2021 TYCA Conference Call for Proposals

Call for Proposals: Two-Year College English Association National Conference

Teaching in Times of Change: Leading in a Land of Uncertainty

Date and Location
April 7, 2021
Spokane, Washington
Offered in connection with CCCC 2021

Proposal Deadline Extended
November 1, 2020, 11:59 p.m. ET

Conference Theme

TYCA’s National Conference in 2021 will build on the events of our first national conference, focusing on something we are all imminently familiar with: Teaching in Times of Change: Leading in a Land of Uncertainty.

Potential issues the conference might explore include (but aren’t limited to):

How have you transformed your approach to teaching in times of change?
How have you used writing to help both your students and you engage with, process, or explore current events?
What changes do you see in the future of our profession in light of recent global events?
How can two-year college faculty maintain both their professional integrity and mental health in times of uncertainty and change?
What strategies can two-year colleges employ to better prepare their faculty and students to engage in (potentially mandated) online learning?
How can two-year college instructors prepare themselves to lead in a land of uncertainty?
What threats to the two-year college have affected your teaching or job security?

Focus for Presentations

Presentations do not need to explicitly address the conference theme, but they must address issues that are relevant to English studies professionals who support diverse college students in their first two college years. Participants do not need to be affiliated with a two-year college but must focus proposals on research and practices that are clearly relevant to TYCA members. Potential areas of exploration include (but are not limited to) online teaching/distance learning, first-year writing, developmental education, college reading, teaching English to speakers of other languages, literature, creative writing, writing centers and other learning assistance programs, intermediate composition, communications, linguistics, technical writing, business writing, professional development, teacher-scholar activism, community engagement, program administration and innovation, preparing to teach at a two-year college, and the role of contingent faculty.

For Questions

Contact the conference program chair, Stephanie Maenhardt.

To Stay Informed about the Conference

Announcements, updates, and reminders will be distributed through the TYCA listerv. Information about subscribing is available through the TYCA Archive website.

Submit a Proposal

Guidelines for Proposals

Proposal Criteria

Each conference presentation should meet the following criteria:

Proposals to TYCA 2021 should not be part of an accepted session for CCCC 2021 or repeat a presentation from either the TYCA 2019 or 2020 National Conferences. Proposals may, however, be based on a presentation made at a recent TYCA regional conference. (NOTE: If a proposal was accepted by TYCA 2020, but the presenter opted not to share it as part of the 2020 online resource sharing, it may be resubmitted for the 2021 conference.)
Focus on teaching, writing center or learning assistance programs, program administration, or other work of two-year college English teacher-scholars;
Provide attendees with practical strategies for teaching English in the first two college years or engaging as a professional in the discipline;
Present concepts and practices that are relevant to working with a wide range of diverse learners at open admissions institutions;
Use research or other evidence to support recommended practices.

Peer-Review Process

Conference presentations will be selected through a competitive, blind peer review process that draws from the expertise of TYCA members. Reviewers will come from each of the TYCA regional affiliates and will also include teacher-scholars who are engaged in the profession at the national level. See the proposal review criteria for a more detailed overview of how reviewers will evaluate proposals.

Instructions for Proposal Authors

Follow the required proposal format and provide all of the required information.
Select an appropriate session format based on the goals of your presentation, your proposed delivery methods, and the number of presenters (see “Session Formats”).
Write your proposal description for an audience of reviewers who are experienced two-year college teacher-scholars but who may be unfamiliar with your proposal topic.
Remove any personal identifiers for blind review. This means that the names and institutional affiliations for proposed speakers should appear only in the contact information section of the proposal.
Submit the proposal electronically through the NCTE conference proposal submission system.
Meet the September 15 deadline.
Look for notifications of acceptance, which will be sent by December.
Expect to register for the conference by the deadline indicated in conference invitations. Presenters must register and pay for the conference for their names to appear in the conference program.

Proposal Review Criteria for the TYCA National Conference

	Strongly Recommend (Definitely accept)	Recommend	Do Not Recommend (Do not accept)
Relevance to TYCA members and the conference	Contributes to important national conversations about teaching English at two-year colleges or in the first two college years	Focuses on issues that are clearly relevant to the work of TYCA members and others who teach in the first two college years	Focuses on issues that are irrelevant or only minimally relevant to the work of TYCA members or teaching English in the first two years
Purpose, objectives, and goals	Has a clear purpose, objectives, and/or goals that add significant value to the conference	Has a clear purpose, objectives, and/or goal	Lacks a clear purpose, objectives, and/or goals
Clarity of the proposal	Gives a detailed description of the session, including recommended teaching strategies or other best practices, presentation delivery methods, and audience engagement	Provides a clear description of the session and the information provided to attendees	Does not clearly explain what will happen during the session and/or does not provide an adequate overview of the information provided to attendees
Practical application for attendees	Provides attendees with effective, innovative strategies for taking action after the conference and/or enhancing their work as teacher-scholars	Provides attendees with practical strategies for teaching English in the first two college years or engaging as a professional in the discipline	Does not provide a clear explanation of how the session will benefit attendees
Relevance to the access mission of two-year colleges	Makes a significant contribution to disciplinary conversations about teaching English at open admissions institutions	Presents concepts and practices relevant to professionals who work with a wide range of diverse learners at open admissions institutions	Focuses on concepts and practices that are not directly applicable to open admissions institutions and/or the students that they serve
Evidence to support recommended practices	Presents original research, draws from relevant published scholarship, or uses other disciplinary methods to provide clear evidence for recommended practices	Supports recommended practices with acceptable disciplinary evidence	Does not provide adequate evidence to support recommended practices

Session Formats

15-Minute Individual Presentation (one or two presenters)

A short presentation from one or two presenters about best practices or research findings. Individual presentations will be combined with two other presentations that focus on similar topics and/or areas of English studies. 15 minutes of each session will be reserved for questions and discussion with attendees.

60-Minute Panel Presentation (three or more presenters)

A session on a focused issue organized entirely by the authors of the proposal. Panel discussions should have at least three speakers who collaborate with each other to organize a cohesive session. Presenters may determine the format and delivery methods for the session based on the focus, purpose, and goals of the presentation but should leave time at the end of the session for questions or other interaction with the audience.

60-Minute Facilitated Discussion or Workshop Activity (at least two facilitators)

A brief overview of an issue, followed by an interactive discussion or activity OR a learning experience with a high level of participant interaction.

Discussion sessions should have two or more facilitators who provide an introduction to an issue or problem followed by an organized discussion or group activity. Most of the session should focus on interactive discussion or group work. Facilitated discussions and activities should have clear goals that attendees can accomplish within the allotted time. Sessions may include a large group discussion, small group breakout discussions or activities, or a combination of large and small group interactions.
Workshops should have two or more facilitators who provide attendees with hands-on activities that focus on practical strategies for teaching, taking action, doing scholarship, or engaging in other professional work. Attendees should be able to apply learning from the workshop to their own institutional contexts and leave the session with practical ideas or resources for enhancing their work as college English professionals.

Interactive Poster Presentation (one or more presenters)

A visual presentation with a scheduled time for interaction with attendees. Posters will be displayed on bulletin boards throughout the one-day conference. Poster presenters have a speaking role on the conference program, and they will have a scheduled time to engage with attendees in conversations about their work and answer questions. Posters can focus on any aspect of English studies but are especially appropriate for sharing a teaching strategy, work in progress, innovative idea, preliminary research results, or the application of a theoretical concept.

Required Proposal Information

Session Information for the Program

Title (10 words)
Abstract (150 characters) A very brief summary of the session or individual presentation for the conference program.

Contact Information for Each Speaker

Name:
Institution:
Address:
City:
State:
Zip:
Phone:
E-mail:

Speakers who do not have an institutional affiliation may identify themselves in another way (for example, as an independent scholar or retired member of the profession).

Unique Presentation (check box)

The proposed presentation is NOT part of an accepted session for CCCC 2021 or a repeat presentation from TYCA 2019/2020 National Conference. Proposals may present information previously presented at a TYCA regional conference.
The presenter is either an author or represents a commercial entity (e.g., a publisher or other for-profit company). Note: Nonprofits and government-funded agencies are not considered commercial entities.

Session Type (scroll down menu or check box)

15-minute individual presentation
60-minute panel presentation
60-minute facilitated discussion or workshop activity
Interactive poster presentation

Relevance to the Conference (50 words)

Explain how the presentation addresses issues or practices that are relevant to the work of two-year college teacher-scholars.

Target Audience (20 words)

Identify one or more constituent group(s) within TYCA or CCCC who would be interested in your presentation (for example, first-year writing teachers, online teaching, writing center directors, writing program administrators, literature instructors, integrated reading and writing instructors, etc.)

Session Description

Write a detailed description of the session or presentation that includes the following information:

The purpose, learning objectives, or goals of the session
An overview of the research, evidence-based teaching strategies, and/or best practices presented in the session
A short outline or description of what will happen during the session
An explanation of how the presentation will actively engage attendees in discussions or other activities (not required for a 15-minute individual presentation)

Guidelines for Session Descriptions

Remove personal identifiers and institutional affiliations for blind review. Do not refer to presenters by name.
For panel sessions that include individual presentations, identify separate presentations (for example, “Speaker 1” and “Speaker 2”) and provide titles for each presentation.

Word Count Limits for Session Descriptions

15-minute individual presentation (500 words)
60-minute panel presentation (1000 words)
60-minute facilitated discussion or workshop activity (1000 words)
Poster presentation (500 words)

Sponsored Session (optional)

Please enter a group name if the session is sponsored by a TYCA regional affiliate, a CCCC standing group or SIG, or another professional group affiliated with NCTE.

Submit a Proposal