Description and Criteria for Proposal Selection

Submission Deadline: March 1, 2006

A. PRACTITIONER CONCERNS

Focus: Questions and concerns regarding practitioners’ work in adult, continuing, extension, or community education programs. Proposals may address problems and/or solutions in areas of practice such as curriculum design, strategy selection, teaching and learning, or program implementation. They may also address how practitioners view research related to their concerns.

Proposals should include:

• Description or outline of the concerns or questions
• Importance of the concerns to both research and practice in adult, continuing, extension, or community education
• Reference to various approaches that have attempted to deal with the concerns
• Discussion of how the concerns or questions relate to the conference theme of linking theory and practice
• Brief description of how the session or presentation will address these concerns

Selection Criteria:

• How clearly the practitioner concern is described or delineated
• How important the concern is within one or more contexts of practice in adult, continuing, extension, or community education
• How clearly the proposal specifies new or expanded insights to be presented regarding the practitioner concern
• How clearly the proposal addresses linkages of research and theory to practice
• How clearly organized, creative, and dynamic the proposed session appears

B. REPORTS ON RESEARCH

Focus: Reports on research and their implications for
practice, from either qualitative or quantitative studies.

Proposals should include:

• Research questions or hypotheses
• Importance of the research to the practice of adult, continuing, extension, or community education
• Methodology
• Stage of the research at the time of the proposal; if not completed, the expected completion date
• Summary of findings/conclusions
• Implications of applying the finding(s) to practice or theory
• Brief description of how the session or presentation will be organized
  

Selection Criteria:

• How clearly the proposal addresses linkage of research to practice
• How clearly the research question has defined a specific area of inquiry
• Whether the conduct of the inquiry exhibits rigorous standards of inquiry suitable to the study
• Whether contributions to knowledge and practice are evident
• Whether creativity is demonstrated by the researcher’s methods and insights

C. EVALUATION STUDIES

Focus: Reports on studies involving needs assessment, priority setting, goal analysis, evaluation, or other forms of applied research.

Proposals should include:

• Purpose of the evaluation’s focus
• Importance to the practice of adult, continuing,
  extension, or community education
• Methodology
• Stage of the evaluation project at the time of the proposal; if not completed, the expected completion date
• Implications and uses of the results in practice and/or theory
• Brief description of how the session or presentation will be organized

Selection Criteria:

• How clearly the proposal links evaluation research to practice
• How clearly the evaluation study shows: 1) a specific focus, 2) identification of users and/or stakeholders, 3) dissemination and use, and 4) a contribution to the improvement of practice
• How clearly feasibility is demonstrated by: 1) practical procedures, 2) political soundness and credibility, 3) recognition of constraints, and 4) cost-effectiveness
• Whether propriety is demonstrated in terms of ethics, legality, and humanism
• How clearly rigorous inquiry and sound procedures suitable to the study are demonstrated

D. METHODS AND ISSUES IN RESEARCH

Focus: Controversial and critical questions vital to linking research and practice, such as research methods, ethics, use of research in practice, practice-generated needs for research, and processes by which researchers determine the areas in which to conduct research.

Proposals should include:

• Description of the issue or summary of the points at issue
• Importance of the issue to research and practice in adult, continuing, extension, or community education
• Explanation of models and/or illustrations of new insights or challenges on the issue to be offered by the presenter(s)
• Discussion of how the issue relates to the conference theme of linking theory and practice
• Brief description of how the session or presentation will address the issue

Selection Criteria:

• How clearly the research issues are described or delineated
• How important the concern is within one or more contexts of practice in adult, continuing, extension, or community education
• How clearly the proposal specifies new or expanded insights to be presented regarding the research issues
• How clearly the proposal addresses linkages of research and theory to practice
• How clearly organized, creative, and dynamic the proposed session appear

Continuing Education

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