Large academic conferences all over the country, including NCUR have canceled their 2020 events in advance of the pandemic. But some have begun to think about ways of moving events online. These might include everything from annual campus celebrations of student research to regional conference. An example is the Michigan Medieval and Renaissance Undergraduate Consortium (MMRUC), coordinated by Marla Lunderberg at Hope College. She decided early to go online for both posters and presentations. The event took place on its original date, March 28, using Google Meet.

Challenges and Opportunities

Many of the challenges Lunderberg faced were the same as those faculty faced in suddenly moving to online teaching. “My own entry to synchronous online teaching was on March 23,” Lunderberg said, “so the week that we were organizing the event and offering students guidelines for presentation etiquette in general and online presentations in particular, I was far from an expert in online work.” But in some ways those challenges made the conference possible. Initially, few participants responded when Lunderberg suggested holding the conference online instead of canceling it. Then, she said, “everyone suddenly realized that their online experience was working, and that they had the time and energy to pull off the move to making this happen.”

The online format also allowed Lunderberg to put things together quickly. Many participants waited until three days before the event to signal their willingness to continue. As a result, Lunderberg said, “I had a couple of long nights sending out encouraging instructions and scheduling practice sessions so students could feel comfortable with the technology on the morning of the event.”

Successful Discussion

Students and faculty from four different institutions ended up participating throughout the day. One concern was that student might appear to present their work and then log off, but that didn’t happen. “I was especially pleased with students’ participation in the Q&A sessions following each paper presentation,” said Lunderberg. “They were receptive to the concept that participation in a conference means entering into conversation about the material they’ve researched with others who also cared about that material–and the Q&A sessions showed their engagement with their material.”

Presenter Anna Scott, whose project was on “Love as a Weapon in Shakespeare” said, “what I liked best about the conference was probably the interactive way in which we as students and teachers could engage. I could answer questions from my peers and professors and connect with the comments of others even though we were not face to face. I thought everyone was really patient and encouraging. Even though it wasn’t a traditional setting, it was a great first conference experience for me.”

Poster Presentations online

Ordinarily, posters require careful set-up organization, but the online format can actually make poster presentations easier. Several students had intended to present posters at the initial face-to-face meeting. Some chose to turn the poster into a presentation. Others shared their poster with the group before the conference, allowing participants to prepare questions. “I’d certainly offer this choice in the future,” Lunderberg said. “Both options offered the students a great opportunity to demonstrate knowledge of their topics by responding to questions and engaging in conversation.”

Recommendations

As Lunderberg reflected on the experience, she said, “I think it’s important to think about the goals one wants to achieve through this or any other event, and then to think about how those goals might best be achieved in spite of a change of format.”

Communication with participants is as important in a conference as it is in online teaching. “Students feel best about their own work entering new territory if they have some idea what they are aiming to achieve,” said Lunderberg.

And finally, it’s important “to have a sense of humor about whatever might not go as planned.”