialized equipment).  Microphones will be supplied as needed in larger rooms.

If your presentation is accepted, you are strongly encouraged to post it as link or a pdf or PowerPoint file to the presentation repository by November 2, 2020. Doing so is important for attendees as an accessibility consideration. The contributions will remain online as part of the conference materials after the conference. The conference management team will provide instructions on how to upload your file(s) to your session page after acceptance of proposals. Session abstracts and information about the presenters also will be included on the site.

Companies and vendors provide value to OLC Conferences through program presentations, exhibits and sponsorships.  Vendors may submit presentations in any of the program tracks or presentation formats:

1. Academic Presentations:

• Vendors are encouraged encouraged to submit with an institutional lead partner, but any individual or group may submit papers to the traditional academic presentation track for presentation. Presentations must be non-commercial, and focus specifically on the track topics. Presentation content will be reviewed by the conference committee as part of the regular review process. Presentations must contribute new knowledge to the field through the presentation of original research or applications. Presentations of an academic nature should be submitted through the call for papers system.
• Vendors will be limited to one proposal where they lead the presentation.

2. Industry Showcase Presentations:

• Industry Showcase presentations are established as part of the conference program schedule to allow sponsors/exhibitors to make presentations on their products and services during the conference.
• Industry Showcase presentations may include submissions to the CFP system that are moved from academic tracks in the CFP system to the Industry Showcase schedule at the recommendation of the Program co-chairs.
• Industry Showcase proposals from sponsors and exhibitors may be submitted through our Industry Showcase form as part of the sponsorship/exhibit process. Showcase proposals will be reviewed by the Senior Director, Conferences, and conference chairs for approval of content.
• National sponsors are guaranteed an Industry Showcase presentation slot. Remaining Industry Showcase slots are assigned to sponsors by level, then to exhibitors in the order exhibit contracts were received on a space-available basis.
• These sessions are distinctly marked as Industry Showcase presentations in conference materials including the program book, website and room signage. 
• Conference program materials include language that these presentations should be expected to include some sales promotional language in them. These sessions are clearly marked as sessions that have not been peer-reviewed.