MICER is now operated under the auspices of the RSC Chemistry Education Research Group, and the group are issuing a call for organisers of the 2024 meeting. Details are provided below. Submissions should be emailed to mseery@cardiffmet.ac.uk by 30th November, with a decision anticipated from the Group by early December. Queries can be sent to the same email.
About MICER
MICER is an unusual meeting in the chemistry education calendar. Its purpose is developing capacity in research methods by sharing expertise in an inclusive manner. In person meetings were originally kept small in number (capped at 60) with the emphasis on discussion and activity. The move online demonstrated affordances that led to increased accessibility. Details of previous meetings are available on the MICER website: https://micerportal.wordpress.com/.
Meeting Criteria
Post-COVID, we are seeking to return to an in-person conference, aligned with the following criteria:
- a one-day in-person conference that is affordable for participants to attend at a venue that has good transport links in the UK (noting that RSC Burlington House is an option for hosting the meeting (at a cost), and that the meeting traditionally takes place in mid-May);
- a requirement for a reduced rate for RSC members (at least 15% reduction);
- consideration of local catering costs, and/or availability of catering on and off site if required;
- consider some form of asynchronous or virtual component that would allow some aspects of the conference to be virtual, for example an online poster session;
- align with the MICER ethos of supporting those new to pedagogic research, including outside of higher education;
- ground the majority of the conference in active/discussion-based approach rather than talks/seminars;
- log on the MICER website all details of the meeting, including any post-meeting files and resources (organisers will be given access and support to edit MICER site).
Guiding Principles for events organised under the remit of Chemistry Education Research Group
The Group note the following guiding principles for meetings operating with our support:
- The Group will support events by transfer of agreed amount of funding. Any unused funds should be returned to the Group within six weeks of the event.
- Meetings should align with the RSC’s making your events inclusive guide;
- Meetings have a Code of Conduct that align with the RSC’s Code of Conduct (linked in the Making Events Inclusive Guide). A sample Code of Conduct for MICER is available;
- Meetings should aim to address the broad remits of chemistry education research, considering various education domains, levels of practice, and knowledge and experience of group members;
- Organisers of meetings supported by the Group should generate a report of the meeting within six weeks of the event.
Submitting an expression of interest
Those interested in hosting a meeting should submit a short proposal (200 – 300 words) outlining their vision for the meeting including
(i) focus of meeting;
(ii) approximate costs and charge to attend; and
(iii) proposed date.
RSC Chemistry Education Research Group 