Collaborative Workshops at the Researcher to Reader Conference are facilitated collaborative conversations, with very high levels of delegate participation and engagement. Each workshop discusses a clearly-defined question or problem, and attempts to reach a resolution. Workshops are particularly well-suited to complex problems with diverse issues to be explored and a range of solutions that can be developed.

Delegates select, on registration, just one preferred workshop out of choice of about 5 potential topics available. Each workshop has a total duration of about three hours, split over 3 one-hour sessions that reconvene during the Conference timetable. A delegate will normally stay with their chosen workshop throughout the three sessions.

Our workshops can be demanding to prepare and deliver, but are an exceptionally popular part of the programme, and are always reported to be highly worthwhile for facilitators and delegates alike. Each workshop usually has around 10-40 participants, and during the workshop sessions there is typically a mixture of whole-group conversations and smaller breakouts or table discussions.

Workshops function well with just two facilitators, but sometimes there can be a team of as many as five people developing and facilitating a workshop.

A workshop topic may build on the content of a Conference presentation, or cover other issues of relevance to the creation, supply and consumption of academic research. A workshop could be used to gather scoping or qualitative responses as part of an academic research project, be part of a standards consultation, or even be used for product prototyping if appropriately structured and described. Workshops tend to function best when they attempt to discuss and reach resolution on a clearly-defined question or problem.

Typically (although not in 2024) the Title:Subtitle combination of an R2R workshop includes a question to be answered by the participants, for example: “Open Access Requirements for Books: How can we support authors with requirements for open access to books?” This helps the workshop developers, facilitators and participants to focus on the tasks to be accomplished and the outcomes expected.

The workshops are definitely not seminars, given by speakers, but are highly interactive conversations held amongst the participants, and facilitated by the workshop organisers. Some of our most successful workshops have been created and run by a two-person team comprising a subject expert and a facilitator; the subject expert will frame the question to be worked on, and provide expert knowledge during the workshop, while the facilitator will summarise the topic, lead discussions, encourage broad participation and ensure that the outcomes are documented.

Researcher to Reader has a particular focus on ensuring high-quality workshop facilitation, and is very open to matching topic experts with skilled facilitators.

In the R2R Call for Papers, proposals may be made for a complete Workshop session, including all the proposed facilitators, or for a partial workshop that needs some additional facilitators; and R2R can often suggest suitable people to support a part-developed Workshop. People who have proposed a Workshop may be invited to adapt their proposal to another session type. People who have proposed other session types may be invited to adapt their proposal to be part of a Workshop. People may also contribute to more than one session at the Conference (for example giving a Panel Presentation as well as facilitating a Workshop).

Up to two facilitators are offered free attendance at the Conference, in recognition of the significant work required to develop and manage a Workshop session. Additional facilitators are offered a discount on Conference attendance of 50% off the normally applicable early-bird tariff. Workshop facilitators are invited to the informal contributor dinner at the end of the first day of the Conference, at their own cost.

Page created 8 July 2024 and edited 11 August 2024