VWBPE 2021: RECONNAISSANCE

Call for Proposals

Call for Proposals

Reconnaissance: a preliminary survey to gain information. (Merriam-Webster)

Last year VWBPE moved into the stars, going where no avatar has ever gone, as we explored the possibilities of what might be. This year we take a closer look at the new territory that has been discovered in 2020.

Reconnaissance is the subtle art of exploring areas outside of our expertise that may be unfriendly to our current outlook or world view. Before this pandemic, the idea of a telecommuting economy seemed more like a dystopian fantasy than it would be applied to every aspect of our society. Today, over 75% of all jobs have some meaningful form of work-from-home options available to them.

No more so has this impacted our society than in the area of education. Educators are in the midst of the reconnaissance mission of their lives: not just to overcome, but to surpass all expectations of what is hoped for and possible. Classes at all levels from kindergarten to college and university have moved between fully on-site to fully online to hybrid models and some that ‘toggle’ back and forth in response to COVID-19 outbreaks. The resilience of educators in these times has been extraordinary!

We ask educators to consider what has changed over the past year as they have ventured out on missions through unexplored territory and to share their research and insights into this new landscape in which we find ourselves.

Specifically, what features, resources, and capabilities are either adding to, or reducing, stress in your field of practice, with the students and families that you are engaged with, and the policies and guidelines that are supporting your ability to do your job, online, in the best way possible. In what directions has your reconnaissance taken you?

All subject areas and virtual environments that support teaching and learning are welcome.

Call for Proposals

The VWBPE committee seeks submissions of presentation proposals along with proposals for exhibits and immersive experiences (pre- and post-conference virtual experiences). The call for proposals encompasses these three categories, with further details about each in the section below.

Submission due dates for proposals:

  • Presentations: 28 January 2021
  • Exhibits: 10 February 2021
  • Immersive Experiences: 10 February 2021

There are seven tracks and five formats. When formulating your proposal, we encourage you to consider the current theme of the conference, which in 2021 is “RECONNAISSANCE”.

We invite proposal submissions from a broad range of communities including, but not limited to, the following:

  • Educators and Trainers
  • vLanguage Members
  • Artists, Designers and Builders
  • Advocacy and NonProfit
  • Support and Help Communities
  • Entertainers and Performers
  • Coders, Scripters, and System/IT Analysts
  • Business and Entrepreneurs

Please consider the following information in preparing your proposal.

Presentations

Submission Deadline: January 28, 2021

Presentation proposals are those which will be included as part of the conference program, during any of the three days of the conference. These will be scheduled in a particular location and be listed on the main program.

All proposals submitted here are required to submit a title, a presentation summary, and 1-2 objectives, and a description of how your proposal fits the “RECONNAISSANCE” conference theme. Each of these fields has character limits, so please compose in a document before you add it to the form. Text that exceeds the character limit will be truncated.

Click on each of the tabs above to get additional information on how to create a proposal that fits this conference. Only paper submissions in the “Spotlight” presentation format will be peer reviewed and included in the published proceedings as a peer reviewed journal article. Therefore, real names are required for this type of submission. Refer to the VWBPE 2021 Proceedings Submission Guidelines for details.

Video/machinima, also in the “Spotlight” format, can additionally be submitted as Praxis proceedings submissions. Refer to the “VWBPE Proceedings Video/Machinima Submission Guidelines” in the lower half of the page in the VWBPE 2021 Proceedings Submission Guidelines.

Time zones for the lead presenter and co-presenter will be requested in order to assist in scheduling your presentation.

You will also be asked to include 1-4 keywords that are applicable to your proposal, such as tags for topics, technologies used, digital skills applied and other similar tags.

An additional consideration to keep in mind is the manner in which you will make your presentation accessible in text and voice for our diverse audience. We suggest one of the following or you may indicate a different method in your proposal submission.

  • SpeakEasy HUD Tool
  • Provide your own transcriptionist
  • Provide a written script during the presentation
  • Other: (please specify)

Consider the type of community you represent:

  • Educators and Trainers
  • vLanguage Members
  • Artists, Designers and Builders
  • Advocacy and NonProfit
  • Support and Help Communities
  • Entertainers and Performers
  • Coders, Scripters, and System/IT Analysts
  • Business and Entrepreneurs
  • Other (if needed)

Presentations for VWBPE: RECONNAISSANCE should fit one of the seven Digital/Virtual Tracks listed below.

  1. Analytic Thinking and Complex Problem Solving
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on how analytic thinking is applied and used for solving meaningful, real life problems with applications to society, practice, creation ,and learning, including the development of proof of concept or experimentation.
  2. Creativity and Innovation in Design, Practice, and Learning
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices of creative and innovative work, by featuring ways to demonstrate originality, artistic and practical expression in practice, creation, or learning.
  3. Essential Accessibility in Digital and Virtual Spaces
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on using technology to make practice, creation, or learning accessible to multiple populations with varied abilities and engagement styles.
  4. Collaboration and Distance Connections
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on how virtual and digital technologies make connections and collaborations possible across distances in unexpected ways in practice, creation, or learning.
  5. Multimedia Communication and Multifaceted Interactions
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on the use of multimedia communications made possible through multiple technologies, insofar as interactions are redefined and go beyond text and spoken word in practice, creation, or learning.
  6. Ethics, Responsibility, and Tolerance
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on how to engage digitally in responsible ways, demonstrate tolerance of differences and multiple viewpoints, and/or models ethical behavior in practice, creation, or learning.
  7. VWBPE Redux
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with previously presented subjects from past VWBPE conferences with updated content. Redux sessions will be generally be 30 minutes long, unless submitted as a Micro Burst Cluster format presentation (15 minutes).
The main VWBPE conference program will include five formats scheduled during any of the conference dates. Please review the descriptions before you make your choice. Presenters will be issued presentation tools and trained on their use, including a SpeakEasy HUD for making content accessible.

  1. Spotlight Presentations (50 minutes)
    Proposals using this format are like traditional lectures with slides of information on ideas, projects or research in any of the tracks listed previously. Consider submitting a paper or video for inclusion in the conference proceedings – encouraged but not required.
  2. Hands on Technology Workshops (80 minutes)
    Workshops should be hands on and allow participants to interact with the environment or the technology featured through multiple digital skills. Participants should not be passive listeners but be able to do what is demonstrated in the environment. Those who propose workshops will be able to build and/or set up their interactive area five hours before the session is to be scheduled. Prim counts are limited.
  3. Compass Points Roundtable Discussions (50 minutes)
    Roundtable discussions are not lecture presentations, nor are they hands on engagement. Presentation materials are kept to a minimum, and the focus is on the topic under discussion, which will be addressed from four compass point questions: What is exciting? What is worrisome? What is the current stance or opinion? What else do we need to know? A roundtable discussion should include at least 3, and no more than 5, discussants, with some audience discussion possible, as appropriate.
  4. Micro Burst Clusters presentations (15 minutes)
    Proposals using this format will be ‘clustered’ together by topic / track. Presentations are to be 15 minutes, with 5 minutes for questions / discussion. A session moderator will guide the discussion between presentations. Topic Clusters may be 60 – 90 minutes in total, depending upon the number of topic submissions. Accept the challenge of sharing a quick burst of ideas.

    Conference Sponsors are encouraged to submit a Micro Burst presentation for a Sponsors Cluster. Refer to the Sponsorship information for more details.

  5. Pandemic Perceptions – videos (3 – 10 minutes)
    What have you learned about yourself, your practice, and your students as we navigate these COVID times? Have your perceptions of teaching and learning changed? Have you a tip or trick to share that has helped you? We invite you to submit a proposal to prepare a short video or machinima (3 – 10 minutes) that illustrates your concept. Videos will be available for viewing during and after the conference. Video format information will be supplied upon acceptance.
Click Here to
Submit Proposal

Exhibits

Submission Deadline:
February 10, 2021

Exhibits are for those who wish to showcase their creative works in virtual worlds through artistic expression in order to promote their organization or achievements.

Exhibit submissions are VWBPE committee reviewed and require an already developed product for showcasing.

There are only tracks for the exhibit category of proposals. You can review the Exhibitor Guidelines for detailed information.

When preparing your exhibit proposal, consider the eight tracks below.

  • K-12 Best Practices
  • Higher Education/College Best Practices
  • Field Practices
  • Games and Simulations
  • Tools and Products
  • Advocacy
  • Support and Help Communities
  • Artists, Designers and Builders
Click Here to
Submit Proposal

Immersive Experiences

Submission Deadline:
February 10, 2021

The Immersive Experiences category showcases locations whose main objective is interaction, immersion, and engagement for those who enter them, whether to play a game, solve an immersive problem, or engage participants in hands-on, interactive learning.

Immersive Experiences submissions require a guide to provide basic instruction on the interface of the platform. Time should be spent mainly on having the participants play, immerse, or engage with the location, not just “touring” it. Accessibility must be considered to allow participation for all.

Submissions to the Immersive Experiences category are VWBPE committee reviewed and require already existing and ready for use locations or platforms. Because of the length of time required for these experiences, these will be hosted pre- and post-conference. If a proposal is selected for inclusion, it will be scheduled in the two weeks before or after the conference, depending on availability and timing.

There are seven tracks for presentation proposals. They are as follows:

  1. Analytic Thinking and Complex Problem Solving
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on how analytic thinking is applied and used for solving meaningful, real life problems with applications to society, practice, creation ,and learning, including the development of proof of concept or experimentation.
  2. Creativity and Innovation in Design, Practice, and Learning
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices of creative and innovative work, by featuring ways to demonstrate originality, artistic and practical expression in practice, creation, or learning.
  3. Essential Accessibility in Digital and Virtual Spaces
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on using technology to make practice, creation, or learning accessible to multiple populations with varied abilities and engagement styles.
  4. Collaboration and Distance Connections
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on how virtual and digital technologies make connections and collaborations possible across distances in unexpected ways in practice, creation, or learning.
  5. Multimedia Communication and Multifaceted Interactions
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on the use of multimedia communications made possible through multiple technologies, insofar as interactions are redefined and go beyond text and spoken word in practice, creation, or learning.
  6. Ethics, Responsibility, and Tolerance
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with innovative examples, projects, or best practices on how to engage digitally in responsible ways, demonstrate tolerance of differences and multiple viewpoints, and/or models ethical behavior in practice, creation, or learning.
  7. VWBPE Redux
    Proposals to this track should engage participants with previously presented subjects from past VWBPE conferences with updated content.
In the Immersive Experiences category, your proposal may be one of the following two formats:

Virtual Worlds
or
Wanna Play?

You can read more about these formats in the VWBPE 2021 Immersive Experiences Guidelines.

The Immersive Experiences category has a wide open option for venues, but they do fall under two general venue types, as long as they can be accessed through a computer, not a specific gaming console. Specific details on access must be submitted with the proposal. These are your choices:

3D Virtual Environment
or
Gaming Platform

Click Here to
Submit Proposal