This event is an opportunity for those with an interest in mathematics education research to share their current research and their aspirational ideas for future research. The aim of the event is for attendees to identify collaborators to work together on a symposium submission for the BERA conference 2025. 

The symposia format at the annual conference enables presenters to run a ninety-minute session, which involves presenting three or more individual papers followed by an extended opportunity for discussion. The symposia submission process is as follows:

“A 750 abstract of the symposium, and must include the title and a paragraph about each paper (minimum of 3 papers) in the symposium. There is an additional 250 words for references. The symposium as a whole must have a clear focus and each paper therein must be clearly related to the overall focus/theme of the symposium but also offer distinct perspectives.”

We know that symposia have a higher success rate at BERA and this format offers a unique opportunity for a more thorough discussion about a mathematics education theme. 

In advance of this SIG event, attendees will be invited to submit one slide outlining their mathematics research interests, to a Padlet. This will enable those attending to identify common interests in advance. During the meeting, each attendee will have a few minutes to share their research interests, and time will be allowed in the meeting for networks to be established and contact details will be shared. 

SIG members will share experiences of successful and unsuccessful BERA conference symposia submissions. Support in developing the abstracts will be provided during the meeting, as well as in advance of the abstract submission deadline at the end of January 2025. We encourage participation from researchers at any stage of their career as we hope to enable collaborations between colleagues with varying levels of experience. 

In addition to symposia abstract submissions, it is anticipated that this event will lead to further collaboration opportunities, for example in relation to research projects, journal papers and research funding applications.