Theme

The theme of the 2009 IAEA Conference is Assessment for a Creative World.

Creative endeavour pervades all aspects of life and work. Repetitive work is being replaced by machines. Workers are expected increasingly to devise solutions to problems that are non-standard and non-replicated; they must integrate and synthesise information from a range of contexts and design solutions to fit; imagination, invention and adaptation are needed and valued.

All areas of learning need to develop students to be creative thinkers and collaborative problem solvers. This includes, for example, mathematics, science, engineering and computing, not just the creative and performing arts. The conference will consider how assessment can facilitate, monitor and report student development of creative thinking and skills, across the curriculum, along with other aspects of learning.

Call For Proposals

We invite participants to the 2009 IAEA Annual Conference to present papers, symposia or workshops related to the theme Assessment for a Creative World.

• Relevant abstract(s) must be submitted to the IAEA 2009 Conference Program Sub-Committee no later than 27 March 2009.
• Notification of acceptance of your proposal will be sent to you by email by 29 May 2009.
• The full paper(s) must be submitted to the IAEA 2009 Conference Program Sub-Committee no later than 31 July 2009.

Overview of opportunities

Papers: Papers should relate to one or more of the strands and topics. Presentations should be planned for delivery in 20 minutes, allowing a further 10 minutes for discussion.

Symposia: Some presenters may wish to develop a joint proposal for a symposium. This would involve three or more presentations on a single strand and topic(s). Sufficient time should be allowed for interchange among the presenters and with the audience. Total time for a symposium will be 90 minutes.

Workshops: Opportunities are available for groups or organisations to present a participatory workshop on an aspect of educational practice relating to the conference theme. A workshop should provide conference participants with understandings and skills best acquired through hands-on experience. Total time for a workshop is 90 minutes.

Proposals can now be submitted on the Proposal Submission page

Information for Presenters

Oral Presentations (Papers and Symposiums)

Arrival
Please ensure that you arrive in the presentation room 10 minutes before the start of the session and introduce yourself to the session chair.

Presentation rooms and equipment
All presentation rooms will have a theatre style layout.
Each room will have a computer, data projector and projector screen. Powerpoint presentations will be preloaded onto the computer and technical support will be available. If you have not already notified any special needs concerning equipment, please let the conference organisers know immediately by email at qr@icms.com.au

Making your presentation
Symposium organisers are responsible for determining the length of each presentation in their symposium and ensuring that there is sufficient time (about one-third of the total) for introductions and discussion.
In all other sessions, presenters have 20 minutes presentation time for each paper. Chairs may allow questions seeking clarification after each paper but general discussion will be reserved until all of the papers in the session have been presented.
Making your presentation in 20 minutes requires careful planning. It is not acceptable to run over time and chairs of sessions will require that you finish your presentation within the 20 minutes time-limit. Discussion is an important part of every session and it is important that the amount of time allowed for discussion is preserved.

Deadlines

• The full paper or papers must be submitted, through the provided URL no later than 31 July 2008. Please limit each paper to 10 pages or less (using 12 point font and at least 2.5 cm margins).
• Powerpoint presentations are due no later than 14 August 2008 (to allow time for preloading on the data projector). These should be sent by email attachment to qr@icms.com.au
• If you are a symposium organiser, you are responsible for ensuring that all of your presenters submit any papers to you for your submission of them by the due date.

Please note that by submitting your paper you are granting permission to the IAEA 2009 Conference Organising Committee to publish your paper and abstract in hard copy and electronic form and to place it in the public domain on the IAEA website. Symposium organisers should make sure that all of their presenters are aware of this.

Guidelines for presentations

• Bear in mind that you are speaking to an international audience some of whom may not be aware of the context and terminology of your education system.
• Preferably, do not read your paper; there are likely to be more details in it than can be expressed in the time available; also, this does not make for lively engagement with the audience.
• Limit your presentation to a few key ideas and issues; do not overload the audience with too much detail-they can read that in your paper.
• Ensure that any slides are readable; use large standard fonts (for example, Arial or Times New Roman in at least 28 point) and clear figures or diagrams.
• Some excellent advice about making powerpoint slides can be found on the internet, for example, www.iasted.org/conferences/formatting/Presentations-Tips.ppt
• Rehearse your presentation to ensure a smooth and timed presentation.
• Maintain eye contact with the audience and use simple conversational language.
• Keep to the allocated time of 20 minutes and conclude quickly when time is up-in fact, it is surprising how little is lost by finishing mid-sentence.
• You may wish to provide the chair with suggested questions, in case the audience does not ask any or does not ask relevant ones.
• Papers will be available on the conference USB stick; we will not be printing papers for distribution at the conference.
• If you wish to give any handouts, please ensure that you bring sufficient copies with you to the conference.

Poster Presentations

The purpose of a poster is to present a succinct visual summary of a set of ideas. These ideas might represent key points from an analysis or study of assessment policy, practices or effects. They might be a distillation of key points from a paper you have planned or written. As far as possible, the poster should be self-explanatory, that is, anyone perusing it should be able to understand its messages without further prompting. Some imaginative layout and presentation is needed so that it achieves this aim. It should also look attractive. This requires careful design.

We will be providing space for putting up your poster on a fabric backing board. Posters should measure no more than 1 metre wide by 1.5 metres deep (portrait). Materials for fixing posters will be available from staff at the Registration desk.

You have been allocated a specific time to present your poster. This is either the session before lunchtime or the session after lunchtime on Thursday 17 September. You are expected to be present to explain your poster and answer any questions during this time. For the morning presentation, you should mount your poster during morning tea and remove it at lunchtime. For the afternoon presentation, you should mount your presentation during lunchtime and remove it at afternoon tea.

A lot of websites with ideas about poster design can be found by googling 'conference poster presentation'. A few useful examples are:
http://educ.queensu.ca/~ar/poster.htm
http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/speaking/poster/ www.swarthmore.edu/NatSci/cpurrin1/posteradvice.htm; http://cte.umdnj.edu/career_development/career_posters.cfm

Here are a few suggestions for preparing your poster:
" Prepare your poster completely before coming to the conference.
" Make sure it includes title, authorship and institutional affiliation.
" Your poster should have visual impact and invite attention.
" Be concise. Too much information is distracting. One suggestion is to think of it as a very short story.
" Make the layout attractive and easy to follow visually and intellectually.
" You can use several sheets but fewer larger sheets are better than more small ones.
" Careful use of colour helps to gain attention and highlight key points.
" Use at least 18 point type font; the poster should be readable from one metre away (some guidelines suggest even further, e.g., text 2 metres; title 6 metres).
" Use a simple font (sans serif) and do not use all upper case letters.
" Have friends or colleagues view your poster for clarity, readability and attractiveness.
" Consider scanning the poster components onto a single large sheet (or several A3 sheets).
" Consider having the poster laminated, rolled up and carried in a tube.

Here are a few suggestions for presenting your poster
A poster gives you the chance to interact on a one-to-one level with various people.
Check whether people have understood the content of the poster and ask them if there is anything they would like explained that you may not have made clear.
Let people ask you questions or offer comments. Ask for their reactions. Create interaction with your audience rather than expound your own views.
Try not to spend all your time in earnest conversation with one person; deliberately notice newcomers or those on the periphery.
You can use the breaks before and after your session for interaction as long as you do not take up more than half the lunchtime. In other words, switchover time between the two sessions is half way through lunch.
General Issues
If you have any queries relating to your presentation before the conference, please contact program@icms.com.au
As the nominated Contact for this submission you will receive all correspondence regarding the above submission and are responsible for communicating this information with presenters and/or author(s).

Professor Patricia Broadfoot CBE

Professor Patricia Broadfoot CBE is Vice-Chancellor of the University of Gloucestershire, moving there in 2006 from the University of Bristol where she was Pro Vice-Chancellor and Professor of Education. Her research has focused on educational assessment from sociological and comparative perspectives. She has written extensively on educational assessment and related issues, covering both policy and practice, international in scope, and with a concern for the welfare of the individual student. Her most recent book is 'An Introduction to Assessment'.

Professor Barry McGaw AO

Professor Barry McGaw AO is Director of the University of Melbourne Education Research Institute (MERI) and 'Chair of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). Previously he was Director for Education in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) based in Paris, and before that Executive Director of the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). He has a distinguished record of research in educational assessment, particularly concerning testing, examination, certification and accountability.

Instructions to Presenters

Oral Presentations (Papers and Symposiums)

Arrival
Please ensure that you arrive in the presentation room 10 minutes before the start of the session and introduce yourself to the session chair.

Presentation rooms and equipment
All presentation rooms will have a theatre style layout.
Each room will have a computer, data projector and projector screen. Powerpoint presentations will be preloaded onto the computer and technical support will be available. If you have not already notified any special needs concerning equipment, please let the conference organisers know immediately by email at qr@icms.com.au

Making your presentation
Symposium organisers are responsible for determining the length of each presentation in their symposium and ensuring that there is sufficient time (about one-third of the total) for introductions and discussion.
In all other sessions, presenters have 20 minutes presentation time for each paper. Chairs may allow questions seeking clarification after each paper but general discussion will be reserved until all of the papers in the session have been presented.
Making your presentation in 20 minutes requires careful planning. It is not acceptable to run over time and chairs of sessions will require that you finish your presentation within the 20 minutes time-limit. Discussion is an important part of every session and it is important that the amount of time allowed for discussion is preserved.

Deadlines

• The full paper or papers must be submitted, through the provided URL no later than 31 July 2008. Please limit each paper to 10 pages or less (using 12 point font and at least 2.5 cm margins).
• Powerpoint presentations are due no later than 14 August 2008 (to allow time for preloading on the data projector). These should be sent by email attachment to qr@icms.com.au
• If you are a symposium organiser, you are responsible for ensuring that all of your presenters submit any papers to you for your submission of them by the due date.

Please note that by submitting your paper you are granting permission to the IAEA 2009 Conference Organising Committee to publish your paper and abstract in hard copy and electronic form and to place it in the public domain on the IAEA website. Symposium organisers should make sure that all of their presenters are aware of this.

Guidelines for presentations

• Bear in mind that you are speaking to an international audience some of whom may not be aware of the context and terminology of your education system.
• Preferably, do not read your paper; there are likely to be more details in it than can be expressed in the time available; also, this does not make for lively engagement with the audience.
• Limit your presentation to a few key ideas and issues; do not overload the audience with too much detail-they can read that in your paper.
• Ensure that any slides are readable; use large standard fonts (for example, Arial or Times New Roman in at least 28 point) and clear figures or diagrams.
• Some excellent advice about making powerpoint slides can be found on the internet, for example, www.iasted.org/conferences/formatting/Presentations-Tips.ppt
• Rehearse your presentation to ensure a smooth and timed presentation.
• Maintain eye contact with the audience and use simple conversational language.
• Keep to the allocated time of 20 minutes and conclude quickly when time is up-in fact, it is surprising how little is lost by finishing mid-sentence.
• You may wish to provide the chair with suggested questions, in case the audience does not ask any or does not ask relevant ones.
• Papers will be available on the conference USB stick; we will not be printing papers for distribution at the conference.
• If you wish to give any handouts, please ensure that you bring sufficient copies with you to the conference.

Poster Presentations

The purpose of a poster is to present a succinct visual summary of a set of ideas. These ideas might represent key points from an analysis or study of assessment policy, practices or effects. They might be a distillation of key points from a paper you have planned or written. As far as possible, the poster should be self-explanatory, that is, anyone perusing it should be able to understand its messages without further prompting. Some imaginative layout and presentation is needed so that it achieves this aim. It should also look attractive. This requires careful design.

We will be providing space for putting up your poster on a fabric backing board. Posters should measure no more than 1 metre wide by 1.5 metres deep (portrait). Materials for fixing posters will be available from staff at the Registration desk.

You have been allocated a specific time to present your poster. This is either the session before lunchtime or the session after lunchtime on Thursday 17 September. You are expected to be present to explain your poster and answer any questions during this time. For the morning presentation, you should mount your poster during morning tea and remove it at lunchtime. For the afternoon presentation, you should mount your presentation during lunchtime and remove it at afternoon tea.

A lot of websites with ideas about poster design can be found by googling 'conference poster presentation'. A few useful examples are:
http://educ.queensu.ca/~ar/poster.htm
http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/speaking/poster/
http://www.swarthmore.edu/NatSci/cpurrin1/posteradvice.htm;
http://cte.umdnj.edu/career_development/career_posters.cfm

Here are a few suggestions for preparing your poster:

• Prepare your poster completely before coming to the conference.
• Make sure it includes title, authorship and institutional affiliation.
• Your poster should have visual impact and invite attention.
• Be concise. Too much information is distracting. One suggestion is to think of it as a very short story.
• Make the layout attractive and easy to follow visually and intellectually.
• You can use several sheets but fewer larger sheets are better than more small ones.
• Careful use of colour helps to gain attention and highlight key points.
• Use at least 18 point type font; the poster should be readable from one metre away (some guidelines suggest even further, e.g., text 2 metres; title 6 metres).
• Use a simple font (sans serif) and do not use all upper case letters.
• Have friends or colleagues view your poster for clarity, readability and attractiveness.
• Consider scanning the poster components onto a single large sheet (or several A3 sheets).
• Consider having the poster laminated, rolled up and carried in a tube.

Here are a few suggestions for presenting your poster
A poster gives you the chance to interact on a one-to-one level with various people.
Check whether people have understood the content of the poster and ask them if there is anything they would like explained that you may not have made clear.
Let people ask you questions or offer comments. Ask for their reactions. Create interaction with your audience rather than expound your own views.
Try not to spend all your time in earnest conversation with one person; deliberately notice newcomers or those on the periphery.
You can use the breaks before and after your session for interaction as long as you do not take up more than half the lunchtime. In other words, switchover time between the two sessions is half way through lunch.

General Issues
If you have any queries relating to your presentation before the conference, please contact program@icms.com.au
As the nominated Contact for this submission you will receive all correspondence regarding the above submission and are responsible for communicating this information with presenters and/or author(s).