Proposals for presenting at the NSDC 37th Annual Conference in Philadelphia are no longer being accepted. The deadline for proposals was Feb. 9, 2005.

Individuals who have submitted a proposal will be notified of the status of their application by May 1, 2005.

If you have a question about the proposal process, please contact Stephanie Hirsh, NSDCHirsh@aol.com.

Registration information for NSDC's annual conference in Philadelphia will be posted on the web site this summer.

      CONFERENCE STRANDS  ·  PROPOSAL WRITING TIPS  ·  PROPOSAL REVIEW PROCESS  · PROPOSAL SCORING GUIDE

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION AND MANAGEMENT
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PROPOSAL REVIEW AND SCORING

"All teachers in all schools experiencing high-quality professional learning as part of their daily work by 2007."
That is NSDC's goal, and the Council's Board of Trustees has crafted a five-year strategic plan to achieve that end. The plan has four priorities—leadership, high-performance culture, high-poverty schools, and advocacy—all of which are essential to making significant and permanent improvements in professional learning. You may view the Council's plan by clicking here.

The Council's work is also guided by NSDC's Standards for Staff Development. The 12 standards are divided into three categories: content (what is learned), process (the means by which it is learned), and context (the organizational environments in which the learning occurs and is implemented). The standards may also be viewed at www.nsdc.org/standards/.

You will see the influence of the Council's strategic priorities and standards in this proposal process. You can assist the Council in achieving its goal by carefully considering the strategic priorities and the standards as you prepare your proposal and, should your proposal be accepted, as you design your concurrent session.

Here is the sequence for submission:

  1. Read this year's Conference Strands and the key issues for each.
  2. Identify the strand your proposed presentation best addresses.
  3. Review the proposal tips, proposal review process and proposal scoring guide.
  4. Complete proposal online.
  5. Receive e-mail confirmation of receipt of your proposal from NDSC.
  6. Once you "COMPLETE" and "SUBMIT" your propsal, no further corrections will be accepted. However, you may revisit your propsal to review what you submitted.

Conference Strands

1 - LEADERSHIP

School and district leaders create systems of professional learning that ensure continuous improvement of leadership, teaching, and student achievement.

Content

  • Research-based knowledge, skills, and attitudes leaders use to design and implement professional learning. Possibilities include facilitative processes, distributed/shared accountability, and servant leadership.

Process

  • Ways in which leaders learn, shape, and model effective strategies and skills to support professional learning.
  • Ways technology assists in developing and supporting leadership.

Context

  • Ways in which the structure and culture of the organization develop and support leadership for professional learning for all educators, including superintendents, principals, teacher leaders, coaches, mentors, department heads, parents, and school board members.

2 - HIGH-PERFORMING CULTURES

High-performing school and district organizational cultures support high levels of learning for all students, rigorous professional learning, productive relationships, and continuous improvement. Sessions in this strand explain how to create high-performing cultures.

Content

  • The research base
  • Researched-based practices
  • Case studies of transformed cultures

Process

  • Cultural assessment and analysis
  • Development of mission, vision, and goals
  • Strategies that have been employed to develop high-performing culture

Context

  • The leadership necessary to create and sustain professional learning communities
  • The advocacy necessary to create and sustain high-performing cultures
  • The structures and use of time that supports continuous improvement

3 - RACE, CLASS, & CULTURE

Individual and organizational beliefs, attitudes, and values regarding race, class, and culture impact the learning of all students.

Content

  • Beliefs, attitudes, and values
  • Professional learning and student performance
  • Building knowledge about issues of race, class, and culture
  • Sharing practices which address race, class, and culture

Process

  • Professional development strategies that help educators examine beliefs, attitudes, and values regarding the impact of race, class, and culture.

Context

  • How policies, practices, and procedures shape our beliefs, attitudes, and values.
  • The way beliefs, attitudes, and values shape policies, practices, and procedures.

4 - ADVOCACY

Sustained advocacy for quality professional learning - policies, resources, practices, perspectives - is essential for improved student results.

Content

  • Teach advocacy strategies
  • Strengthen communication/interpersonal skills (results skills)
  • Policies proven to impact practice
  • Teach change agentry skills

Process

  • Influence of coalitions and community groups on professional learning
  • Strengthen communication/interpersonal skills and learning from non-traditional groups
  • Preparing educational leaders and others to be advocates

Context

  • The role of advocacy in systems change
  • Potential and impact of coalition building
  • Influence of coalitions and community groups on professional learning
  • Redeployment of resources to support professional learning
  • Internal role of advocates

Proposal Tips

  1. Review the proposal form before you begin writing. Draft all of your Proposal Specifics — Session Outcomes, Session Process, Research Base, Presenter Qualifications, Program Description, and Prerequisites — in another document. Then, cut and paste the relevant sections into the proposal form.

    Our proposal form will not accept more than the number of words specified in each section. If you attempt to include more than the limited number of words, you will not be able to save your proposal and it will not be submitted.

  2. Your abstract should give a clear picture of the participants learning as a result of the session as well as a preview of the processes you will use. Please write in active voice.
  3. Participant outcomes should be statements of the knowledge and skills participants will have at the end of your session, not what the participants will do during the session.
  4. Cite research that specifically supports your proposal.
  5. Incomplete proposals will not be accepted. Proposals that exceed word limits will not be saved nor accepted.
  6. If the "beginning" level is selected for your audience, participants will leave with either new knowledge or skills. A "deeper understanding" applies only to regular and advanced sessions.
  7. The deadline for proposals is final.
  8. Consider submitting "advance" sessions. These are in high demand and few quality proposals are received each year. This is also true of sessions using the Book Talk and Conversation formats.
  9. NSDC awards extra points in the scoring process for sessions presented by school- and district-based practitioners. If you are from an organization that supports schools you are encouraged to submit your proposal with a second presenter representing a school or district partner.
  10. No persons will be accepted for more than one session when presenting alone.

Proposal Review Process

Submissions
Please limit submissions to two proposals. If two proposals are submitted, at least one of the proposals should include a second presenter who is employed full-time by a school system. You will be notified by May 1, 2005 regarding the status of your proposal. Thank you and good luck!

Proposals are reviewed by NSDC staff, members of the Annual Conference Planning Committee, and members of the local Host Committee. Each proposal is read by three to five reviewers and scored using the following questions. You will receive a confirmation of receipt by NSDC of your proposal.

  1. Does the proposal address the descriptions and/or issues in the identified conference strand?
  2. Is the content relevant to the participants of the conference and to the field of staff development?
  3. Does the presenter clearly identify what the participants will know and be able to do as a result of their attendance at the session?
  4. Are the presentation time, content, and process aligned with the intended outcomes as well as consistent with quality staff development design?
  5. Does the presenter support the topic with appropriate research?
  6. Is the proposal compete and in the required format?
  7. Up to six additional points with be added to the proposal score if the presenters include district or school-based personnel who have implemented the content or skills and can show positive results.

Proposal Scoring Guide

Please click here for information on scoring.