JALT2013 Call for Presentations

SUBMISSIONS OPEN JANUARY 1, 2013.

Deadline for submissions: Sunday, April 21, 2013

JALT is a professional organization dedicated to the improvement of language learning and teaching in Japan: a vehicle for the exchange of ideas and techniques and a means of keeping abreast of new developments in a rapidly changing field. JALT, formed in 1976, is the Japan affiliate of International TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages) and a partner of IATEFL (The International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language).

Schedule

A preliminary outline of the schedule (subject to change without notice) can be found here.

Join us!

All Chapter and SIG officers and interested JALT members are invited to join in planning the conference together. We always need another pair of hands and another point of view. Contact the conference committee at program@jalt.org if you would like to take part or talk to any member of the conference team about what is involved.

Volunteers are also needed to read the proposals submitted. If you are interested in finding out what is involved in reading proposals, please send an email to the Reading Committee Liaison, Paul Stapleton: paulstapleton@gmail.com

Vetted or Unvetted Proposals?

There are two types of presentation proposals: vetted and unvetted. Most sessions at the conference are vetted. Unvetted proposals are those that are guaranteed inclusion in the conference program because of agreements with Associate Members and affiliate organizations, or proposals from SIGs, Chapters, and other parts of JALT for required meetings and forums. Unvetted proposals follow slightly different procedures, which can be found at http://jalt.org/conference/submit/unvetted/.

All proposals, both vetted and unvetted, will be reviewed by the program committee.

Notification of acceptance or rejection of a proposal will be sent by email in early July 2013.

Notes:

• The vetting procedure is completely anonymous. Only proposals completed according to the guidelines, received on or before the deadline, will be reviewed.
• Proposals for longer presentations and special events that tie into the theme of Learning is a Lifelong Voyage will be entertained by the Program Committee only under special circumstances. Brief descriptions of proposals for special events should be sent to program@jalt.org with the subject heading "JALT2013 Special Event Proposal."

Technology in Teaching Workshops

This year we are issuing a general call for Technology in Teaching workshops. Only dynamic and experienced workshop leaders should submit proposals as TnT workshops are pre-conference sessions that participants pay an additional fee in order to attend. For more information and to submit a proposal, click here.

Advice Regarding Submissions

The conference committee offers the following advice to help you prepare a successful submission: click here for advice regarding submission.

Instructions for Submitting Presentation Proposals

Detailed information for submitting presentations can be found by clicking here. We suggest you refer to this page as you follow the steps below to submit your vetted proposal.

Submitting a Vetted Proposal

Please follow the steps below to ensure your vetted submission is received in its complete and correct form. Important: Emailed, mailed, or faxed proposals will NOT be accepted.

1. Titles must be no more than 50 characters including spaces. Titles must be in English.
2. Prepare a summary (maximum of 75 words or 150 Japanese characters) and an abstract (150-250 words or 300-500 Japanese characters). Following the steps below will help ensure your submission is received properly.
   • If possible, use a word processor or text editor other than Microsoft Word to write your submission. Microsoft Word introduces various text encodings that cause compatibility issues with the online database, and may result in unwanted characters appearing in your submission.
   • Plain text only. Don't format your document with tabs, bold text, bullet marks or multiple line breaks between paragraphs. All formatting will be stripped when the document is submitted to the database and sent to the reading committee.
   • Use straight quotes and apostrophes, not curly quotes (" " are straight; “ ” are curly).
   • Use a single space only after punctuation such as periods, not double spaces.
   • Do not use all caps for your name. Enter your name with the first letter capitalized ONLY like this: Smith, Joe. Using uppercase or all capitals for your entire name looks unprofessional and creates extra work for the publications editors.
3. Go to the JALT2013 submissions webpage at: http:jalt.org/conference/submit
4. Enter all your submission details following the on-screen instructions. Once complete, submit your summary and abstract. DO NOT SEND BY EMAIL. Only website submissions will be accepted.
5. As all correspondence from the program committee regarding your submission will be via email, please ensure you enter a correct working email address! We will be notifying presenters around the beginning of July with submission results. It is important you provide an email address you can access at this time, as presenters who do not confirm their intention to present by mid-August may be removed from the schedule. It is your responsibility to confirm your presentation by mid-August even if you are away from home or work. The deadline for pre-registering is September 8, 2013.
6. Also, be sure to notify the program team of any changes in your contact address. If we cannot contact you via email, your submission will be dropped.
7. Once you submit your presentation, you will receive an automatic confirmation email message listing the details of your submission. In most cases this confirmation email will be sent within a few seconds of your submission. This email message is your receipt to show your submission has been received and entered in the conference database. PLEASE KEEP A COPY of this message in case of any queries or problems related to your submission. If you DO NOT receive a confirmation email message, please contact the database manager conf-data@jalt.org to check the status of your submission. In most cases, failure to receive confirmation mail means the presentation details were not submitted correctly.

Important Note

ERRORS IN THE SUBMISSION PROCESS ARE ENTIRELY THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SUBMITTER. IN CASES WHERE THE VALIDITY OR LEGITIMACY OF A SUBMISSION IS IN QUESTION, A COPY OF THE EMAIL RECEIPT MUST BE PROVIDED AS PROOF OF SUBMISSION BEFORE THE OFFICIAL DEADLINE.
応募手続きに不備があった場合、その責任はすべて応募者にあります。応募の有効性や妥当性に問題が生じた場合、正式に期限内に提出したことを証明するために、受理されたことを示すメールのコピーを提示してください。

Deadline

The deadline for vetted proposals is midnight, Sunday 21 April 2013, Japan Standard Time. NO late submissions will be accepted after this date.

Frequently asked questions

1. How many papers can I submit? There is no limit to the number of submissions a single person may make. However, so that as many people as possible may present at JALT2013, presenters with multiple submissions will be limited to a maximum of one vetted presentation as main presenter. Participation in multiple presentations is permissible, as long as a single individual is not the main presenter in more than one presentation. However if any group of presenters or any institution appears to be attempting to circumvent the system by submitting an extreme number of presentations, the Reading Committee in consultation with the Director of Program may choose to limit the number of presentations actually accepted.

2. How many individuals from a single institution can present in a 25-minute short paper presentation or 60-minute long paper presentation? In proposing paper presentations, we suggest that you include no more than three individuals from any single institution.

3. At the moment, due to various circumstances, I'm not sure if I'll be able to attend the conference or not. Should I submit a proposal regardless? We ask that you submit proposals only if you plan to attend the conference. We suggest that if your research is as yet unfinished, or you are unsure if you will have the funding or time to attend, it may be more suitable to wait and submit next year.

4. How do I register for the conference? All presenters must pre-register for the conference. Failure of any presenter or co-presenter to pre-register will result in cancellation of the presentation. Pre-registration information is automatically sent to all presenters and JALT members. Nonmembers can request pre-registration materials in writing by post (JALT Central Office, Urban Edge Bldg 5F, 1-37-9 Taito, Taito-ku, Tokyo, 110-0016, Japan), email jco@jalt.org, or fax (03-3837-1631) from the JALT Central Office. We regret that financial assistance cannot be provided to presenters.

Deadline for Presenter Pre-registration is Sunday, 8 September 2013.

5. Are there opportunities to submit manuscripts to JALT publications? Presenters are encouraged to submit revisions of their presentation for possible publication in the JALT Journal or The Language Teacher, and articles based upon their presentations to the JALT2013 Conference Proceedings (see the JALT2013 Conference Handbook for details).

See you in Kobe!

To submit a proposal: http://jalt.org/conference/submit