Submission
Types - Workshops
WorkshopsA printable version of the Call for Participation, tailored for workshops, is available.
UPA workshops provide an active arena for advancements in the field of usability and design. Workshops provide the opportunity for experienced practitioners to develop new ideas about a topic of common interest and experience. The entire workshop should focus on the active exchange of ideas among the participants.
Workshop facilitators select participants on the basis of position papers submitted in advance of the workshop. Workshops typically accommodate up to 20 participants and may be full-day or two-day sessions. Workshops can serve as the first step in planning books and articles.
As the facilitator of a workshop, you should collect and organize participant position papers and prepare materials for your participants. Highly successful workshops arise from a skillful combination of structure and free-form discussion. The more you plan, the more interesting and engaging your workshop will be.
BenefitsUp to two facilitators per workshop receive a 20% discount on conference registration. Workshop facilitators will be reimbursed for up to $50 per workshop for expenses.
Submission
InformationAll submissions must include two documents: a description, and background information about the facilitator(s). Please use the UPA-provided templates to prepare these documents. In addition, you will complete forms online with additional information when you submit your workshop. See the section “Submitting Your Proposal” for additional information.
1. Description of Workshop (4 pages minimum, 6 pages maximum, 1MB maximum file size)
Your Description should include the following:
Title:
Include the title of the Workshop on each page of the Description in the
header.Abstract:
Provide a 50-word synopsis of your submission. The abstract will be used
in the Advance and Final Programs for accepted submissions.Overview
of the workshop and the workshop’s premise. Describe in enough detail
to communicate the areas the workshop will focus on, as well as the goals
that the workshop is expected to achieve.Duration
of workshop and schedule of events with estimated times. The time plan should
include time for preparing to disseminate workshop results at the conference.Participant
selection criteria. This should include the issues attendees need to discuss
in their position papers.Desired
number of participants (Maximum 20). If you have a minimum number of participants
to run this workshop successfully, please indicate that here as well.Pre-workshop
activities for participants, such as submission of position papers or work
samples.Pre-workshop
activities for workshop facilitators, such as analyzing position papers
and creating materials to support workshop activities.Post-conference
dissemination of results (e.g. papers, journal articles, books). At a minimum,
results must be published in an article in User Experience (preferred) or
UPA Voice; these articles must be submitted within three months after the
conference.How
workshop results will be presented during the conference, e.g., as a poster
session, or with posters and other materials to be available in the conference
Commons area.Any
continuing post-conference activities, including discussion groups, follow-on
workshops or other events, etc.If
you previously have presented the proposed material at UPA or another conference,
your UPA proposal should include the number of conferences at which you
previously presented the materials and how you have modified your materials
for UPA 2004, if applicable.New
for UPA 2004 for all submission types – Without using names or other
clearly identifying information, describe your professional history of working
with the material you will be presenting. We realize that this can be difficult,
but this section is intended to help reviewers understand the depth and
length of your work in the topic of this session. Examples: “The
speaker has worked as a usability consultant for 8 years, and has given
several presentations on this topic at national and international conferences.”
The
speaker is a graduate student in a Human Factors program. The research described
in the presentation is part of the speaker’s thesis. Initial
position: At the end of the submission, facilitators should provide their
own position paper on the workshop topic. This paper should be about 2 to
3 pages and should clearly outline the details of the topic(s) to be covered
during the workshop. The format and content should be designed to provide
attendees with a model for their own position papers. In preparing your
submission, please be sure that your own position paper is separate and
distinct from your abstract and plan for the workshop itself.
2. Your Background
In a separate document, describe in one or two paragraphs the relevant
background and experience of each facilitator, including facilitator names
and their affiliated organizations. Background description should not
exceed 150 words for each person. This description will be used in all
published information about the workshop.
To facilitate the blind review process, the background document of your
submission will not be sent to the review panel. Some information from
the submission process (e.g., keywords, audience, etc.) will also be provided
to reviewers. To keep your identity confidential:
Do
not include your name, product name (noncommercial products only), or
organization on any page of your Description, including headers and footers.
Be
sure to remove your name and organization from the Property settings in
your document.
During the online submission process, you will fill out a series of forms
that ask for additional information. Several of these questions will help
UPA classify the audience and subject matter for your workshop. Please
be sure to read the section, “Preparing
Your Submission” before submitting your workshop proposal.
Workshop
Requirements
During the conference facilitators must present the workshop results,
either as a poster session, or with posters and other materials to be
available in the conference Commons area.
After the workshop, workshop facilitators are required to produce a report
in the form of an article to be published either in User Experience (preferred)
or UPA Voice; these articles must be submitted within three months after
the conference.
Review
Questions & Guidelines
UPA will evaluate workshop proposals on the basis of their anticipated
benefit for prospective participants, on their fit in the workshop program
on the whole, and on their contribution to the body of knowledge for usability
practitioners, and towards building or contributing to a community of
practitioners. Factors to be considered include:
The
workshop’s potential for generating stimulating discussions and
useful results
The
expected community interest in the topic
The
quality of the organizer’s plan for structuring the workshop to
reflect position paper contributions and to promote discussion and collaborative
activities
Reviewers will evaluate all workshops on the basis of these questions:
1. How relevant do you think this topic is to the interests of UPA members
(i.e., emphasis on discussions and solutions to the practice of usability)?
2. How likely is it that the workshop will produce new solutions to current
problems or a potential solution to unsolved problems?
3. How likely is it that the workshop structure/strategy will produce
tangible results?
4. How likely is it that the workshop format and activities will encourage
involvement and active participation?
5. Is there a clear value to attendees who participate in the workshop?
6. Has the facilitator clearly identified materials that attendees will
be asked to submit in advance?
7. Is there a clear plan and commitment from the workshop facilitator
with regards to pre-workshop preparation based on submitted materials?
8. Is there a statement of the mechanism for dissemination of results
following the workshop (including a poster at the conference and a follow-up
article)?
9. In what way will the speaker’s background contribute to the quality
of presentation? Does the speaker’s background match their chosen
topic to speak on? That is, if this is an advanced topic does the speaker
have an advanced degree, have they presented this topic before or have
they been practicing usability for a longer period of time? How much experience
does the speaker have with the presentation topic?
10. Overall recommendation
As a submitter, you will receive anonymous reviewers’ comments in
response to these questions.
If multiple workshop proposals are received for the same or similar topics,
only one will be accepted; at UPA’s discretion, the submitters may
be encouraged to merge them.
Templates
UPA provides templates both for workshop submissions and for biographical
information. These templates guide you through the process of building
a submission that will describe your material in a way that will help
both you and your reviewers to evaluate your submission against the review
questions. We strongly urge you to use these templates.
Download
the workshop template
Download
the biographical information
Examples
Some examples of outstanding submissions from past years are available.
Reviewing these examples will give you some insight about what makes a
strong submission, and what kinds of things that UPA reviewers look for.
Workshop
example 1: web.appl.proposal.pdf
Thank you to Carol Peterson for permission to use this example.
After Your Workshop is Accepted
UPA will notify submitters of the status of their submission by December
22, 2003. Workshop facilitators must establish a deadline for
submitting position papers, and work with the UPA webmaster to ensure
that this date is published online. Facilitators must allow sufficient
time to review the position papers for their workshop, and provide a list
of workshop participants to the UPA conference planner. The conference
planner will set the deadline for providing the list of accepted attendees
so that the workshop registration can be completed in time for people
to participate in early registration
If you are accepted, you will be asked to confirm your participation.
Once you confirm, you are expected to give your workshop, or arrange for
an equivalent substitute presenter.
Note: Accepted Workshops may choose to present their
findings during the conference Poster Session. Accepted Workshop presenters
do not need to send in a poster submission. However, if your workshop
is accepted, you may wish to send in a poster submission anyway, to help
you think about how to present your results and to receive feedback on
your ideas.
Important
Dates for Workshops:
Submissions are due: October 20, 2003
Submitters notified by: December 22, 2003
Presenters are required to provide presentation materials for the
conference proceedings by: April 9, 2004
Facilitators are required to provide any workshop materials to be
included the conference proceedings by: April 9, 2004.
* These must include, at a minimum, an abstract and description of the
workshop.
* Workshop facilitators must establish their own deadline for accepting
position papers.
*Within three months after the conference (September 2004),
provide an article to either User Experience or UPA Voice describing the
workshop results.
For more information:
Contact the Workshops Co-Chairs:
Carol Peterson (carolp@mathworks.com)
Mary Beth Rettger (mrettger@mathworks.com)
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