Call for Proposals: Two-Year College English Association 2024 National Conference
The Weird and the Wonderful: Unexpected Growth in Unfamiliar Spaces
Conference Program Chairs: Sarah Z. Johnson and Leigh Jonaitis
Date and Location
April 3, 2024
Spokane, Washington
Offered in connection with CCCC 2024
Proposal Deadline
Friday, September 15, 2023, 9:00 a.m. ET
Use this form to submit your proposal.
For Questions: Contact CCCCevents@ncte.org
Call for Proposals
The 2024 National TYCA Conference will mark the 5th anniversary of the inaugural National TYCA Conference. While we had no idea back in 2019 that the subsequent Conferences would be upended by a pandemic, our Conference is thriving and growing stronger, and with it, we see exciting possibilities.
In 2022, Conference Chair Charissa Che asked us to consider recovery and reinvention as we emerged from the pandemic. In 2023, Conference Chair Jason Evans urged us to consider the idea of growth by using W. E. B. DuBois’s concept of “growing down to the roots.” This year, let us continue to consider the ways in which our collective pandemic-fueled moment of crisis has borne unexpected fruit in our classrooms, pedagogy, and lived experiences as teachers and scholars.
We are especially interested in exploring more of the “weird,” or the “wyrd,” as former TYCA National Chair Cheryl Hogue Smith describes in her September 2022 TETYC article. Through consideration of the creative moments that she has come to value in both her own writing and her students’ work, she offers insight into the possibilities afforded when we let go and allow things to proceed as we might not have initially intended. What are the “happy little accidents”—as that consummate educator Bob Ross might say—that now inspire you? What moments of unexpected growth have you experienced in the past few years?
And of course, as literacy educators we pause and gape as we enter what seems the weirdest of times yet—where developments in artificial intelligence (AI) and large language models (LLM) shift the ground under our feet even as we run to keep up. Yet by definition, the function of generative AI is to predict what’s plausible, not embrace, and delight in, the unexpected. Let’s dig in to what is messy, uncertain, and uncomfortable. In this call, we invite you to consider and argue for the undeniable humanity of “the wyrd.”
Potential avenues of inquiry to consider include (but aren’t limited to) the following:
- How has teaching during the pandemic encouraged you to work differently as you return to the classroom?
- How have you used Chat GPT and AI-generated texts as a way to initiate conversation and develop writing and creativity in the classroom?
- In what ways are you connecting with other disciplines and fields, whether in your teaching life or scholarly work?
- What kinds of new collaborations have you engaged in? What new connections are you making?
- How does dealing with the unexpected play out in your work on the program or department level? (In other words, how do you navigate the “weird” when working with colleagues, not just students?)
Focus for Presentations
Presentations do not need to explicitly discuss the Conference theme, but they should 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) first-year writing, developmental education, college reading, teaching English to speakers of other languages, inclusive teaching, evidence-based pedagogy, 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 Chairs:
Sarah Z. Johnson (SZJohnson@madisoncollege.edu) and Leigh Jonaitis (ljonaitis@bergen.edu)
To Stay Informed about the Conference
Conference announcements, updates, and reminders will be distributed through the TYCA listserv. Information about subscribing is available through the TYCA Archive Website: https://tycaarchive.wordpress.com/listserv/
Guidelines for Proposals
Proposal Criteria
Each Conference presentation should meet the following criteria:
- Focuses on teaching, writing center or learning assistance programs, program administration, or other work of two-year college English teacher-scholars;
- Provides attendees with practical strategies for teaching English in the first two college years or engaging as a professional in the discipline;
- Presents concepts and practices that are relevant to working with a wide range of diverse learners at open-admissions institutions;
- Uses research or other evidence to support recommended practices.
Presentations must not be part of an accepted session for CCCC 2024. Proposal authors may, however, submit proposals based on a presentation at a recent TYCA regional conference.
Peer-Review Process
Conference presentations will be selected through a competitive, blind, peer review process that draws from the expertise of TYCA members. Reviewers include members of TYCA regional affiliates and 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.
Information for Authors of Proposals
- 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 TYCA Conference proposal submission system.
- Meet the September 15 deadline.
- Notifications of acceptance 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.
See the Proposal Review Criteria for the TYCA National Conference
For Questions: Contact CCCCevents@ncte.org
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. Fifteen 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 Activity (At Least Two Facilitators)
A brief overview of an issue, followed by an interactive discussion or activity. 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.
60-Minute Workshop (At Least Two Facilitators)
A learning experience with a high level of participant interaction. 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, an innovative idea, preliminary research results, or the application of a theoretical concept.
Required Proposal Information
Session Information for the Program
Title (no more than 160 characters or spaces)
Write a session title for the Conference program.
Annotation for the Conference Program (no more than 400 characters or spaces)
Write 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:
Email:
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).
Session Type (scroll down menu or check box)
- 15-minute individual presentation
- 60-minute panel presentation
- 60-minute facilitated discussion or activity
- 60-minute workshop
- Interactive poster presentation
Relevance to the Conference (no more than 400 characters or spaces)
Explain how the presentation addresses issues or practices that are relevant to the work of two-year college teacher-scholars.
Target Audience (no more than 160 characters or spaces)
Identify one or more constituent group(s) within TYCA or CCCC who would be interested in your presentation (for example, first-year writing teachers, writing center directors, writing program administrators, literature instructors, integrated reading and reading instructors, etc.).
Session Description (no more than 4000 characters or spaces)
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 provided titles for each presentation.
Sponsored Session (optional)
Please enter the group name if the session is sponsored by a TYCA regional affiliate, a TYCA special interest network, a CCCC standing group or SIG, or another professional group affiliated with NCTE.
For Questions: Contact CCCCevents@ncte.org