This is interesting, not at all surprising, and kind of sad. Of all of the academic associations – and even professional organizations – that I belong to, am involved in, or attend their conferences, I have to be honest and say that AREA from the very start have had the worse online only conferences, as well as the worse hybrid conferences. The very first fully online conference they elected to use some system that no one had every heard of and that performed so poorly that they refunded everyone’s conference fee. Unlike other hybrid conferences that I have participated in, where it didn’t matter if I was on site or at home that I was able to participate in the virtual sessions as easily as the in person sessions, at the hybrid AERA’s it was always difficult to engage with the virtual side of the conferences.
So disappointed that their isn’t a virtual option (as I’ll be on sabbatical this year and unlikely able to attend in person), but not really surprised that there hasn’t been a lot of interest in or uptake of what has been an inferior product from the beginning.
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AERA Members and Friends, We write to inform you that the AERA Executive Board has decided to cancel the virtual component of the 2024 AERA Annual Meeting scheduled for April 25-26. Despite the enthusiasm of participants and attendees for the 2023 virtual component, the number of virtual submissions was very low for 2024 (although the overall number of place-based submissions for 2024 has exceeded 2023). For the virtual component of the meeting, most units received very few paper submissions. For most, it would be insufficient to create paper or roundtable sessions. Overall, there were also only a small number of session submissions. The Board concluded that a virtual meeting is not viable this year as a meaningful experience for accepted presenters or attendees. Those individuals who submitted a paper or session for the virtual component still have an opportunity for their work to be peer-reviewed and, if accepted, to be an acknowledged part of the 2024 AERA Annual Meeting. AERA has reached out to virtual component submitters giving them the opportunity to decide, if they are accepted, how they wish their work to be considered. Submitting paper authors and submitting session organizers to the virtual meeting need to complete a form no later than September 8, 2023, informing us of their decision. AERA continues to be committed to inclusivity in its meetings and to creating and holding events that are of the highest quality for presenters and attendees. We look forward to hosting a highly engaging and rewarding 2024 Annual Meeting in Philadelphia. Questions about the meeting should be sent to annualmtg@aera.net. Cordially,
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Felice J. Levine, PhD
Executive Director
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American Educational Research Association
1430 K Street, NW
Suite 1200
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 238-3200
www.aera.net |
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