Breakout Sessions - Breakout sessions will form the core of the conference program. These sessions are 45 minutes in length. Topics that appeal to the broadest range of distance learning professionals will receive preference. Presentations should be designed to encourage interactivity and dialogue during the session; purely lecture presentations are discouraged.

Hands-On Sessions - A limited number of 105-minute hands-on sessions will be available in the seven Conference Tracks. Proposals for these sessions may be submitted using the same process as for Breakout Sessions. Participants should learn some type of new skill or process in the session that they can apply in their courses, program, profession, and/or business. Computers and Internet access will be provided. Suggested sessions include course management software tutorials (i.e. WebCT, Blackboard), Web page design, multimedia (i.e. Impatica), IP communication tools (i.e. Elluminate, Centra). If it is necessary to download software for the session, there must be a trial version available for download or available licenses. You must indicate availability and terms for software in the proposal.

Educator Showcase - Using appropriate instructional methodologies in an online distance education course is a complex and time-consuming process. Proposals describing innovative teaching and design processes for online courses are encouraged, as are teaching and design strategies that can be adapted to a wide variety of disciplines. Suggested topics include course innovations in the following areas:

• instructional design and development,
• expanding learning opportunities,
• learning styles and strategies,
• active and collaborative learning,
• successful course/student management techniques, and
• engaging and retaining students.

Vendor Showcase - Understanding the importance of our corporate partners to the success of the organization, TxDLA's commitment is to bring tangible value to the partnerships. We strive to offer you a variety of ways to increase your company distinction, one of which is the Vendor Showcase. Each exhibitor will have the opportunity to participate in a complimentary vendor showcase which is designed to provide a forum for vendors to demonstrate their products during a breakout session. There are a limited number of slots available and will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. Vendors are defined for this purpose as anyone from a for-profit organization with goods and/or services for sale.