Tutorial Chair

• Jeff Gray, University of Alabama at Birmingham (tutorials04@gpce.org)

Important Dates

• Proposal submission deadline: April 2, 2004
• Notification of acceptance: May 10, 2004
• Camera ready notes: August 6, 2004
• Conference: October 24-28, 2004
• Tutorial day: October 24, 2004

Overview

Proposals for high-quality tutorials in all areas of generative programming and component-based development, from academic research to industrial applications, are solicited. Tutorial levels may be introductory, intermediate, or advanced.

A tutorial's basic purpose is to give a deeper or more covering insight into its area than a conventional lecture would do. That is why it extends over a half or a full day. This gives the speaker better possibilities to structure the tutorial in a proper manner.

The topic of a tutorial can come from a truly broad spectrum. Any interesting theme from or related to the GPCE'04 Call for Papers topic list is welcome, from surveys to experience reports or specialized research topics. However, one should keep in mind that a tutorial can be expected to attract a reasonable number of participants (at least 6 participants). This is most likely the case if the topic is new or relevant to a broad community. If you think that you are highly experienced in a certain area of object-orientation and that others could benefit from sharing this experience with you, you should submit a proposal.

Submission Format

The earlier a proposal arrives, the better the chances to get feedback in order to bring the proposal into a form that is likely to be accepted. Proposals must be submitted electronically via e-mail according to the following template:

1. Title
   • Select an expressive title that captures the contents of your tutorial well without being too long.
   • Remember that the title must be attractive and should make a reader curious.
   • In exceptional cases we may re-edit the title in order to make it consistent with other tutorial titles.
2. Speaker(s)
   • Give the full name and address of the tutorial speaker.
   • If there are multiple speakers, give this information for all of them but clearly specify who the contact person is.
   • Don't forget to specify the electronic mail address.
3. Abstract
   • Give a concise description of the contents and goals of your tutorial.
   • The abstract will be used for the Advance Program.
   • It should not be longer than 150 words.
   • If it is longer, be prepared to have it cut or re-edited.
4. Outline
   • This information will be used by the tutorial committee for reviewing the detailed tutorial contents.
   • The outline should be a table of contents of the tutorial, with a few keywords for each section, and with a rough estimate of the time spent on each.
5. Duration
   • Tutorials can be half-day or full-day.
   • Half-day tutorials are preferred. A half-day tutorial should last for 3.5 hours including a half an hour break.
   • A full-day tutorial should last for 7 hours including two half an hour and excluding the lunch break.
6. Level
   • The tutorial level can be introductory (requires almost no experience with object-orientation), intermediate (assumes knowledge of object-oriented concepts but little or no experience with the tutorial's subject), or advanced (assumes several years of practical experience with object-orientation and preferably also some experience with the tutorial's subject).
7. Required experience
   • Clearly state what knowledge you expect from your participants.
   • This information will be included in the Advance Program.
   • It should not be longer than 20 words.
8. Expected audience
   • Who should attend this tutorial?
   • How will the participants benefit from attending?
9. Speaker's profile
   • Describe your affiliation, interests and experience.
   • It should be clear from this text that you are the right person to give this tutorial.
10. Speaker's profile for the Advance Program
    • Provide a short version of the Speaker's profile to be included in the Advance Program.
    • It should not be longer than 40 words.
11. Tutorial resume
    • Has this tutorial been given before?
    • How many participants were there?
    • If available, please specify the ratings that the participants gave to your tutorial.
12. Equipment
    • Please specify the equipment you need, e.g., number of slide projectors, video projection facilities, computer tables, power plugs, paper boards, etc.
    • Note that we may not be able to provide computers for all the participants.
13. Presentations
    • Tutorial ma/literials such as slides and handouts should be included if available, but are not required for submission. Providing such materials will show depth and maturity of the tutorial, however, and will be a factor in the selection process. If the tutorial is new, it would still be useful to include a few sample slides that let the committee judge the expected quality of the presentation.

What should a tutorial look like?

If you never presented a tutorial before here are some suggestions that may help you in preparing your presentation.

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.
   • So 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.
   • Also 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.
   • Here are a few guidelines for preparing the slides and the handouts.
   • 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.
   • Consider also using the blackboard for short 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 (see the deadline below).
   • We request that you send them as hard copy, so consider the postage delay to meet the deadline.
   • 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.
3. Presentation
   • The participants expect that your presentation will be much easier to understand than a book about the same subject.
   • Thus speak clearly and lively. Try to interact with your audience.
   • Encourage them 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 0.5 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.

Submission Process

Please send your tutorial proposals to tutorials04@gpce.org

Compensation

To be determined...

Related Events

Although GPCE is co-located with OOPSLA, each conference has a separate submission process for tutorials (the co-location should not be understood to mean that these are the same tutorial calls). The OOPSLA call for tutorials can be found at http://www.oopsla.org/2004/ShowPage.do?id=CallTutorials

For More Information

For additional information, clarification, or questions please feel free to contact the Tutorial Chair (tutorials04@gpce.org)