Announcements

Call for Proposals – Special Issue: Practitioners' Mindset in STEM

This special issue, Practitioners' Mindset in STEM, is launched to recognize and elevate the motivations, lived experiences, and scholarly efforts of STEM instructors who are actively transforming their classrooms, revising curricula, and engaging in collaborative or global teaching. It also seeks to support these educators in bringing their practices, reflections, and insights into public view to help shape the future of STEM teaching and learning.

  • Proposal Deadline: August 31, 2025 (approx. 300 words)
  • Submit Proposal to: Dr. Min Zhong, min.zhong@austin.utexas.edu
  • Final Manuscript Due: May 31, 2026

Since the clustering of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) into an integrated educational focus, educators and researchers have invested significant effort in transforming and advancing STEM education in higher education. Over the past two decades, these efforts have led to the development and widespread adoption of evidence-based pedagogies, supported by a growing body of classroom-based research. However, the implementation of these pedagogies often has invisible challenges, especially for the classroom practitioners leading these efforts.

We invite proposals of approximately 300 words by August 31, 2025, that showcase practitioner insights, with or without formal classroom data, from across diverse STEM disciplines. These include life sciences, chemistry and biochemistry, physical Sciences, geosciences, computing and data sciences, mathematics, and statistics, as well as various fields in engineering and technology. We also welcome submissions from the field of medical education, recognizing its important place within the broader STEM landscape. Areas of focus may include, but are not limited to:

  • Reflective narratives on implementing evidence-based practices and their impact on teaching and learning
  • Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) articles that include scholarly analysis of qualitative and/or quantitative data from students or instructors

We are specifically interested in practitioner experiences related to:

  • innovative teaching strategies and pedagogies
  • feedback and assessment design
  • student engagement and voice
  • curriculum innovation and redesign
  • teaching support systems and professional development

We strongly encourage authors to include thoughtful reflections on their teaching practices, the challenges they face, and the ongoing nature of their professional growth. Submissions should aim to give voice to the complexities and insights of STEM educators working at the intersection of practice and scholarship. Selected proposals will be notified by September 2025 and invited to develop into full manuscripts for submission and peer review for inclusion in the special issue.

Proposals should be no more than 300 words and submitted to Guest Editor, Dr. Min Zhong at min.zhong@austin.utexas.edu by August 31, 2025.

Final Manuscript Snapshot

To help prospective authors plan their contributions, Transformative Dialogues accepts several types of manuscript submissions. Authors are encouraged to choose a format that best fits their inquiry, context, and reflection :

  • Scholarly (Inquiry) Articles on applied innovations and professional developments, research reports, and general articles and literature surveys (approximately 4,000 to 8,000 words);
  • Personal or Speculative Reflections (be imaginative and provocative to invite dialogue), and tutorials (approximately 3,000 words);
  • Dialogues (between two or more participants that facilitate deeper insights, open lines of inquiry, or evolving relationships in the service of personal and/or scholarly transformation related to teaching and learning; flexible in word count); 
  • Diverse format submissions such as presentations, poetry, interviews, videos, images, and other (new) media, etc. (500 to 1,500 words or equivalent). 

Accepted authors may refer to the Submission Preparation Checklist for final submission guidelines in preparation for the Final Manuscript Submission Deadline: May 31, 2026.