Proposal deadline: November 16

AAC&U invites proposals for concurrent sessions and poster presentations at the 2021 Virtual Conference on General Education, Pedagogy, and Assessment: Embracing the Best Emerging Practices for Quality and Equity.

While higher education was already experiencing significant change and turbulence before 2020, few of us would have imagined the upheaval colleges and universities experienced from spring break through today. This year we have witnessed a huge immersion into instructional and curricular experimentation and discovery. As we look to the future, this moment provides an excellent opportunity to reflect upon our practices, to determine which were effective and which require revision, and to ask ourselves if these practices serve quality learning and further our equity goals or if they serve to erode those aspirations. AAC&U’s Conference on General Education, Pedagogy, and Assessment arrives at a pivotal moment in this experimentation. AAC&U strongly encourages proposals that balance conceptual and theoretical frameworks with concrete, pragmatic examples; that highlight the how and the why of a practice, strategy, or cutting-edge model for achieving integrated and intentional designs for general education; and that showcase evidence of quality learning through general education programs. Proposals should address how the work can be adapted in a wide range of institutional types, including community colleges, research-extensive institutions, and minority-serving institutions.

AAC&U invites proposals for concurrent sessions and poster presentations at the 2021 AAC&U Virtual Conference on General Education, Pedagogy, and Assessment: Embracing the Best Emerging Practices for Quality and Equity. This conference urges educators to reflect on how to navigate turbulent contexts and maintain steady progress toward quality and equity. Conference sessions will highlight new approaches to general education, pedagogy, and assessment that

• promote the integration of knowledge and the development of higher-order learning, skills, and abilities rather than requiring a set of unconnected introductory courses;
• connect with the learning goals of the major, the work of student affairs, the goal of preparing students for lifelong learning, and the missions of our institutions;
• serve as the foundation for equity in preparing current and future civic leaders who engage across differences and apply knowledge and skills to complex and important challenges;
• act as potentially powerful tools for retention, completion, and proficiency; and
• provide valuable and enduring professional development for the current and future workforce.