From: Dawn.Patton <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>>

Date: 23 May 2013 14:29:51 BST

To: "[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>'" <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>>

Subject: WP Conference 2014 - Call for Submissions published



Dear Friends.



We have just published a call for submissions to the Open University’s Widening Participation Conference 2014. Please find details below and at our conference website:

Widening Participation Conference 2014 ‘Widening Participation through Curriculum’<http://www.open.ac.uk/about/inclusion-and-curriculum/research-and-scholarship-community-practice/wp-conference-2014-widening-participation-through-curric>

Deadline for submissions is 1 November 2013

A copy of the submissions form is also available from the website.

Call for Submissions

Higher education institutions have a major role to play in issues of access and pre-access, but we believe that to date insufficient attention has been paid globally to the tools that universities have to support widening participation and student success. In this conference we focus on the curriculum. We understand the term 'curriculum' to be wide ranging: the organisation of the curriculum, its design and contents, pedagogy, assessment, and how all these can be harnessed to contribute to more equal outcomes for all individuals, irrespective of background.

This conference poses a range of questions for our global colleagues:



 *   What new models of partnership and curriculum delivery are addressing social inequality and what evidence is there of impact?

 *   Can we revisit curriculum theory to look afresh at redressing differential success rates for difference groups in society?

 *   What is the impact of curriculum reform in higher education institutions and what lessons can be learned?

 *   How are students being engaged creatively in the process of improving the student experience of higher education for all students?

Conference themes



 *   Innovation in Design and Pedagogy

 *   Impact of Curriculum Reform

 *   Curriculum Openness

 *   Approaches to Delivery

 *   Measuring and Demonstrating Impact

 *   Revisiting Theory

Submissions

Paper and poster submissions for the conference can be accepted and can be made on line through the conference website.

Papers

Submissions of papers must include a short abstract and a brief overview paper, which will be reviewed in line with our peer review process (see below).

Papers must directly address one of the conference themes. At the conference, papers will be organised thematically.

Abstract

An abstract of maximum 150 words should be submitted. This information will be included in the printed conference programme and should give a clear account of the work to be presented. Text included in the abstract must not include any information which identifies the author(s) of the submission or their affiliated organisations.

Overview paper

The overview paper is to be maximum 1000 words (excluding references) providing details of the content of your submission.  The overview paper should:



 *   Provide background information and/or indicate the context of the study and how it relates to previous research and literature in the field.

 *   Explain the theoretical approach or methodology adopted in the research

 *   Describe the results (whether preliminary or final) and any other findings or conceptual arguments

 *   Explore the implications of the study (e.g. for theory, practice and further research)

 *   Provide references throughout.

Text included in the overview paper must not include any information which identifies the author(s) of the submission or their affiliated organisations.

Institution Showcase Posters

Submissions for posters must include a short description (maximum 150 words) of the intended content. Posters should focus on one or two of the curriculum developments or projects which have had the greatest impact in your institution.

Information on Peer Review Process

The University has appointed a conference steering group, with overall responsibility for overseeing and coordinating conference proceedings, including the peer review process.

Selection of papers and posters will be by blind review (author and reviewer anonymity) from the abstracts (and overview papers for paper submissions) submitted. Any references to specific Higher Education Institutions will be removed where possible. Two reviews will be sought for each submission.

Reviewers will be asked to consider the suitability of the submission and provide a score from 1-5 (1 = not at all…5 = a great deal) for each of the following criteria:



 *   Whether the abstract and overview paper is a good fit to the conference themes.

 *   Whether the abstract reports research findings or introduces an innovative research methodology.

 *   To what extent the abstract represents new thinking.

 *   How widely the abstract would appeal to delegates.

Overall scores from the two reviewers will be aggregated for each submission and ranked. The conference programme will be populated by the highest scoring papers.

When the review process has been completed, the Steering Group will be asked to provide a view on the overall coherence of the conference based on the papers accepted, ensuring there is a reasonable balance between the conference themes.

Data Protection Statement

Any comments provided by the reviewer will be treated in confidence and disclosed anonymously only to the abstract author for purposes of feedback. The Open University will only use review comments for the purposes of the selection of papers and posters for inclusion in the Widening Participation Conference 2014.

Reviewers will not use the information in the conference submissions for any other purpose than providing an assessment of the suitability of the abstract for inclusion in the conference.





John Rose-Adams│Centre Manager (Research and Information)│The Centre for Inclusion and Collaborative Partnerships │The Open University │+44(0)1908 654018

Widening Participation Conference 2014 ‘Widening Participation through Curriuclum’<http://www.open.ac.uk/about/inclusion-and-curriculum/research-and-scholarship-community-practice/wp-conference-2014-widening-participation-through-curric>



Rose-Adams, John and Hewitt, Lindsay (2012). What ‘retention’ means to me: the position of the adult learner in student retention.<http://oro.open.ac.uk/37544/> Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning, 14(4) pp. 146–164.



Website: www.open.ac.uk/cicp<http://www.open.ac.uk/cicp>

Twitter: @heiwpresearch<http://twitter.com/heiwpresearch>

Blog: http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/wideningparticipation/



Check out the latest issue of Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning online now │Read Here<http://wpll-journal.metapress.com/home/main.mpx>





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