International MOBTS
Hosted at University of St. Andrews, UK
July 23 - 26, 2023

Call for Papers

University of St. Andrews, Scotland, United Kingdom

Submission Deadline is Friday, 10th of March 2023

Conference Dates: 23rd - 26th of July, 2023

 

Submission Guidelines  |  Paper Submission

International MOBTS 2023 Team:

  • Gosia Mitka, University of St. Andrews (Site Co-Chair)
  • Gerald Prescott, University of St. Andrews (Site Co-Chair)
  • Kate Black, Northumbria University (Program Co-Chair)
  • Ashley Roberts, Warwick Business School (Program Co-Chair)
  • Brandon Charpied, MOBTS Executive Director

Arrive early, stay late and perhaps play a round of golf, as you make the most of this tremendous experience!

Join us in Scotland at the University of St Andrews for the 2023 MOBTS International conference. Founded in the 15th century, St Andrews is Scotland’s first university and the third oldest in the English-speaking world. Teaching began in the community of St Andrews in 1410, and the University was formally constituted by the issue of a papal bull in 1413.

Since the University’s foundation St Andrews has welcomed scholars from across the world to study, teachers to teach, and students to learn, a tradition that continues today, with more than 130 countries represented in the 2020-2021 student population.  The University’s fundamental goal has always been to attract and nurture the best staff and the most promising students from around the world and provide an environment in which they can produce their best work for maximum societal benefit.  As a truly international and world-class university, the University’s ambition is to be a beacon of inclusivity. Supporting this stance, we encourage delegates to bring their families should they wish to do so.  Specific activities and events will be available to those not attending the conference, and delegates and families alike will be welcome at all conference events.

In our 7th Century St Andrews strives to be a World-leading, Entrepreneurial, Diverse, Digital and Sustainable institute, living up to the University motto, ‘Ever to Excel.’  We are therefore delighted to welcome colleagues from near and far to the University of St Andrews for the 2023 MOBTS International conference.

Conference Theme

The core purpose of this conference is to bring together management educators from around the world, from Europe, America, Australasian region and beyond. We want to create a vibrant international community of educators so that we can share our experience of best practices, learn from each other and build learning networks for today and into the future. As such, this is a very broad theme, congruent with the vision of MOBTS.

We welcome interactive and experiential sessions that share insights into effective teaching practices and the experience of life as an educator. We are as interested in what works as well as what does not work, as learning from failure in our view is part of the lived experience of the life-long journey of an educator. We do not wish to be prescriptive in saying what you should submit to the conference. You are the community of active management educators: from you will emerge best practice and themes.

Proposal Formats

We very much welcome a blend of proposals including:

  • Interactive sessions - exercises or cases - on a particular topic
  • Workshops
  • Round table discussions that encourage dialogue around a topic, or offer the community the opportunity to develop a particular skill
  • Presentations of good practices in management education
  • Pedagogical research

Emerging Themes

Below are some themes that have emerged from our experience of management education, these relevant in the context of the host institution and about which we are keen to gain insights into best practice. As a community, you will have additional insights, so consider the below initial thoughts. We welcome proposals both within and outside the below themes.

Prominent Themes in Education

While we welcome proposals in any topic, be it from the themes below, or another topic, we are especially interested in proposals that offer insights into some of the prominent current themes within education:

  1. What approaches can we use to develop entrepreneurial/enterprise skills, mindset and competencies within students to help them effectively tackle current and future societal, environmental and economic challenges and lead transformative change? How do we embed entrepreneurial education within the curriculum?
  2. How do we create inclusive learning and teaching environments, activities, and assessment?
  3. What approaches can we use to ensure all students engage with education for sustainable development and are prepared to bring about meaningful change and take responsible action in the real world?
  4. How do we create learning environments that promote good wellbeing for staff and students. How do we build independence, self-efficacy and resilience in our student communities.
  5. What are the strategies we can use for co-creation of learning and teaching between students, staff and external stakeholders (students as partners)? What good practice do we know.
  6. How do we develop student-centric approaches that promote experiential learning? How do we implement these effectively, and what is their impact on different types of teachers and learners:
      • Problem based learning
      • Evidence based learning
      • Action learning
      • Challenge based learning
      • Service learning
      • Project-based learning
      • Work placements
      • Managing experiential learning with large groups
      • Creating meaningful industry and research engaged teaching
      • Role of Virtual Reality and Artificial Intelligence in learning and teaching
      • Partnerships between universities, industry, government and third sector.
  1. How do we design teaching activities and assessments that promote creativity, risk taking and learning from failure? How can experiential learning make our students robot-proof? How can experiential learning support critical problem-solvers able to tackle complex problems? How can project-based learning promote collaboration, recognition of value of working in diverse environment and contribute to students’ employability? How can we facilitate deep learning through integrating reflection and providing opportunities for self-reflection as part of the learning process?
  2. How do we as educators develop an effective and engaging learning environment, select and implement a learning approach to fit the learning objectives of our programs and diverse needs of our students?
  3. A key task for all educators is designing authentic, effective and meaningful assessments of learning outcomes. How do we develop assessments that contribute to the learning process. How do we manage student anxiety around assessments.  How do we create inclusive assessments for all learners.
      • How do we create authentic assessments that are applicable to the ‘real world’
      • Examples of effective and failed innovations in assessment
      • Inclusive assessments and reasonable adjustments to assessment
      • Defining and testing core competencies
      • Assessing visiting and international students
      • Setting expectations and managing student disappointments
      • Assessment in diverse learning environments
      • Peer assessments
      • Assessment strategies for small, medium and large size classes
  1. What strategies can we employ for providing meaningful and developmental feedback to students?
  2. How do we manage staff workload pressures and increasing student numbers with the need to provide helpful feedback?
  3. From individual educator to school/university programs. How do we manage the process of designing and delivering effective modules in the wider context of a suite of modules (be that a degree, certificate, amongst others)? How do we reflect upon and monitor the quality of our programmes what quality assurance activities are needed by universities, how does PSRB and accreditation requirements influence learning and teaching and how do we balance the competing needs of teaching and service.
      • Designing and implementing effective curriculum change
      • Integrating our teaching into PSRB and accreditation processes
      • Quality assurance and monitoring processes
      • Ensuring that the curriculum remains relevant and future-proof
      • Providing opportunities for students’ input and feedback on the curriculum and its delivery
  1. How do we develop teaching strategies that promote research led teaching and turning teaching into scholarship.
      • At a practical level how do we convert our research into meaningful teaching experiences for our undergraduate, postgraduate and executive learners?
      • How do we convert our teaching practices and experiences into research and scholarship?
      • What questions can drive pedagogical research to improve teaching practices?
  1. How do educators and institutions position themselves to succeed in the future of Management Education? What trends will shape its evolution beyond the pandemic? Which disruptive models and disruptive players exist in management education and what can we learn from them?
  2. What are the challenges and strategies for managing life as a teacher, researcher and a leader within your institution? As careers develop, we often move from teaching and research into managing programs and institutions. What experience and best practice can we share of:
      • Benefits and challenges of teaching while leading as a program director, departmental or school head, university administrator
      • As educators do we want, and what are the implications of having leaders who do or do not teach? What is the practical impact on our students and ourselves?
      • How do we manage the ethical and practical challenges of being both an educator on a program and a leader resourcing and managing it?
      • How is the transition to leadership positions supported, what training and mentorship opportunities are available?
  1. How the pandemic made us better educators: From the introduction of learning management systems to e-books and polling software, the trend towards “modernizing” the classroom has been ongoing and omnipresent. What experience and best practice can we share of:
      • Challenges and strategies to manage the teaching situation no one could have planned for
      • What did we learn from the pandemic?
      • Lessons learned from pivoting to livestreamed, hybrid, and blended learning modalities
      • How to bring gratitude, optimism and playfulness into the classroom
      • Innovative ways to build meaningful connections to your students.
      • Ways to leverage technology to adapt traditional teaching methods for the virtual classroom
      • How could the “New Normal” for home-based learning be better after the pandemic?
      • What is gained (or lost) when learning and teaching move fully online?
      • Is there an optimal combination of online and on-campus learning?
      • How will educational practices, policies and research change due to the pandemic?
      • Effects of absence from campus due to social distancing measures on students' mental health
      • How can we design management education to provide flexible opportunities for lifelong learners?
      • How can we increase engagement of remote learners?

About the University and St Andrews

St Andrews is a unique and captivating place, and the University, sitting at the heart of the town, is a key part of its charm. Seven centuries of history link the students with the town, leading to the ancient and yet modern institution of today. A visit to the university is a visit to the town and visitors to immerse themselves in the towns near 1000-years of visible history.

Situated on the stunning East Coast of Scotland, nestled amongst sandy beaches and rolling countryside, St Andrews is a truly beautiful and magical place. Known globally as the "home of golf" because of the towns second prominent institution, The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, founded in 1754, and the famous Old Course of St Andrews Links, St Andrews attracts visitors from across the world to several courses ranked amongst the finest in the world.  Many visiting the town have no wish to leave, but the vibrancy of Scotland’s capital city, Edinburgh, and the majesty of the Scottish Highlands are also but a short journey away.

We look forward to welcoming you to St Andrews and we are certain that the mix of academic discussion, our ancient university and the historic setting of our town will make the 2023 MOBTS International conference a truly memorable experience.