Poster Presenters & Abstracts 

Call for Contributed Posters

We invite abstract submissions for contributed posters in the following 3 categories:

(1) Teaching-as-Research projects: Posters describing completed Teaching-as-Research (TAR) projects that focus on investigating and improving undergraduate education in STEM.

CIRTL Forum Travel Awards for graduate students and postdocs presenting TAR posters:
The CIRTL Forum Travel Award will provide $500 to help defray the costs of travel for a limited number of graduate students and postdocs presenting posters of their own TAR projects related to STEM education. Travel Awards are only available for grad students and postdocs who are the presenting author, and are from outside the Philadelphia, PA area.  Applicants should  complete the short Travel Award application by August 9, 2019 (Travel Award Information page).

(2) Future faculty development programs: Posters describing specific future faculty development programs that demonstrate effective practices for the preparation of STEM future faculty as change leaders in a changing landscape and/or address the relevance of diversity in the preparation of future faculty.

(3) Institution-wide initiatives for preparation of STEM future faculty: Posters describing institution-wide initiatives that focus on preparing future faculty to be change leaders who advance teaching in a higher education landscape of ever more diverse learners.

Poster abstracts due by July 1, 2019

Submission and Review Process

1. Prepare your abstract based on the guidelines below.
2. Submit your abstract via the abstract submission form by July 1, 2019.
3. All abstracts will be reviewed based the abstract guidelines (below) and rubric.
4. Authors will receive notification of acceptance by August 1, 2019.
5. If your abstract is accepted:
   • Presenting authors must register for the CIRTL Forum by September 13, 2019.
   • You will have the opportunity to update your abstract before September 13, 2019.

Questions about abstract submission should be directed to: forumposter@cirtl.net.

Guidelines for Poster Abstracts

General guidelines for all abstracts:

• Length limit: 1500 characters (including spaces), or approximately 250 words.
• Spell out any acronyms the first time they are used.
• Use clear and non-technical language - write for a general (not disciplinary-specific) audience.

Specific guidelines for abstracts on Teaching-as-Research projects:

Teaching-as-Research (TAR) uses a deliberate and systematic approach to understand and improve teaching and learning. While many TAR projects may involve testing the effectiveness of an instructional strategy (an intervention), others may strive to understand more deeply the thinking, attitudes, and motivation of learners and/or teachers. We encourage TAR projects that integrate one or more of the CIRTL Learning Outcomes in Evidence-Based Teaching, Learning Communities and Learning through Diversity.

Abstracts describing TAR projects should include the following elements:

• State your research question and justify its significance
• Describe the methods, including the intervention (if applicable) and assessment(s) used
• Briefly describe the major results
• Include a statement of conclusions and/or implications

TAR project abstracts will be evaluated based on clarity, significance and alignment (see rubric).

Specific guidelines for abstracts on Future faculty development programs or Institution-wide initiatives for preparation of STEM future faculty:

Abstracts describing Future faculty development programs or Institution-wide initiatives for preparation of STEM future faculty should include the following elements:

• Describe the goals and intended outcomes of the program/initiative
• Describe the structure of the program/initiative
• Describe any assessment or evaluation data you have on the program/initiative
• When writing your abstract, consider the relevance of your program or initiative to Forum themes:
  • Existing Culture of STEM Education: How has the Academy traditionally prepared future faculty? What are the barriers to evidence-based teaching? What are the barriers that exist for underrepresented students in STEM?
  • STEM Teaching and Learning Practices that Support All Students: What are the teaching practices that have been demonstrated to support the learning and retention of all students in STEM? What are other elements of an inclusive STEM college education? What are the limits of our current knowledge? Are there unique roles for underrepresented faculty in inclusive STEM college education, and if so what are they? How can all faculty enable those roles while insuring the overall success of underrepresented faculty?
  • Working Effectively Within Existing Institutional Culture: How can we help future faculty implement evidence-based STEM teaching and learning, and support these individuals when they encounter colleagues or institutions not ready to change or accept evidence-based teaching? What are the key components of an inclusive STEM college education, with particular focus on those in which faculty play a key role?
  • Change Leadership:How can we prepare future faculty to work effectively as colleagues and change leaders to create welcoming and supportive academic climates for all undergraduates in STEM fields in a range of institutional environments? What can be learned from industry and graduate school professional development that incorporates leadership training? How can we continue to prepare future academic leaders?

Future faculty development program and Institution-wide initiative abstracts will be evaluated based on clarity, relevance and applicability (see rubric).

Submission limits: Multiple abstracts describing institutional initiatives and future faculty development programs may be submitted for review from each institution. Due to potential space constraints, we may limit accepted abstracts to one from each institution.