The Education Cluster in the College of Human Sciences will host the annual Teacher Education at a Distance Conference to be held from 01 to 03 October 2008. Conference participants will include academics and researchers in teacher education and open and distance learning, school principals and teachers, postgraduate students and representatives from the Ministry of Education. The conference will focus on trends and challenges relating to the following sub-themes:

• Teaching practice
• Postgraduate studies in teacher education
• Research in open and distance learning
• Teacher education priorities

We therefore invite all committed to teacher education and open and distance learning to contribute to the conference by sharing their experiences and research activities.

CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS
Contributions on the conference theme are invited. Proposals should reach the conference organisers not later than 30 April 2008.

TYPES OF CONTRIBUTIONS
Papers:
Short presentations by individual presenters allowing ample time for discussions.
Panel discussions:
Short introductions to a topic with substantial discussion.
Demonstrations:
Demonstration of a computer program or system.
Round table discussions:
Structured yet informal sessions prompted by a set of provocative questions by the presenter.
Pair or team presentations:
Longer presentations by more than one presenter making provision for inputs and questions from the audience and discussions.
Workshops:
Training delegates in some topic, usually a methodology.

CRITERIA FOR THE SELECTION OF CONTRIBUTIONS
Selection of contributions will be done according to the following criteria:
- Relevance to conference theme
- Clarity of purpose and method
- Significance, originality or potential usefulness of the content of the presentation
- Compliance with technical requirements
- Honouring of deadlines


GUIDELINES FOR THE PREPARATION OF ABSTRACTS
To assist the organisers in selecting contributions, you are required to submit an abstract.

Format for abstracts:
- English only
- A maximum of 150 words
- Single line spacing
- 12 point, Arial font
- No illustrations, graphs or references to be included

SUBMISSION OF ABSTRACTS
Abstracts should be submitted electronically (by e-mail), in RTF/MSWord format as file attachments (not as part of the message) to the conference organiser at the following e-mail address:

adamsja@unisa.ac.za

Presenters will be notified by 16 May 2008 of acceptance of abstracts.

PUBLICATION OF PAPERS
Selected papers will be published in a special issue of the Africa Education Review. Presenters who would wish their papers to be considered and refereed for this purpose, should ensure that they comply with the guidelines and conditions of the journal.

DEADLINES
Submission of abstracts: 30 April 2008
Notification of acceptance: 16 May 2008
Registration: 2 June 2008

Registration fee: R1 000-00 Registered students: R 800-00 For delegates, registration fees include conference material, refreshments and lunches, but exclude accommodation and travelling costs. Cancellations of registration must be in writing to the conference organiser. 50% of the registration fee will be forfeited on cancellations made before 1 September 2008. No returns will be made after this date. ACCOMMODATION Accommodation information can be obtained through the conference organiser, Jo-Anne Adams.