Call for Presentations

2014 Breakout Session Proposal Process

AATH welcomes your breakout proposal submission for our April 3-6, 2014 conference in Vincennes, IN.

We invite experts from education, healthcare and wellness, research, caring clown communities, business, social services, faith communities, and government to contribute to the educational experiences offered through AATH events. We expect and encourage proposals on a wide diversity of subjects as they pertain to evidence-based information about current research and practical applications or impacts of humor and laughter.

Click here to submit a breakout presenter form online.  

Deadline for submission for the 2014 conference is Monday, July 15, 2013.

A Program Committee team will review all submissions. Scores are based on meeting the conference goals/objectives and on meeting the rubric guidelines, shown below. Typically we receive close to 70 submissions for 18 slots. Please review the guidelines below to increase the likelihood of your proposal being accepted.

LEARNING ~ NETWORKING ~ CELEBRATING

AATH seeks to provide participants an all-around enriching conference experience. In addition to offering one-of-a-kind networking and educational opportunities, we anticipate the 2014 conference breakout sessions providing several “tracks” to enhance learning objectives specifically in the areas of:

• Education
• Health Care and Wellness
• Caring/Therapeutic Clowning
• Speakers and Leaders

2014 AATH Conference Will:

• Provide useful information and training about current scientific research, best practices and applications in humor, laughter, therapeutic and caring clowning and education, including related areas of well being, optimism, healing, happiness, positive psychology, brain fitness and mind-body-spirit integration as applicable to therapeutic humor and laughter.
• Provide networking opportunities.
• Expand the therapeutic humor community among people from different areas of the world.

Helpful Hints & Resources

Note: Proposal objectives and documentation MUST meet Continuing Medical Education/Continuing Education (CME/CE) standards.

Decide:

• What your program (CME/CE activity) topic will be
• Why you believe this topic is necessary and relevant
• What the title for your program (CME/CE activity) will be (Choose a descriptive, catchy title)
• Which professionals you want to attend this program (CME/CE activity)
• How your session will increase the knowledge, skills, professional performance and relationships that a healthcare provider uses to provide services to patients, the public or the profession

Articulate what it is you want your audience to be able to DO after your session. This is more than just a list of what you want your audience to learn; you will want the members of your audience to be able to USE the information they have learned. In other words, to show that learning has occurred, your audience members should be able to demonstrate that they have learned the subject material.
The chart of verbs to be used in writing learner-centered, behavioral objectives lists activities from simple (to list, to describe, to cite) to complex (to appraise, to compare, to evaluate). The verbs you select will depend on the kind of CME/CE activity you are planning. Please note that understand, learn, appreciate, believe, and know should not be used. (One cannot measure a learner “understanding” something the way one can observe a learner listing or describing something.)

Proposal Selection Criteria and Selection Rubric:

Members of the Conference Proposal team evaluate and rate each submission based on how well the proposed program meets the following criteria.

1. Title/Format/Theme - The proposal follows the format described in the call for proposals and the theme of the conference. The title is catchy.
2. Goal of Presentation - The proposal states the goal of the presentation.
3. Knowledge Base - The proposal advances the knowledge base of AATH.
4. Content/Organization - The proposal provides a clear description of the content of the conference presentation.
5. Participant Objectives - The proposal states what participants will learn from this session.
6. Timeliness of Topic - The proposal addresses a current issue in the profession.
7. Research Base - The proposal includes up to date research.
8. Audience Appeal - The description of the session will appeal to the targeted audience. The session will include audience engagement and/or participation.
9. Action Video/References - The proposal is accompanied by an action video (highly recommended; does not need to be professional quality footage) and 2 references.
10. Aligned with AATH Mission - The proposal is aligned with the AATH mission; - to serve as a community of professionals who study, practice and promote healthy humor and laughter.

AATH Conference Proposal Scoring Rubric

A perfect total score is 50. AATH Board of Director Members are ineligible for the Conference Proposal Team if they have submitted a proposal. Conference Committee Members and those serving on the Conference Proposal Team are eligible to submit a proposal but will not evaluate or score their own submissions.

Important Information for Presenters:

• Breakout session presenters are eligible for ½ off conference registration. Breakout presenters must pay all other expenses including travel and hotel. All breakout sessions are 60 minutes in length.
• Digital photographs (JPEG with 150 or greater pixel resolution in color or B&W) will be required for website posting and printed brochure.
• A Breakout Presenter’s Info Page will be hosted on the AATH.org website and linked to the conference schedule. This area features your name and presentation title, photo, bio (100 words or less), and links directing visitors to your e-mail and personal web page.
• Handout materials, speaker introduction (150 words or less), and bios for the Breakout Presenter’s Info Page must be submitted in a PDF format and deadlines will be specified.
• The speaker is responsible for having obtained legal permission to share and distribute all materials used during their presentation.
• Note: Keynote session speakers will be invited but also must complete the CME/CE requirements

Click here to submit a breakout session proposal online.