The Annual Meeting Planning Committee is soliciting proposals for presentations at the 2009 NSDL Annual Meeting, November 17-19 in Washington, D.C. Proposals are welcomed from both the NSDL community and from individuals and groups not directly affiliated with an NSDL-funded project. The Committee encourages all projects to share their experiences and successes, and to raise issues in six specific areas of interest across NSDL.

From Digital Libraries to Cyberlearning
In 2008, the NSDL Annual Meeting highlighted activities that are pushing the boundaries of digital libraries by finding ways to weave together learning and technology in our highly connected world. Presentations also underscored the challenges of working within the evolving national infrastructure while producing real results in the classroom. For 2009, proposals should explore issues and report on activities building on this transition from library to learning.

This year the Committee is asking you to submit your talk in one of six topical areas. The six categories for presentations include:

Evaluation and Impact: Focus on efforts and results to measure the effects of NSDL in real educational settings, and to document impacts as observed from the STEM teacher and learner audiences of NSDL projects;

Outreach and Professional Development: Outline models, research or designs of activities implemented that promote the use of NSDL in alignment with instructional practice;

Research Findings: Present cumulative experiences and compelling narratives about ongoing, or concluded, research (e.g., technology, education, policy) within the context of the NSDL goals to support effective usage of library materials;

Sustainability: Describe strategies for sustaining your work within a broader vision for NSDL while keeping pace the evolving national STEM research and education infrastructure;

Services, Discoverability and Technology: Demonstrate tools and technology developed to enable the creation, discovery and adoption of digital materials tailored for use with today’s learners;

Collection Development: Advance the craft of digital library building by presenting strategies and software for library building, working with standards, archiving and other library tools needed to ensure the utility and integrity of library collections.

The Committee continues to encourage presentations that incorporate various media (e.g., video clips, podcasts, blogs), which further underscore the movement from Libraries to Learning.

The following session types will be available for the 2009 meeting: Panels, Presentations, Computer Labs, and Lightning Talks. Please read the suggestions about session formats below; refer to the Proposal Submission Process FAQ; and as always, contact the Planning Committee with questions.

Panel or Presentation, up to 30 minutes: This time would support an update on several facets of one project’s activities, or several projects could report on related activities.

Panel or Presentation, up to 60 minutes: This time would support a panel presentation comprising several perspectives on an issue or an in-depth examination of one significant issue.

Computer Lab: These sessions do not have to follow a specific format, though we ask that proposals describe an engaging and interactive session, resulting in tangible outcomes for participants. Possible session formats could include workshops or training on tools and technology, or hands-on demonstrations of site features or activities. Some examples include: train-the-trainer sessions on delivering a specific workshop curriculum, learning to use an NSDL service such as Content Clips or CWIS, or learning how to de-bug a particular piece of software. We do not plan to provide computers this year unless specifically requested by the presenter, since most attendees bring their personal laptops to the meeting.

Lightning Talk: Lightning talks are 5-minute presentations on any topic and are a great way to quickly share detailed information. The style is informal, focused, informative, and can be as prepared or as spontaneous as the presenter chooses. You do not need to organize a whole session of lighting talks. The Planning Committee will organize the talks into 60-minute sessions.

How to Submit a Proposal
Proposals will be due by midnight of August 28. NOTE: There will not be an extension of this deadline. Because the meeting space is limited this year, the Committee may not be able to accommodate all presentations as in past years and you may be asked to change the length or format of your proposed activity. Please check the proposal FAQ for general information.

Although the complete Annual Meeting site is not yet available, you may fill out a template for submitting your proposal at http://annualmeeting.nsdl.org/proposal_registration.php.

We will notify presenters by September 4.

We will accept poster submissions starting in early September. If you have any questions, please contact me.