For Moderators

Session Moderator Guidelines

Thank you for agreeing to serve as a moderator at the 2007 National Conference on Tobacco or Health. Your role as moderator is vital to ensure the smooth and uniform running of the meeting sessions. In addition, you should have fun moderating your session. Your main responsibilities are to

Start the session on time and ensure that each presenter stays within his or her time limits.

Ensure that questions and answers or discussion take place for about 30 minutes during the session. Be prepared to initiate and lead the discussion.

Every year significant numbers of participants complain that there was not enough interaction and discussion during the breakout sessions. You are the only one who can reduce these complaints by generating discussion in your session. This does not mean simply asking, "Are there any questions?" We know that question elicits minimal response. Please review these guidelines and come prepared with a strategy to break the silence and prompt discussion. The focus is to help participants discuss and learn how to apply the presented information in their daily work activities.

Following is information that should assist you in this role.

Pre-Session

• Come with one or more strategies to prompt and maintain discussion so participants learn the relevance of the presentations to their work. (See ideas under "During the Session.")
• Arrive at your meeting room at least 15 minutes before the first presentation.
• Ensure that the microphone and audiovisual equipment are working properly. If there are any difficulties, contact conference staff immediately.
• Establish a signal with your speakers so that you can tell them when they have 5 minutes, 1 minute, and 0 minutes (end) left in their presentation. You may need to interrupt a speaker to end the talk.
• Each 90-minute session should have 30 minutes devoted to questions. Because the presentations in the sessions are scheduled for specific times in the Program Book, it is preferable to take questions after all presenters have spoken. If you decide to take questions after each speaker, you will need to watch the clock closely to ensure you do not go over the time limit.

Opening the Session

• It is essential that all sessions start on time and that all speakers receive the time they have been allotted for their presentation. Sessions are shared time, and it is the responsibility of the moderator and speakers to ensure that presentations stay within the allotted time frame.
• You may give the audience the name of the next speaker and the title of his or her talk.

During the Session

• Follow the Order of Presentations as Listed in the Program—Presentations should be given in the order they are listed in the program because some participants will come to the session at the published times just to hear one presenter. You should NOT rearrange the published order of presentations to accommodate a presenter's preference or scheduling conflict. (If there are no times published for individual presentations, as in panels and workshops, you can order them as you wish.)
• Handle Speaker No-Shows—If a speaker listed in the program fails to appear, discuss with the other speakers how to allocate the additional time by giving each presenter more time or allowing more time for discussion.
• Maintain Time for Presentations, Discussion, and Questions—Each session is 90 minutes long, and all sessions have 30 minutes allocated for questions and discussion. The time allotted for each speaker depends on the number of speakers in the session. In sessions created from multiple abstracts, the time allocation will be listed in the program book and online program.
• Ensure Use of the Microphone—Please request and ensure that each speaker speaks into the microphone for the benefit of all the audience members. You might ask if people in the back of the room can hear.
• Prompt and Manage Questions After the Presentations—Moderators should inform participants when they can ask questions, either after each presentation or at the end of the session. The purpose of the discussion is to help participants clarify and learn how to use the presented information in their work. Stimulate and lead the discussion to achieve this purpose.
• Prepare the audience to ask questions. For example,
• Tell everyone there will be time for questions and ask people to write down questions during the presentations. Give examples of questions (e.g., "How can I use this information in my local setting?" "What did you mean by …?")
• Ask for three volunteers to ask the first questions of presenters. Tell them you hate the silence that occurs when you ask for questions and want to avoid this with volunteers. (You can ask for volunteers of individuals or friends as they enter the room or ask the whole group once the session begins.)
• Ask participants at the beginning to think about what they want to learn in this session (You can ask people to answer this verbally or to just think about it. You can give examples based on the learning objectives.) Ask them to write down what they want to learn and to ask questions after the presentations to make sure they get what they want.
• Prompt questions from the audience and stimulate discussion about how to apply the information presented.
• Call on people who volunteered to ask questions (see above).
• Be prepared to ask initial or followup questions of the presenters and the audience, if no one asks questions. You should have questions prepared in advance and written down for each speaker and the audience to stimulate discussion and audience participation, if needed. (For example, ask the audience members to share their experiences regarding the topic. "Could someone tell me how they have contacted legislators about clean indoor air and what they have learned from the encounter?" Ask the presenter, "What are the most common questions you get about this issue?" "What should someone working in a State (or local) program do based on your findings?" "What is the take-home message?" Tell speakers your questions in advance so they can be prepared.)
• Repeat each question for the speaker and audience after a participant asks a question.
• Remember that you are in charge of the discussion. If comments are made that are off-topic, bring the discussion back to the session's topic. You can do this by pointing out a connection to the original topic, ask another related question, or ask if anyone has a comment on the original question.
• If someone monopolizes the discussion, thank the individual for his/her contribution, and ask for others to give their response.

Ending the Session

• Be sure to end the session on time.
• Summarize the key points, if you feel comfortable doing so.
• Thank all speakers and the audience for their participation.

Last Modified on: 3/9/2007