Speaker Resources - Round Table Sessions

Presentation Information:
• Concurrent Sessions
• Poster Presentations
• Round Table Sessions

A Round Table session is an opportunity for you to speak to a small group of conference participants about a specific point or teaching idea. In past years, round tables have drawn from a few to 15 participants.  Most tables have 5- 8 participants. The table will literally be a round table with 8 chairs.  If more chairs are needed they will be available.

These sessions are only 20 minutes long.  That is a VERY short period of time if you do not practice as to what you can cover in 20 minutes and a VERY long period of time if you come with a quick message.  Practice in order to determine what you can cover in 20 minutes.  Please DO NOT simply talk fast to get 40 minutes worth of material into a 20-minute session. 
     
Try to include the conference participants.  Perhaps cover your material in 10 – 12 minutes and then leave 8 – 10 minutes to get reactions from participants or ask them what they do similar to what you have presented. 

Your primary audience members are college and university faculty from throughout the United States.  Most have taught for a few years, but some will be relatively new faculty members. Lilly Conferences tend to be a bit relaxed and informal. Your writing can also be a bit informal.

It will get a bit noisy in the room so you will need to speak loud and slow enough for participants to hear you.  This is somewhat unfortunate, but a byproduct of the type of session.  The idea is to have a lot of energy in the room.
     
     
Following are some general tips to assist you with a good Round Table presentation. 

1. Prepare for the session.
1. Take time to identify and outline the major issue(s) to be discussed. Think about those that are just emerging and/or are controversial.  Try to include a direct application so that participants might be able to use the information some time in their courses.
2. Have references prepared that might be useful to attendees after they leave the session. 
3. Handout.  This should include the major points of your session with elaboration on some of the main issues.  Please be sure to include any references or links to resources you used for information.  Bring at least 35 copies of the handout with you to the conference. If you use PowerPoint your handout may be a copy of your slides if you wish.  The point of the handout is that many people will learn a great deal at this conference in a short period of time.  Handouts are helpful for individuals to reflect on what they have learned.

2. Facilitate discussion.
1. Give a very short introduction to the topic of the session.  Highlight a few issues you wish to cover in the discussion.
2. Take notes that will help you to facilitate.  Note individuals’ names and important comments.
3. Probe attendees by asking for clarification on comments.  Offer suggestions and expand on others’ ideas and encourage the same from other attendees.
4. Refer to your list of topics to cover as much as possible.

3. Conclude.
1. Complete the session by highlighting important topics that were covered along with any revelations that were made during the discussion.  Refer attendees to the reference sheet for more information.

If you have any questions regarding this format, please contact Todd Zakrajsek.  

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