Here are some guidelines for chairing sessions at ITiCSE.
Please be in the room for at least the 15 minutes immediately before your session. We have asked
authors to upload their presentations on the in-room computer, or to check that their alternative
arrangement is working. We have also asked them to let you know how to pronounce their name, and
what pronoun to use when introducing them. Of course not everyone will pronounce names equally
well, but we do urge you to make a conscious effort to use the pronouns that the presenters give you.
You are not responsible for the technical systems, for the uploads and plugins. We expect each room to
have a volunteer who will help with those aspects.
You are responsible for timing. Please have a reliable timing device with you. Please do your utmost to
start your session on time, even if people are still drifting in, and to keep each presentation within its
allotted time. Full papers run for 30 minutes. We have advised authors that this is typically divided into
20 minutes for presentation and 10 minutes for discussion, questions, and movement between rooms.
At your discretion, you may allow presenters to present for up to 25 minutes, but they must then stop.
We have asked for a set of time sheets to be put in each room reading 5, 2, Question time, and STOP.
Please show the first one to the presenter after 15 minutes, the next after 18 minutes, and the third after
20 minutes. The STOP sheet is for any who are still presenting at 25 minutes, and if they ignore that,
please stand up, interrupt them, and remind them that they must now permit discussion, questions, and
movement between rooms.
Tips, techniques, and courseware presentations are similar but shorter, and have less flexibility. They
each run for 15 minutes, which is divided into ten minutes for presentation and five for discussion and
questions.
It is your role to moderate the questions – choosing the questioners and ensuring that they don’t
dominate the session – but if the presenter appears willing to take on that role, please let them.
It can be awkward if there are no questions following a presentation. Please read each of the papers in
your session as soon as you can (we expect them to be available in the ACM digital library before or at
the start of the conference), and devise a couple of questions. Even if they are burning questions that
you really want to know the answers to, please give the audience precedence if they have questions.
Your questions are the backup plan, and should not take precedence over those from the audience.
Towards the end of question time, please invite the next presenter to come out and prepare to start their
presentation.
At the end of question time for each presentation, please invite the audience to show their appreciation
by applauding the presenter. At the end of the session, you could extend this to thanking all the
presenters from the session.