Session formats being incorporated into this year’s conference include:

Posters (1 hour)

Informal presentation with the help of a poster or other large visual aid; these sessions take place in a room shared with other presenters, each with a poster to present their topic to attendees that come and go freely

Technology Showcase (1 hour)

Demonstrate or present an interesting technology-based project or idea you’ve implemented at your institution, related to libraries, information services, teaching, learning, etc.; these sessions take place in a room shared with other presenters, each with a computer to show their project to attendees that come and go freely

Workshops (1 to 2 hours max)

Hands on, participatory session focused on helping participants build practical skills on a given topic

Discussion Groups (1 hour)

Lead an open discussion, with a subgroup of attendees (typically 10–20) on a topic likely to be of interest to other AMICAL members.

Panel Presentations (10 minutes per presenter)

Short presentations and/or discussion by several participants centered on a common theme

Lightning Talks (10 minutes)

Short, focused presentations structured around 20 slides, each shown for 30 seconds

Presentations (20 minutes)

Unconference

For the first time, the AMICAL Conference will also be incorporating an Unconference into part of the program!

This dynamic and participant-driven format will be used toward the end of the main conference program to create a space for sharing ideas and collaborating on projects that, for example:

• are too fresh to be planned ahead into the formal program (e.g. ideas formed out of attendees’ reactions to the event)
• are too focused to be of interest to the full group of attendees but still related to AMICAL’s mission or conference theme
• are well suited to active participation by small groups

Attendees will be able to propose, at the event, topics for the unconference sessions, keeping in mind that a good unconference has everyone, not just the session leaders, involved in presenting, speaking and discussing. Attendees will then decide which of the sessions will take place, and will participate in those sessions that they feel they can learn from and/or contribute to. Note that lightning talks may be given as isolated presentations, or they may be used for pitching ideas for unconference sessions.