History – It’s a Living Thing.
What a Terrible Thing to Lose!
Bringing history alive through quality teaching and learning
The Conference Committee invites proposals for presentations at the 2027 HTAA National Conference. Whether you work in schools, universities, museums, archives, libraries, cultural institutions or the broader history and archaeology communities, we encourage you to share your expertise and contribute to this national conversation.
We welcome proposals that demonstrate innovative practice, engage with contemporary historical scholarship, or offer practical classroom strategies. Presentations may address any period of history, geographical region or historical methodology.
Primary teachers are warmly encouraged to present units of work.
Key dates
- Thu 1 Oct 2026Call for Papers opens
- Sat 30 Jan 2027Submissions close
- Mon 15 Feb 2027Outcomes notified · early bird registration opens
- Mon 1 Mar 2027Presenters confirm
- 28–30 Sep 2027Conference, Hobart
Conference areas of interest
Curriculum and Assessment
The Australian Curriculum, state and territory syllabuses, the International Baccalaureate, assessment design, moderation and authentic assessment.
Sources, Evidence and Historical Inquiry
Historical thinking, source analysis, inquiry learning, historical literacy, and building argument from evidence.
First Nations Histories and Perspectives
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, deep time, truth-telling, and teaching contested and difficult histories with care.
Public History, Museums and Community Collections
Museums, archives, libraries, heritage interpretation, local and community history, digital collections and public engagement.
Historical Scholarship and New Research
Ancient, medieval, modern, military, global and environmental history, biography and microhistory.
Other
If none of these fit, choose “Other” on the form and name your own area.
Presentation formats
Breakout sessions on Day 2 and Day 3 run in parallel 45-minute blocks.
- Individual paper 45 min incl. questions
- Practical classroom workshop 45 min
- Interactive workshop 45 min
- Roundtable discussion 45 min
- Case study 45 min
- Research presentation 45 min incl. questions
- Lightning presentation 10 min
- Poster presentation Displayed throughout
Workshops ideally include take-away materials. Lightning presentations run in sets of four to six; posters have a staffed viewing period. Presenters are encouraged to build in audience participation.
What to include
- Presentation title
- Presenter name(s) and organisation
- Short biography (maximum 100 words)
- Presentation format
- Abstract (maximum 300 words)
- Intended audience
- Learning outcomes for participants
- Audio-visual requirements
Joint presentations
Joint presentations are encouraged. Submit one proposal only — duplicate proposals for the same session are treated as one.
The person who completes the form is the contact presenter and receives all correspondence: the acknowledgement, the Committee’s decision, the presenter information package and program details. They are responsible for keeping co-presenters informed.
Please give a name, position, organisation and a biography of no more than 100 words for each presenter. Biographies are published in the program as supplied.
How proposals are assessed
Proposals are also considered for balance across the program.
Presenter registration
Accepted presenters register at the standard rate and receive a $70 discount on registration — split equally, $35 each, where a session has two presenters.