Call for Speaker Proposals: 2026 National Conference

A Call for Proposals-LATAZ 2026

The Language Teachers Association of Zambia (LATAZ) invites language educators, researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders to submit papers for the upcoming National Conference to be held from 23rd to 27th April 2026 in Chipata, Zambia.

The conference will be held under the theme:

“Strengthening Language Teaching for Effective Implementation of the Competence-Based Curriculum in Zambia”

As Zambia enters the second year of implementing the Competence-Based Curriculum (CBC), this conference provides a timely platform for reflection, consolidation, and forward planning within the language education sector. The transition to CBC has introduced significant shifts in pedagogy, assessment, curriculum design, and classroom practice, particularly in the teaching of language, literacy, and literature.

LATAZ recognises the need to critically examine experiences from the first year of implementation, identify successes and challenges, and propose practical, research-informed strategies to strengthen language teaching in line with CBC principles. The conference will therefore focus on enhancing teacher capacity, improving learner outcomes, and aligning instructional practices with competence-based approaches.

In an increasingly dynamic and interconnected world, where communication transcends geographical boundaries, language education must evolve to meet emerging national and global demands. Emphasis will be placed on:

1. Innovative and learner-centred pedagogies
2. Integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in language teaching
3. Effective assessment strategies aligned to competences
4. Development of relevant teaching and learning materials
5. Policy implementation and classroom realities

The conference aims to bring together:

1. Language and literacy teachers
2. Researchers and academics
3. Teacher educators and trainers
4. Curriculum specialists and materials developers
5. Assessors and policymakers
6. Educational stakeholders

Participants will engage in meaningful dialogue to share experiences, showcase best practices, and explore sustainable strategies for strengthening language teaching and ensuring the successful implementation of the Competence-Based Curriculum in Zambia.

Submissions can be made to address the following sub-themes:

Conference Sub-Themes

Participants are invited to submit papers addressing the following sub-themes:

1. Competence-Based Language Teaching
2. learner-centred teaching strategies
3. communicative language teaching
4. task-based language learning
5. classroom practices for competence development
6. Assessment in the Competence-Based Curriculum
7. formative assessment strategies
8. performance-based assessment
9. developing assessment rubrics
10. aligning assessment with learning outcomes 
11. Multilingual Education in Zambia
12. teaching in local languages
13. transition from local languages to English
14. promotion of Zambian languages
15. language policy and classroom practice
16. teaching literature in Zambian languages
17. understanding the 2025 Zambia Language Orthography
18. Teaching and Learning Materials
19. development of CBC-aligned textbooks
20. contextualised teaching materials
21. digital learning resources
22. use of technology in language teaching
23. Teacher Professional Development
24. teacher training for CBC implementation
25. teacher mentoring and coaching
26. communities of practice
27. Language Policy and Curriculum Reform
28. alignment of curriculum and assessment
29. development of national language proficiency frameworks
30. research in language education

Types of Presentations

Participants may submit proposals for:

1. Research papers
2. Classroom practice papers
3. Workshops
4. Panel discussions
5. Poster presentations
6. Lesson demonstrations

Session Types

This year’s sessions will take the following formats:

Talk/Presentation (30 minutes): This session describes what you are doing, or have done, concerning theory and practice, or that focuses on commercial materials or products. We strongly recommend that you focus on the most salient points (3- 4 points max) of your subject matter, use visual aids during the session and include some interaction with the audience. We also request that you allow adequate time for a Q&A session. We recommend that you plan to present for 25 minutes and use the last 5 minutes for Q&A.

Workshop (45 minutes): While grounded in theory and research, workshops should provide the participants with the opportunity to experience, discuss and engage in hands-on activities that will enhance their classroom practice. In maximising active audience participation, you must make clear when and how you plan to do this in your proposal summary, for example, by giving a brief outline of activities that will involve the audience. If you would like to restrict the size of your audience, there is a place on the speaker proposal to indicate your preferred size.

Poster (10 minutes): This is a session to present a research study related to language and literacy teaching and learning and share study implications with attendees. All poster presenters are guaranteed acceptance, subject only to the normal criteria, relevance to language teaching. You will be timetabled to present for 10 minutes at your poster during the conference. There are no facilities in the Poster Forum for electronic equipment, internet, etc. The minimum size of a poster is A1 portrait (594mm wide x 841mm high), and the maximum size is B1 portrait (707mm wide x 1000mm high). An electronic version of each poster may be posted on the LATAZ website for 12 months following the conference.

Panel Discussion (75 minutes):

This will allow three or five people to present their views on a topic, after which the discussion is opened up to the audience. At least 20 minutes should be allocated for audience discussion.

Forum (75 minutes)

This session will allow three speakers to present together on a given topic, led by one of the speakers also acting as facilitator. Speakers can either present for 20 minutes followed by a 5-minute individual Q&A session, or speakers can present for 20 minutes each, followed by a 15-minute group Q&A session. If submitting as a planned forum, please say so on your proposals and suggest a title and which of you is to be the facilitator. Each speaker proposal must be submitted separately, as three proposals make a forum. They will be evaluated on an individual basis (not as a group).

Lesson Demonstration (40/80 minutes)

A lesson demonstration as a conference presentation is an interactive, practice-based session where presenters model real classroom teaching rather than deliver a traditional lecture. Prospective presenters should design their session around clear learning objectives, demonstrating not only the content but also the pedagogy behind it. The lesson should follow a structured flow: introduction, development, and conclusion, while actively engaging participants through strategies such as modelling, group activities, and feedback opportunities. Presenters are encouraged to integrate CBC and 21st-century skills and use a ‘show, don’t tell’ approach to illustrate effective teaching techniques. When framed as a conference proposal, the demonstration should clearly outline the methodology, highlight participant engagement, and reflect on expected learning outcomes or impact.

Prerequisites

You must purchase a full current LATAZ membership @ K150.00 and a full, three-day conference booking at K200.000 on either a paid or pay-later basis at the time of submitting your proposal. Visit the website https://hataz.org.zm/take-part/membership  to become a member.  For assistance with your LATAZ membership, please contact necsretariate@lataz.org.zm  and for assistance with your conference booking, please contact conference@lataz.org.zm. All queries will be attended to within 48 hours.

General Guidelines for Conference Presenters

LATAZ welcomes submissions of individual presentations, panel discussions, workshops, and poster presentations. Papers should be no longer than 5000 words and should follow the APA style guide. All submissions will undergo a blind review process by a panel of experts in the field.

Please read the required information before beginning the submission process.  All abstract submissions are received through the online submission form on this link. https://forms.gle/agtqKGUdMC4VgPrN9 No email submissions will be considered. All accepted presenters will be expected to fund their trip to and stay in Chipata. 

A proposal must have a title, an abstract, and a session description.

1. You will be programmed on any of the conference days, and we will let you know on which day your session takes place in your acceptance email. If you are not staying for the full conference, please do not book travel until we tell you which day you are presenting.
2. Please note that any presenter failing to deliver their presentation without informing the Conference Programme Coordinator (Sarah Ward, sarah@iatefl.org) in writing before the start of the presentation will not be entitled to submit a proposal for the conference the following year.
3. You must ensure that you have permission to use any materials you plan to show in your presentation and that nothing in your presentation may contravene copyright law.
4. Citations, if any, must be included using APA style https://apastyle.apa.org/.
5. All presenters must be at the conference to present; remote presenting for a conference session shall not be permitted
6. Abstracts should be written in English and should not exceed 250 words.
7. The deadline for submission of proposals is 5^th April 2026 at 23.59 CAT link
8. Create an account on the Conference Page of the website to be able to submit.
9. Log in with your credentials to submit your proposal.
10. Notification of acceptance or rejection will be sent via email by 15^th April 2026
11. The Abstract should be in font 12 Times New Roman and 1.5 line spacing.
12. For more information, please visit our website lataz.org.zm or email conference@lataz.org.zm

Content Focus Areas

Please indicate.

AL = Applied Linguistics

BC = Business English

 PLit = Primary Literacy

CCI = Crosscutting Issues

IPSEN = Inclusive Practices & SEN

ZL = Zambian Language

LAM = Leadership & Management

Lit = Literature

LT = Learning Technologies

MaW = Materials Writing

MD = Materials Development

RES = Research

TD = Teacher Development

TEA = Testing, Evaluation & Assessment

TTEd = Teacher Training & Education

CDI = Curriculum Development and Innovation

In your presentation, you must choose one or two content categories. Some proposals are selected to feature in Special Interest Group sessions based on the category. Please indicate whether you wish your presentation to be included in a SIG session. The Proposals Committee or SIGs may change the content focus category that you tick if they feel it is not relevant to that coding.

Filming sessions for the online conference

Where possible, LATAZ will enable the language teaching community countrywide to participate via the LATAZ Online Conference by offering video presentations of selected sessions. Please tick the box on the speaker proposal if you agree to your presentation being filmed. If you agree, and if your session is selected for filming, we will film your whole session and it will be uploaded onto LATAZ’s YouTube page and any other website chosen by LATAZ. You must ensure that there is nothing in your presentation that may contravene copyright law. You will retain the copyright of the presentation itself and you can request that the video be removed at any point in the future.

Mentoring

LATAZ will provide mentoring services for speakers at the conference in order for them to benefit from the advice and support of experienced speakers. This will be done by linking them to speakers before the conference, e.g., by email or video call and/or meeting up at the conference to talk things through before the session takes place. If you would like the opportunity to ask an experienced speaker for advice, please tick the ‘mentee’ box on your proposal. If you’re an experienced speaker and are willing to act as a mentor to a speaker, please tick the ‘mentor’ box.

Session Title, Abstract and Summary

Please ensure you check for spelling and grammar within your proposal and ensure that no biodata is included. Your session title, summary and abstract must clearly reflect each other. You must not have given this session, or a version of this session, at a previous LATAZ National Conference.

Title	10 Words maximum. •        Use Sentence Case, not Title Case. •         communicate effectively what you are going to be talking about to your potential audience without being gimmicky or using technical jargon.
Abstract	Between 50 and 60 words. •        This will appear in the online Conference Programme but not in the printed version. It is on the basis of this abstract that delegates will choose whether they wish to attend your presentation or poster. Your abstract must therefore accurately and clearly reflect the content of your presentation. •        No abstract may contain an offer of free books or other materials, although titles of any publications or products that will be mentioned during your presentation must appear in the abstract ‘in inverted commas’. •        It should be clear that you have something new to say or that you plan to shed some new light on a topic. •        It must be clear how your audience can apply what you say to their own context. This is especially important if you are planning to describe a course, project or product, or if your presentation relies heavily on a description of a local situation. •        If your session is based on research, it must be clear in your abstract and summary that you are going to report on a completed study or on a significant phase that has been completed and that what you report is applicable or relevant to the wider ELT sector. •        It must be clear from your abstract and summary that you have catered for the level of knowledge of your target audience indicated in your choice of audience focus. ·       • You must clearly indicate whether the focus of your session is mainly theoretical or practical, or a combination of both.
Summary	Between 200 and 250 words. •        The summary is used by the Proposals Committee as a basis of selection. It will not be included in the Conference Programme or shared with delegates in any other way. •        Poster proposals must indicate the topic area and structure of the poster. •        All other proposals must outline exactly what you are going to talk about in the presentation and how the presentation will be structured and organised. •        Do not repeat your title or abstract or include biodata in your summary. If you have to make a reference, please make it very short. •        For a talk or panel discussion, it must be clear in your summary that there is sufficient time for the audience to ask questions. For a workshop, it must be clear in your summary that there will be a substantial amount of time allocated for audience participation. If your session is reallocated a different session type from what you originally submitted, you will be expected to adapt the content of your session to the length of time allocated.
Biodata	·       A bio that demonstrates your professional and/or scholarly expertise in the topic of your presentation, your previous conference presentations, and any other relevant experience in and/or outside of Zambia (30 words maximum).

Important Dates:

1. Abstract submission deadline: 5^th April 2026
2. Notification of acceptance: 10^th April 2026
3. Full paper submission deadline: 18^th April 2026

We look forward to your submissions and to welcoming you to the LATAZ conference in April.

Selected Papers will be published in a conference collection.

 

LARAZ SECRETARIAT