CFP: 2027 Central APA-AAPT Teaching Hub

SESSION GOALS: As institutional expectations for professional philosophers shift, the role of graduate students has emerged as itself a site of generative philosophic inquiry. When professional philosophers ask “How is the discipline changing?” associated questions arise in the context of graduate studies: Who are we training to do professional philosophy? What is it that professional philosophers and graduate students actually do on a day-to-day basis? How are we training people to succeed in those roles, and how are graduate students already performing the work of professional philosophers? 

We are interested in two large topics related to the role of graduate students in philosophy: (1) the pedagogical opportunities and challenges present for graduate students in educational roles; (2) the pedagogical methods specific to graduate programs and instructors teaching graduate students (especially teaching graduate students how to teach). 

We welcome proposals on any topic related to this theme, including (but not limited to) the following:

• The role and responsibilities of graduate student instructors. 

• Teaching graduate students how to teach philosophy.

• Specific pedagogies for graduate-level courses. 

• Specific pedagogies for cross-listed (graduate/undergraduate) courses. 

• The role and responsibilities of teaching assistants (TAs) and research assistants (RAs) including… 

• Signature pedagogies or pedagogical opportunities specific to the TA role. 

• Opportunities for near-peer mentorship in which graduate students mentor upper-level undergraduates, or where early-career academics mentor graduate students. 

• Methods and strategies for training TAs. 

• Methods and strategies for preparing TAs to become instructors of record. 

• Methods and strategies for preparing RAs to become independent researchers.

• Navigating institutional precarity as a graduate student, including… 

• Differences in graduate student funding and labor expectations. 

• Managing difficult institutional or political contexts.

• Balancing teaching and scholarship responsibilities as a graduate student. 

FORMAT: Rather than a traditional paper presentation, Teaching Hub sessions are expected to be highly interactive. Proposals should indicate how audience members will participate in the session. The primary goal for the Teaching Hub is for attendees to walk away with something concrete to deploy in their own classrooms/teaching context. 

What does the Teaching Hub mean by "highly interactive? This includes (but is not limited to) the following:

• Presenters focusing less time on arguments for teaching some content or teaching a particular way, and more time on what it would actually look like to teach that content or teach in that way.

• Presenters thinking of the audience as their students and themselves as the facilitator/teacher. How could you cover the same content in a way that your audience participates in active learning activities during the session time?

• Presenters offering and demonstrating clear, practical examples of teaching methods, classroom activities, policies, practices, etc.

• Presenters occupying the role of facilitator, rather than giving traditional “lecture-plus-Q&A” style presentations. 

ALL SUBMISSIONS:

• Proposals or papers should be sent to Emily Lange [email protected] by August 15, 2026, with the subject line “Graduate Student Teaching AAPT-APA TH 2027”. 

• Attached to the email, please include your anonymized submission of 500–750 words (.doc, .docx, or .pdf) detailing the following: 

• (1) describe the focus of your session, 

• (2) an overview of how you plan to use your session time, including how you will make the session highly interactive,

• (3) what you hope the audience will take away from your session, and 

• (4) whether you are requesting a 25- or 50-minute session. 

• In the body of the email, please include 

• (1) your name, 

• (2) institutional affiliation (if any), 

• (3) position (if any), and 

• (4) email contact information.

• The AAPT is a community of teacher-scholars dedicated to sharing our lived expertise regarding reflective and responsible student-centered teaching and learning. We value authentic, creative, and insightful approaches to pedagogy that exhibit what philosophy does best: thinking through problems both independently and collaboratively. At present, we judge that the use of generative AI conflicts with these values. Therefore the use of generative AI in preparing proposals and in the content of presentations is prohibited. If you believe an exception should be made for your use of generative AI, please disclose how you have used it and why an exception should be made for your use.

• We aim to select presenters by September 1, 2026. 

DEADLINE for submissions: August 15, 2026

Questions about this session should be directed to Emily Lange at the above email address. For general information about the AAPT-APA Teaching Hub, please visit the Teaching Hub website. For specific information about the Teaching Hub at the 2027 APA meeting in Denver, CO, please contact co-chairs Sara Purinton ([email protected]) and Abram Capone ([email protected]).