Presenter Information

GUIDELINES FOR AFCC VANCOUVER CONFERENCE PRESENTERS

You have been selected as a presenter for AFCC because of your unique knowledge, talents and skills.  These guidelines are intended to help you to reach the desired outcomes of your session presentation in the most effective manner.  If you have any questions, please call (608) 664-3750 and ask for Candace Walker or send an email to cwalker@afccnet.org.

Communication with co-presenters (if others are presenting with you):

1. Use the list of presenters enclosed in the confirmation packet from AFCC to communicate with your co-presenter(s).  If it contains errors, please inform AFCC as soon as possible.
2. Designate one presenter to coordinate session content, handouts and communications with AFCC.

Session content:

1. Ensure that your presentation is consistent with the description in the Annual Conference program brochure and the learning objectives you provided when submitting your proposal.
2. Your session will be evaluated based on your learning objectives.  Interactive sessions usually receive higher evaluation ratings.
3. Please keep in mind that the audience is both international and multidisciplinary and your presentation should be sensitive to that fact.

Learning objectives:

1. A minimum of three learning objectives are required for evaluating each session.  If you did not provide these with your proposal, please send them to AFCC by April 14, 2008.
2. Use verbs specific to the content presented: apply, change, identify, recognize, describe, relate, analyze, explain, demonstrate, assess, compare, decide, evaluate, support, prepare, propose, plan, etc. Avoid general verbs that are not easily measured, such as understand, learn or know.

Handout materials for conference workshops and plenary sessions:
Handouts are encouraged—they serve as a resource and reference for the attendees, as well as a refresher after the conference.  Your help is needed to maintain the value and quality of AFCC conferences.  A conference proceedings book of handouts from every workshop and plenary session is provided to all conference attendees.  AFCC conferences always receive high praise from attendees and presenters consistently are rated very highly.  However, the top complaint at every conference is that handout materials are not available in the conference proceedings book.  We ask that you consider the importance of written materials to supplement your presentation and that you find a way to meet the handout deadline of April 14, 2008.

1. Handouts may include an outline or copy of your presentation; charts, diagrams and checklists; case studies; bibliographies; list of additional references; etc.
2. Workshop handouts are limited to 15 single-sided pages for each 1.5 hour workshop.
3. Plenary handouts are limited to 25 single-sided pages for each 1.5 hour plenary session.
4. If you wish to distribute copyright materials, please send permission of the copyright holder with your handouts.  AFCC may be unable to make duplicates without this written permission.
5. Handout materials must be emailed no later than April 14, 2008 to cwalker@afccnet.org (in Word or WordPerfect format, PowerPoint, or PDF if an article is scanned).  If you are not able to meet this deadline, you will be responsible for printing and taking an adequate number of copies to the conference.  AFCC is unable to make copies of your handouts on-site.

Pre-conference Institute handouts:

1. Follow the instructions in the section above, with the exception of total number of handout pages and deadline.
2. Institute handouts are limited to 50 single-sided pages for each 6-hour Institute.
3. Institute handouts will only be provided to Institute registrants (and will not be included in the conference proceedings book); therefore, you have an extended deadline of May 12, 2008 for submitting your Institute handout materials.

Presenter Agreement:

1. Please review and complete the sections that relate to you or your session, sign and return to AFCC by March 12.  If you are presenting more than once, you’ll have a form for each session.
2. Meeting rooms will be set with a head table and a tabletop or standing lectern.  One microphone (on a long cord) is standard and a second microphone may be ordered if two presenters need to speak at the same time.  AFCC purchased a few LCD projectors; however, there aren’t enough for ten simultaneous workshops, so it is appreciated when presenters take their own projectors to the conference.  Request AV equipment on the agreement or call AFCC.
3. Please let us know if you will be staying for the conference or your presentation only.  This is a tremendous help when ordering food or determining the number of chairs for an event.  If you are staying for any event other than your own presentation, please fill out a registration form because tickets to events are limited and won’t be available without advance registration.
4. Your signature is needed on the form.  If you have questions or concerns, please call AFCC.

Presentation tips:

• Start and end sessions on time.
• Design the session to be interactive whenever possible.  Adult learners bring differing levels of experience and content knowledge to a given topic.  Identify how the presented information will benefit the participant (learning objectives).
• When the session has more than one presenter, consult with the other presenters to organize the presentation and material so that it has a logical, structured flow; and share the presentation time to avoid the appearance of one person dominating the discussion.
• Keep in mind that the audience is both international and multidisciplinary.  Be respectful in your choice of words, examples or humor.
• If you plan to use overhead transparencies or PowerPoint slides, use large type (28-point font size or larger) to allow the information to be read from the back of the room.  Six lines of text per page and six words per line will allow for easier viewing.  Use phrases and key words to highlight your presentation.  Provide copies (handouts) to participants if possible.
• If you have questions or would like more information, please call AFCC Program Director Candace Walker at (608) 664-3750 or email cwalker@afccnet.org.  AFCC’s office hours are 8:00am – 5:00pm (CST), Monday – Friday