(Tutorials Submissions are closed now)
(The record on all ISMBs so far: 72 applications received!)

ISMB 2006 will feature half-day introductory to advanced tutorial sessions. The tutorials will be given on Sunday, August 6 prior to the ISMB scientific program. The purpose of the tutorial program is to provide participants with lectures and instruction, on either well-established or new "cutting-edge" topics, relevant to the bioinformatics field. It offers participants an opportunity to learn about new areas of bioinformatics research, to get an introduction to important established topics, or to develop higher skill levels in areas in which they are already knowledgeable. The list and descriptions of the final tutorials will be available here after March 6, 2006. Tutorial registration fees are currently under review and will be provided soon. Tutorials should be submitted to: Tutorials Submissions are closed.

Call for ISMB 2006 Tutorial Proposals

Tutorials Submission Schedule
November 10, 2005	Call for Tutorial Opens
February 6, 2006	Tutorial Proposal Submission Deadline
March 6, 2006	Tutorial Acceptance Notification
May 1, 2006	Draft Handouts Due
June 26, 2006	Final Handouts for Production Due

This call is an invitation for scientists and professionals working in the fields of bioinformatics and computational biology to submit proposals for high quality tutorials for ISMB 2006. Tutorials must be designed as half-day (four hour) sessions, including a 30 minute break at their midpoint. ISMB will offer up to 12 tutorials covering a range of topics reflective of the multi-disciplinary nature of our field.

Proposals for ISMB 2006 tutorials can be submitted from November 15, 2005. Please submit proposals prior to February 6, 2006. Tutorial submissions MUST include a detailed 4 page (max) description of what will be taught. Proposals should contain the following information:

• A brief description of the instructor(s) indicating the relevant qualifications and teaching experience.
• Based on feedback received from earlier years, please note that graduate students cannot participate as instructors or demonstrators.
• Each tutorial can have a maximum of two presenters.
• Title and expected goals, objectives and motivation of the tutorial
• Tutorial level: Introductory, Intermediate or Advanced.
• Intended audience: it should be clearly and precisely indicated to whom the tutorial is aimed and at which level it would be taught with respect to the different underlying scientific fields. In particular if any background (biology, algorithmics, statistics, etc) is expected, this should be very precisely described.
• Detailed outline of the presentation.

Proposals must be submitted in the MS Word or PDF templates provided.

All submissions will be evaluated by a committee, which will consider the following criteria:

• Relevance, interest, and value of the topic to ISMB attendees
• Completeness, clarity, and quality of the tutorial proposal
• Expertise and experience of the presenters in the proposed topic
• Expertise and experience of the presenters in delivering a successful educational experience
• Effectiveness of the proposed presentation approach.

Tutorials serve an educational function and are expected to provide perspective on a field of research. They are not to focus on the presenters' own research or software. Such presentations should be submitted as papers or demonstrations. Tutorial attendees often consider the reputation and standing of the presenters as one of their criteria for choosing particular sessions. Therefore, it is expected presenters listed on the submitted proposal will be at the conference to present their tutorials.

Submitters of successful tutorial proposals will be notified of their provisional acceptance by March 6, 2006. A maximum of 12 proposals will be accepted for presentation at ISMB 2006. ISMB tutorial presenters will also be invited to develop tutorials for publication in the journal PLoS Computational Biology.

A draft version of all tutorial handouts will be required prior to the final acceptance of a tutorial. The draft handouts must be received by May 1, 2006, and the final acceptance decisions will be made by May 15, 2006. Final handouts for reproduction must be received by June 26, 2006. The slides should be submitted as PowerPoint files, and the handouts should be pdf files. ISMB will provide a conference template to be used by presenters.

Tutorial Handouts

The tutorial presenters agree to provide participants with teaching materials that include:

• A detailed outline of the presentation and explanatory text, which will be a document equivalent to the oral component of the tutorial, in a standard template.
• Copies of the slides, in Powerpoint format.
• Copies of relevant articles/book chapters published by the tutors may be provided as Supplementary Information but cannot replace the text material of the handout. Presenters will have to obtain copyright permission from their publishers, as required.

Copyright

The authors will grant copyright to tutorial materials to the ISCB for a period to extend from acceptance through December 31, 2006, and they agree that their materials will be made available for sale through the ISCB to ISMB participants not attending the tutorial through December 31, 2006.

Each tutorial team will be provided:

• An honorarium of US$500;
• Free registration for the tutorial presented;
• One free registration to the ISMB conference.