Papers

Important Dates

Completion of Reviews 06/04/2010
Notification of Status of Proposal 06/16/2010
Submission of Final Draft 06/27/2010

Guidelines for Submission of Full Papers

Following are guidelines for manuscripts to be published in the PME-NA Conference Proceedings for 2010. Following the tradition set in PME-NA 2009, for PME-NA 2010 it is your submitted paper that will be included in the Conference Proceedings. You will NOT have an opportunity to edit or revise your paper after submission, so it is imperative that it is ready for publication in the Conference Proceedings. Please use the content and format guidelines provided below as you prepare your paper.

Conference Proceedings this year will be completely electronic. You will be able to access the proceedings online, electronically search the manuscripts contained in the proceedings, and print the articles. A booklet of printed abstracts will be distributed at the conference.

Electronic Submission Guidelines

  • All papers must be submitted in English and must be submitted electronically as a WORD (2003 or earlier version) document. To upload your paper, enter the All Academic website below using your name and password and click "Submit Paper". Use the following link: http://convention2.allacademic.com/one/pmena/pmena10
  • Length requirements and due dates for the various paper types are as follows:

    Type of Paper Page Limit Due Date
    Research Report 8 February 15
    Poster 1 February 15
    Working Group 10 March 15

  • Page limits for all types of papers, including research reports, brief research reports, posters, working groups, and research forums include references, figures, tables and abstracts. Very strict and absolute adherence to these restrictions will be expected. NO exceptions will be made.
  • All page limits assume 12-point font, 1-inch margins, and single spacing.
  • Abstract: All papers uploaded to the All Academic website must submit an abstract. For research reports, brief research reports, working groups, and research forums the abstract will also be included within your uploaded paper. Abstract lengths vary and specific information follows.

Specific Guidelines for Different Session Types

Research Reports. During each 40-minute session allotted for a Research Report, the author(s) makes a 20-minute presentation followed by 20 minutes of discussion with the audience. An 8-page paper (including a 100-word abstract, any figures or tables, and references) will be included in the Conference Proceedings. The paper should discuss the following items (as applicable): (1) objectives or purposes of the study, (2) perspective(s) or theoretical framework, (3) methods or modes of inquiry (including participants, contexts, data collection and analysis, etc.), (4) results, and (5) discussion and/or conclusions.

Brief Research Reports. As with Research Reports, substantial interaction between the author(s) and audience should occur during the 40-minute Brief Research Reports session.

Sessions will consist of two to three 10 to 15-minute presentations on a similar topic followed by audience discussion. Full 8-page papers (including a 100-word abstract, any figures or tables, and references) of each Brief Research Report will be included in the Conference Proceedings. Brief Research Reports should address the same items as Research Reports, at least as appropriate: (1) objectives or purposes of the study, (2) perspective(s) or theoretical framework, (3) methods or modes of inquiry (including participants, contexts, data sources and analysis, etc.), (4) results, and (5) discussion and/or conclusions.

A Poster Presentation is a visual display depicting a research project, software development, curricular innovation, educational program, or other item of interest to members of PME-NA. Posters will be available for viewing during the conference, and time will be allotted for conference participants to discuss posters with the author(s). A 1-page summary of the poster will be included in the Conference Proceedings. This 1-page limit includes the title, information about author(s), poster summary, and references. There is also a separate (100-word maximum) abstract for the abstract book to be distributed at the conference. The actual poster (at the conference) will be displayed in a rectangular area that is 40" x 40".

A Working Group provides an opportunity for individuals to come together for a significant period of time to discuss issues pertaining to a particular area of research. Working Groups will meet three times during the conference to facilitate extended interactions among group members.

PME-NA will no longer make distinctions between Working Groups and Discussion Groups, as has been the case at previous meetings. Working Groups and Discussion Groups from PME-NA 2008 can submit papers to continue their work if it is the consensus of the organizer and members that the group can be productively sustained for another year. One 10-page paper (including a 300-word abstract, any figures or tables, and references) from each Working Group will be included in the Conference Proceedings. See suggestions below for what might be included in Working Group papers.

The paper and abstract for a Working Group might address the following: (a) a brief history of the Working or Discussion Group (number of times you have met before, what has been accomplished), (b) the issues in the psychology of mathematics education that will be the focus of the work, (c) the plan for active engagement of participants in productive reflection on the issues, (d) anticipated follow-up activities, and (e) for groups that have met previously, the way(s) in which this paper builds on and extends previous work of the group.

Formatting

Authors should follow the publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th Edition) with headings positioned as authors intend and the tables and other graphics imbedded in appropriate places in the paper. The APA manual has many examples for citing information from electronic sources. See http://www.apastyle.org/.

Editors will take the text you send and format the final Proceedings document. That task is much easier if, for example, you do not use spaces in an attempt to align text. Editors will have to remove all extraneous tabs and spaces, which can be a very time-consuming task. Please use the formatting tools of your word processing program to set margins and indentations, avoiding any extraneous spaces or tabs. It is also preferred that you avoid inserting manual page breaks or line breaks; that will be done where needed in the final editing.

To aid you in writing the paper, here are a few suggestions. A printed copy of your final paper should meet the following conditions:

  • All margins should be one inch.
  • Text should be in Times 12-point font. The title, abstract, headings, body text, endnotes, figure captions, and references should all be in 12-point Times font.
  • The titles of books and journals should be italicized, not underlined. In days prior to electronic publishing, underlining was used to indicate words that the typesetter was to put in italics, but that extra step is no longer necessary. There should be no underlined text in the manuscript you submit.
  • Paragraphs should be indented 1/4 inch. Please use the word processing program settings to set margins and paragraph indentations; do not use spaces or tabs to align text or make indentations. Each extra space and tab will have to be located and removed during the production process, which is a very time-consuming task.
  • All text should be single spaced with no extra lines between paragraphs.
  • Please pay particular attention to your reference citations in the text and reference list. It is extremely time-consuming to copyedit papers and references when authors do not adhere to APA style. Your diligence in formatting citations, checking the accuracy of citations, and ensuring the completeness of the reference list is greatly appreciated.
  • Do not use footnotes. Rather, place all notes at the end of the text but before the references as endnotes.
  • Also do not use headers, footers, or page numbers. These will be added (as necessary) to be consistent throughout the document.
  • All tables, figures, and graphics should be placed in the document as appropriate. As necessary, resize large tables or graphics so your document, when printed, does not exceed the maximum number of pages allowed for your paper.
  • To view an example of a paper from past proceedings in the correct format, use the link on the home page for the conference.
  • See the sample formating document Word (.doc format) or Adobe Acrobat (.pdf format) for an example of the formatting to be used in the paper.