OPSITARA 2024, December 5-6, Christchurch

The annual Otago Polytechnic, Southern Institute of Technology, and Ara Institute of Canterbury joint research symposium (OPSITARA) will be hosted by Ara in 2024. This year, the event is part of a broader ITP Symposium Week with events taking place across the motu (details here).

The purpose of OPSITARA is to showcase the diversity of research undertaken by staff and postgraduate students across the vocational sector. All research disciplines and methodologies of inquiry are welcome, including (but not limited to) applied and technological research, rangahau Māori, creative practice, and pedagogical research. Registration is free.

Abstract submission was open from 16 June to 12 August [Extended Deadline 18 August] 2024 through the following link: https://cmt3.research.microsoft.com/OPSITARA2024. You should receive an initial decision in mid-September.

If you are attending the symposium in person, please register via this Microsoft Forms link to confirm your details including dietary requirements. Registration is open until 22 November.

A programme (pdf) including campus maps is now available for the entire ITP symposium. OPSITARA will have six parallel sessions and two keynotes:.

  • Thursday Kenote: Moana Waitoki “He piko he taniwha, he taniwha rau/ On every bend a chief. Growing researcher practice and praxis”
  • Friday Keynote: Mazharuddin Syed Ahmed “Empowering Through Education: Meaningful Refugee Participation in New Zealand Society”

 

Key Dates

16 JuneCall for abstracts opens
12 August [18 August]Abstract submission deadline [Extended Deadline]
9 SeptemberRegistration opens for in-person attendance
16 SeptemberNotification of initial abstract decisions & reviewer comments
4 OctoberDeadline for revisions and responding to reviewer comments
21 OctoberDraft programme released.
22 NovemberRegistration closes
5 DecemberSymposium begins

Presentation Options and Guidelines

OPSITARA is being run as an in-person event this year. There are no options for remote or pre-recorded presentations. Corresponding authors may submit at most one abstract per category from the list below. The organizing committee may offer to accept a submission in a different format than the type selected.

TypeFormat / DescriptionSubmission Guidelines
Research Presentation (in person)A fifteen-minute in-person presentation plus five minutes for questions.

Submit a title and an abstract (maximum 300 words). The following information should be included:

  • The aim/objectives of the study
  • The context / relevance of the research / problem statement
  • A description of the methodology and method(s)
  • An indication of the results
  • The significance and implications of your research

Citations and references should NOT be included in your abstract.

Creative Practice Presentation

A display, performance, or interactive presentation of creative work. Examples include (but are not limited to):

  • a musical performance;
  • a static work of art (sculpture, painting, installation, fashion design, photography etc.);
  • an audio-visual work (game/interactive experiences, short film, animation).

Submit a title and an abstract (maximum 300 words) explaining the creative practice that you intend to present. Please also include any technical requirements needed for the creative presentation (e.g. space requirements, piano, sound system, audio visual system).

Optionally, you may also upload supporting documentation such as photos of the artwork, audio files of music, links to games or video clips of films, animations or performances (up to 20MB per file). Hyperlinks to larger files may be included at the end of the abstract if needed.

Research Poster

Posters must be A1 size (portrait or landscape).

The presenter will be expected to stand by the poster during the poster session(s) so that conference attendees can ask questions while viewing the poster.

Submit a title and an abstract (maximum 300 words) containing the following:

  • The aim/objectives of the study
  • The context / relevance of the research / problem statement
  • A description of the methodology and method(s)
  • An indication of the results
  • The significance and implications of your research

If you are presenting in-progress work, results from a literature review, teaching practice, or useful tools, methods, or resources feel free to submit a shorter abstract with a different structure.

Citations and references should NOT be included in your abstract.

Research Community of Practice Meeting

A meeting of a Research Community of Practice in a particular field (e.g. Health and Wellbeing, Business etc.). Accepted meetings will be assigned a slot during the symposium.

The submitting author(s) will be expected to organise the meeting with support from the symposium chairs. We will allocate a timeslot for your meeting in the conference programme that does not clash with talks on the same topc.

Submit a title (preferred form ‘RCoP Meeting: Field of Research’).Submit a title (in the preferred form ‘RCoP Meeting: Field of Research’) and a short abstract (maximum 150 words) containing the following:

  • The research field of the meeting.
  • Whether this is a meeting of an established Research Community of Practice or a new group
  • The planned format of the meeting (e.g. panel discussion, speed-dating etc.)
  • The significance and implications of your research

Please include any confirmed co-organisers or panel members as authors when making your submission. We will follow up with all ‘authors’ for further organisation.

 

Abstract Submission Process

Please submit your Abstract through this link: https://cmt3.research.microsoft.com/OPSITARA2024/

If you do not already have a Microsoft CMT account, you will first need to register for one and verify your email. Please use your institutional email address so we can verify your affiliation. After creating your account and logging in you will reach the Author Console page. Click on the ‘Create a New Submission‘ button and fill out all the required fields as instructed, then click ‘Submit‘ at the bottom. You will be taken to a printable confirmation page, and will also receive an email confirmation of submission.

If you make a mistake during submission, you can edit any part of your completed submission from the Author Console page up until the submission deadline.

If you are submitting a creative practice presentation and would like to upload supporting documentation, you can add Supplementary Material to a submitted presentation on the Author Console page.

All abstracts for research or creative presentations will be peer reviewed.