Alternative Session Proposal Guidelines

Proposals and Proposal Papers will be reviewed by the Technical Program Committee (TPC) and selected based on the fit with the conference’s program, peer-review results, and availability of session slots. Because these submissions are partly evaluated based on the expertise of the facilitators and/or panelists, these submissions (proposal and paper) should be prepared for single anonymized review (i.e., the authors and affiliations should be identified). The TPC will review the initially submitted proposal using a rubric to assess its quality and fit for the conference (see sections below for expectations for each session type).

If the proposal is accepted, the facilitators/authors will be invited to submit a 3-5 page paper that conforms to the required IEEE format for the conference (https://www.ieee.org/conferences/publishing/templates.html). The TPC will review these papers to ensure that it provides sufficient detail and conforms to the required format. The decision can be accept or revisions required. If the decision is accept, authors/facilitators will need to prepare and submit their final paper. If the decision is revisions required, authors/facilitators will need to make the requested revisions and submit a revised paper for review by the TPC. Once this paper is reviewed and accepted by the TPC, the authors/facilitators will be asked to submit their final paper.

Based on availability and fit with the conference’s program, the TPC may ask authors to consider moving their submission to a different session type (e.g., workshop, panel, special session, or paper track).

Special sessions are creative, non-traditional, interactive ways to engage engineering and computing education professionals at the frontiers of education. These sessions are approximately ~80 minutes long and should be of value to FIE Conference attendees, enhance the experience and knowledge of the session participants, and help advance the frontiers of engineering and computing education.

• Special Session facilitators must register for and attend the conference.

• Proposals and Full Papers should be prepared for a single anonymized review.

• Papers should adhere to the required IEEE format

Expected Content for Special Session Proposal and Paper

Both the special session proposal (800-1000 words) and the full papers (3-5 pages) must include each of the elements listed below. Note that some sections are ONLY required for the proposal and should be removed from the full paper. An approximate word count for each section of a proposal is provided and can be scaled for the full paper, if accepted.

• Title: Must begin with “Special Session:”

• Goals of the Special Session: List of goals and how these goals align with the goals of FIE (approximately 100 words)

• Anticipated Audience: (PROPOSAL ONLY) A description of the anticipated audience and why they would be interested in the session (approximately 100 words)

• Topics/Subjects: A description of the special session, including the topics/subjects/content of the session in the context of the relevant literature (approximately 200-300 words)

• Justification: A justification for why the proposed session is novel and/or thought-provoking (approximately 100 words)

• Agenda: An explanation of the interaction expected during the session and a session agenda that includes details and approximate time allotted for each activity, up to 80 minutes total (approximately 150 words)

• Expected Outcomes: A description of the expected outcomes, what attendees will take away, and any future work that will be done because of the session (approximately 50 words)

• Qualification: Brief biographies describing the expertise of the facilitators (approximately 100 words)

• Special Requirements: (PROPOSAL ONLY): List of any special requirements for electricity, audio-visual equipment, or materials.

A student panel session is an opportunity for students to share their perspectives, knowledge, and experiences around important topics across engineering education, computing education, and other related fields. It is also an opportunity for the audience to engage in discussions and gather new perspectives around pre-determined topics. These panel sessions are not limited to purely technical or academic topics. An example of a less technical student panel title might be the following: “Student experiences at a large Land Grant R1 Institution” or “Minority student experiences in a Predominately White Discipline”.

The specific structure of the panel session is up to you. However, we encourage you to include a predetermined amount of time at the end of a session or periodically throughout the session for interaction between the panelists and the audience. The panel should be composed of undergraduate and/or graduate students. One panelist can be a non-student (e.g., a prospective student, an expert as it relates to the topic you are proposing, faculty member). The student panel should be led by a student; however, the individual who facilitates the panel session can be a non-student.

We are optimistic that the panels conducted by students will be powerful opportunities of growth for the panelists and the audience. We are excited about a broad range of panel topics that span both technical and non-technical areas. Possible topics include, but are not limited to:

• First-year experiences and policies

• Student experiences in their respective programs and campuses

• Interdisciplinary capstone projects

• Broadening participation (e.g. DEI, HSI, HBCU, MSI, Land Grant)

• Mental health (e.g. well-being, community building)

• Governance at engineering schools

• Generative and/or smart technologies (e.g., AI Tools-ChatGPT)

• Others (e.g. Transformational Engineering Education).

Expected Content for Student Panel Session Proposals and Full Papers

Both the panel session proposals (600-1000 words) and the full papers (3-5 pages) must include the elements listed below. Note that some sections are ONLY required for the proposal and should be removed from the full paper. An approximate word count for each section of a proposal is provided and can be scaled for the full paper, if accepted.

• Title: Must begin with “Student Panel Session:”

• Topics and Motivation: A description of topics/subjects/content of the session and its significance in the context of the relevant literature. (approximately 200-400 words).

• Goals and Outcomes: The goal(s) and anticipated outcomes of the panel session and the rationale for why these goals and outcomes are better served by a panel session (approximately 100-200 words).

• Facilitator Role: A description of the role of the proposed facilitator (less than 100 words)

• Anticipated Audience: (PROPOSAL ONLY) A description of the anticipated audience (community), and why they would be interested in the session (approximately 100-200 words).

• Panelists’ and Moderator’s Names and Bios: The names and institutions for each proposed panel member (typically 3-5). Panelists can include a max one non-student on the panel, if the exact student is not known, please just describe where you will get the student from (e.g., in case you might want a first-year who has not come yet) (around 300 words)

• Sample Questions for the Panelist: (PROPOSAL ONLY) A list of 5 to 10 questions.

• Special Requirements: (PROPOSAL ONLY) List of any special requirements for electricity, audio-visual equipment, or materials.