What should a tutorial look like?

In case your tutorial is accepted, the following offers suggestions for preparing and presenting your tutorial.

1. Contents * When preparing the tutorial, keep your audience in mind. * People don't pay for a tutorial in order to hear things that they already know or that are irrelevant for their work. * Don't be vague, don't waste time with lengthy introductions, but speak to the point. * Don't try to impress the audience with the amount of your research, but convey practical knowledge and ideas that the participants will find useful for their own work. * Whenever possible, use examples and case studies and avoid lengthy abstract passages. * Consider demonstrations on video or an overhead panel. * In order to get an audience as homogeneous as possible, clearly state which knowledge you expect from the participants in the tutorial description. 2. Slides and notes * You will have to prepare tutorial notes for the participants. * These handouts usually contain copies of the slides that you show. * Use at least a 14 pt (or better an 18 pt) font on all of your slides. * A good slide should not just repeat everything you say but summarize your presentation. * Use short phrases and keywords instead of full sentences. * People cannot read as fast as you speak. Make heavy use of pictures and examples. * Use colors where they are helpful, but remember that they will not appear in the black and white handouts. * Don't put too much or too little material on a single slide. * A good rule of thumb is to spend 3 minutes per slide. * Don't include slides that you will skip in the presentation; people will find that annoying. * You will have to deliver the tutorial notes in camera-ready form before the conference. The deadline will be announced. * To avoid wasting paper, copy two slides on a single page (reduced size). The printed area of such a page must not exceed 27 x 17cm (10.5 x 6.7 inch). * In addition to the slide copies, also consider providing full-text handouts (papers, summaries, bibliography, etc.). Participants will appreciate that. * The maximum length of the notes for a half-day tutorial should be 50 pages for slide copies and another 20 pages for full-text material. For full-day tutorials these numbers can be doubled. * Try to achieve good printing quality. * We will add an uniform cover page to all tutorial notes. * Put slide numbers on the slides and page numbers on the pages. 3. Presentation * The participants expect that your presentation will be much easier to understand than a book about the same subject. * Speak clearly and lively. Try to interact with your audience. * Encourage the audience to ask questions. * A presentation is much more lively if it also includes examples and demonstrations on the blackboard, on video or on an overhead panel. * Tutorials should be split into sessions of 1.5 hours each with a 1/2 hour coffee break in between. * Don't overrun your tutorial time. After the tutorial the participants will be asked to assess the tutorial with a questionnaire. * A good rating will help you when applying for other tutorials in the future.

Back to the CallForTutorials.