Full STEAM Ahead Educator Symposium Call for Proposals
Join us for the third annual Full STEAM Ahead Educator Symposium at Shreveport-Bossier’s College! Join the Centenary Department of Education and Center for Teaching and Learning for professional development and networking opportunities. We’re bringing together educators from across disciplines and grade levels to showcase innovative teaching strategies, cutting edge research, and inspire new inquiry and ideas.
Submit a Proposal
Patterns
Every good classroom thrives on a tension between structure and surprise, familiarity and discovery. That dynamic is what makes learning possible. It helps students feel confident in what they know and ready to take on what they don’t.
As educators, we work with (and sometimes against) inherited scripts, stories, and structures that shape how knowledge is passed on. From the symmetry of a mathematical formula to the narrative arc of a story, from neural pathways to social systems, patterns are all around us. Learning to see patterns helps us make sense of complexity; reimagining them allows us to create something new.
At this year's symposium, we invite participants to notice, question, and transform the patterns that guide teaching and learning. Join us as we reflect on what shapes our pedagogy and practice and imagine new forms of connection and understanding.
- What patterns guide your discipline, and how do you help students recognize, question, or transform them?
- How can pattern recognition build confidence and prepare students to take intellectual risks?
- When is it useful to follow a pattern, and when does learning require breaking or reimagining one?
- How do you design learning experiences that balance structure and flexibility?
- What hidden or inherited patterns shape our institutions, curricula, and assumptions about teaching and learning?
- How can artistic, scientific, or narrative approaches to patternmaking identify new connections across disciplines?
- In what ways can collaboration and conversation help educators see patterns they might otherwise overlook?
- How do we encourage students to create their own patterns of thought and expression? How do we make sure they recognize when it’s time to change them?
- What patterns of curiosity, persistence, and creativity do you notice in your students, and how do you nurture them?
- How might emerging technologies (GenAI, data visualization) disrupt or alter patterns in teaching and learning?
- What patterns of practice, reflection, or mentorship sustain you as an educator? How might sharing them inspire others?
Who Should Attend?
- K-12 and college/university educators who teach or are interested in STEAM
- Future teachers
- Teacher educators
- Administrators who support teachers
- Community leaders who support teachers
- Professional development providers
Ways to Participate
- Workshops (75 minutes) provide an interactive and immersive learning experience. Attendees actively participate and engage in hands-on activities, guided by facilitators. Joint proposals welcome.
- Make-and-Take (75 minutes) sessions offer participants the opportunity to engage in creative learning activities. Attendees not only experience these activities but also leave with all the necessary materials and information to replicate them in their own classrooms or work environments.
- Individual presentations (20 minutes) provide a platform for researchers, experts, or thought leaders to share their knowledge, insights, and findings with a wider audience. Individual presentations may be grouped by topic on the conference schedule.
- Panel discussions (75 minutes) assemble multiple presenters to engage in a dynamic conversation centered around a specific topic or theme.
- Poster presentations are visual displays of research, projects, or ideas. Presenters submit a description of their work in advance and bring a poster to the conference for display.
Submit a Proposal
- Proposal Deadline – January 6, 2026
- Invitations to Presenters – January 14, 2026
- 500 word limit – Panel discussions proposals
- 250 word limit – Workshop/Make-and-Take/Individual/Poster session proposals