ESERA 2025
Scientific Programme
ESERA2025 conference session formats
Our conference is a space for presenting and engaging with cutting-edge research, sparking critical reflections, and facilitating fruitful conversations about the challenges and opportunities of science education in times of transition.
Aims of presentation formats
We have chosen our session formats to achieve a dual purpose:
- Inspiring engagement: Each format encourages reflections, interactive discussions, and constructive feedback. We believe that we learn best from the vibrant exchange of ideas in our community, and our formats are intended to stimulate such exchange.
- Building connections: Networking is at the heart of ESERA 2025, and our sessions are structured to naturally connect participants with shared interests – whether through exploratory seminars, joint symposia, or thematically grouped oral presentations.
§ Exploratory seminars
An exploratory seminar poses a question or dilemma to be discussed during the 45-minute session and aims to open dialogues about research possibilities, innovative research areas, and creative research ideas.
The purpose of an exploratory seminar may, for example, be to initiate research collaborations, test new research questions, methods, analyses, perspectives, and data material, or to investigate opportunities to arrange further seminars and conferences, write applications and apply for funding, etc.
The exploratory seminar thus serves as a structured networking forum around a theme, and the proposers can organize the session according to various models. The proposer will be the chair.
A proposal for an exploratory seminar must include a description and problematization of the question or dilemma the seminar will focus on, together with the purpose of initiating the seminar and some expected outcomes.
You can find more details in our call for proposals.
§ Symposia
A symposium consists of three related contributions (each dealt with as a paper proposal) and an introduction submitted together as one proposal.
The symposium will be assigned a full paper session at the conference, and the symposium organizers should also invite a discussant. The discussant steers a debate involving all symposium participants.
There is freedom in deciding the detailed structure of the symposium, and we encourage the organization of symposia in ways that will encourage reflection and discussion. One way is for all contributors to present as they would in a typical paper presentation; after the presentations, the discussant would steer a discussion involving all participants. Another way could be to make shorter presentations followed by group discussions with the authors and the audience.
You can find more details in our call for proposals.
§ Oral presentations
Oral presentations are grouped by strands in 90-minute sessions.
Each session has four presentations, allowing for individual presentations of 12 minutes plus an optional 3-minute activity for engaging participants, for example, peer discussion or individual reflections.
The presentation is followed by a discussion of up to 7 minutes, moderated by the session chairperson.
You can find more details in our call for proposals.
§ Interactive posters
Interactive posters allow researchers to present and discuss their work interactively with conference participants.
Interactive posters are grouped by strands in sessions of 90 minutes. Each session typically has up to 8 posters within one room.
The format of the poster sessions begins with each author standing by their poster, giving a brief 1-minute introduction to their work. Next, those attending the session approach the posters and authors and engage in informal small-group conversations. The chair of the session will organise these small group discussions. Towards the end of the session, and at the chair’s discretion, participants will be encouraged to provide brief written feedback on the work presented on the posters.
You can find more details in our call for proposals.
§ Workshops
Workshops enable presenters to facilitate the exploration of an innovative approach to a teaching or research tool, a teaching-learning sequence or some other aspect of research or teaching practice.
The workshop may include a brief presentation of relevant research, such as a case to be explored during the workshop. Still, the emphasis is on participants’ active experiences with an innovation or a tool, not a one-way research presentation.
Adequate time and quality questions for reflective discussion are essential.
You can find more details in our call for proposals.