Symposia are curated collections of contributions that showcase and foster discussion on the latest developments in chemistry education. Symposia may be invited (featuring a curated selection of experts or perspectives) or contributed (allowing attendees to self-nominate contributions). To ensure broad participation, all symposia are limited to one full day or the equivalent of twelve 20-minute slots. Organizers are therefore expected to strategically integrate both distillation and talk formats (detailed below) to effectively achieve their session’s goals.
Presentation Formats
- Talks (15 min + 5 min discussion): Presenters share scholarly approaches to chemistry education, including research findings, tested learning activities, or other well-developed work.
- Distillations (5 min each, grouped in sets of four, + 20 min open discussion): These concise contributions are ideal for sharing emerging projects, soliciting feedback, presenting learning activities, or discussing studies with preliminary or inconclusive results.
Proposal Submission
We welcome symposium proposals from all members of the global chemistry education community. Before submitting, organizers should review the 2026 BCCE Thematic Framework and identify how their proposal aligns with the Conference Contexts and Intersectional Attributes. This framework was developed iteratively in discussion with the 2026 BCCE Program Committee, composed of members that provide geographic and disciplinary diversity, ensuring a broad and inclusive approach to conference planning.
Proposal abstracts are limited to 300 words. Abstracts should clearly articulate how the symposium addresses the review criteria outlined below including how it aligns with at least one Conference Context . Additionally, organizers should identify one or more Intersectional Attributes—keywords that further help to define the symposium’s purpose and intended audience.
Review Process
The Program Committee will evaluate proposals based on the following criteria:
- Relevance to Conference Contexts: Alignment with the overall conference themes.
- Innovation and Novelty: Introduction of fresh perspectives, methods, or emerging topics in chemistry education.
- Reach: Potential to solicit contributions from multiple perspectives or instructors at all levels.
- Practical Applicability: Potential for attendees to gain useful insights, tools, or strategies for their teaching or research.
- Community and Engagement: Potential for audience participation, discussion, interaction, or community building.
This review process aims to enhance meaningful engagement among attendees while limiting the number of concurrent sessions, in alignment with ACS initiatives and feedback from past BCCE conferences. Proposals will be reviewed within their respective Conference Contexts by sub-groups of the Program Committee. Organizers of similar proposals may be asked to merge their symposia. The final selection will ensure a balanced representation of Contexts and Attributes across the conference.
Important Dates: All deadlines are hard deadlines!
- Request for Symposia opens August 1, 2025 and closes November 10, 2025
- Review of Symposia submission by program committee November 10 to December 15, 2025
- Symposia acceptances sent December 15, 2025
- Request for abstracts opens January 5, 2026 and closes March 1, 2026
- Symposium organizers complete abstract review and scheduling of session by March 31, 2026
- Program schedule posted June 1, 2026
Important Note: To submit a symposium proposal you must agree to the following
If your symposium proposal is accepted you are expected to:
- Review all abstracts submitted to your symposium in ExOrdo – you will receive training for this prior to March 1, 2026.
- Strategically integrate distillation and talk formats and thoughtfully session talks by the posted deadline in March.
- Plan to preside over your symposium or designate a presider; the presider must plan to register for and attend the 29th BCCE.
- If you plan to recruit presenters for your symposium, ensure you inform them about the Rule of Two for talks, distillations, posters, and workshops – attendees can contribute a maximum of two of these types of presentations (e.g., 2 talks, or 1 talk and 1 workshop, etc.)
- Understand that the BCCE CANNOT cover registration, lodging, or travel costs or provide discounts for organizers, presiders, or presenters.
- If you are submitting an Invitation Only symposium, ensure that you have at least 4 talks and that all presenters submit their abstracts by the March 1, 2026 deadline.
- Understand that to limit concurrent sessions, avoid conflicts, and ensure that thematic programming is distributed equitably throughout the week, we are unable to accept requests for symposia to be held on certain days or at certain times.
We look forward to your contributions to BCCE 2026!