The Digital Media and Learning Conference is an annual event supported by the MacArthur Foundation and organized by the Digital Media and Learning Research Hub at University of California, Irvine. The conference is meant to be an inclusive, international and annual gathering of scholars and practitioners in the field, focused on fostering interdisciplinary and participatory dialog and linking theory, empirical study, policy, and practice.

The second conference will be held between March 3-5, 2011 at the Hilton Long Beach Conference and Meeting Center in Long Beach, California. The theme will be “Designing Learning Futures”. The Conference Chair will be Katie Salen. The conference committee includes Kimberly Austin, danah boyd, Sheryl Grant, Mark Surman, Trebor Scholz and S. Craig Watkins. Keynote presentations will be given by Alice Taylor and Muki Hansteen-Izora. They are also planning a book exhibit and technology demos.

This year they will be accepting proposals in three formats: panels, workshops and ignite talks. Panels bring together in discussion four participants representing a range of ideas and projects. Panels are scheduled for 90 minutes and should include a mix of individuals working in areas of research, theory, and practice. Workshops provide an opportunity for hands-on exploration and/or problem solving. They can be organized around a core challenge that participants come together to work on or around a tool, platform, or concept. Workshops are scheduled for 120 minutes and should be highly participatory. Finally, they welcome Ignite Talks. In an ignite talk the speaker gets 5 minutes to speak on a subject that might spark debate or conversation within the DML community. The format is specific: talks are given using 20 slides where each slide must automatically progress after 15 seconds. To organize a panel or workshop, please feel free to use the DML2011 Discussion Forum on wikidot.

The DML2011 Conference proposal system will open on October 15, 2010 and full proposals will be due on November 1, 2010. Panel Abstracts should cover the theme, format (e.g. discussion, interactive, presentations), how the session addresses the theme of the conference and/or subtheme in up to 400 words. List of participants, affiliations, emails and titles of talks/presentations (if applicable) should also be included.

See here for full details.