Educational Research Units Guidelines

Maximum amount available

A maximum of $ 20 000 (2 years at $ 10 000 per year) with a possibility of renewal for a third year.

EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH UNITS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (ERU)

The Faculty of Education encourages the establishment of Educational Research Units (ERU). An ERU consists of a minimum of three professors, two of whom must be from the Faculty of Education. The aim of the ERU is to establish teams of researchers who will lead long-term research programs. While the focus of research and the scope and nature of activities of each ERU will be determined by the expertise and interests of the team members, all ERUs will be expected to adhere to the principles of the mission statement of the Faculty of Education. They must strengthen links between researchers, address critical issues in the field of education that have regional, national or even international impacts, assure leadership and standards of excellence in research and in the dissemination of research results, contribute to the development of new researchers, and foster research training among students and practitioners.

Application Deadlines

Each year, the Executive Committee of the Faculty Council assesses budgetary possibilities and issues a call for proposals for the creation of new Research Units. It also sets the deadline for submitting proposals.

Management Committee for Educational Research Units

The Management Committee for Educational Research Units is responsible for the Management of the ERUs. It is made up of the Vice-Dean (Research) of the Faculty of Education, two full-time Faculty members, and one full-time Faculty member of the University of Ottawa (external to the Faculty of Education). The two full-time Faculty members will be selected by the Executive Committee following a call for nominations by the Secretary of the Faculty. The Committee is chaired by the Vice-Dean (Research).

The ERU management commitee is responsible for:

evaluating ERUs' annual research grant requests
evaluating ERUs' annual reports
making recommendations to the Dean who makes the final decisions regarding the functioning of the ERUs.

Submitting a proposal

All proposals must be presented with the application form designed for this purpose. The application must not exceed 15 pages ( Single or double spaced Font: Times 12). This limit does not include the researchers’ curriculum vitae. Additional pages will not be considered during evaluation.

Number of copies required: 6 copies

Request for funds

Form (Microsoft Word version)
Form (WordPerfect version)
Form

Final report

Form (Microsoft Word version)
Form (WordPerfect version)
Form

Funding Arrangements and Conditions

To facilitate the establishment of an ERU, the Faculty will award a maximum of $20,000 seed funding over a two-year period (with the possibility of funding for a third year). Funds will be allocated annually in accordance with the ERU budget. The budget can not include Research Time Stipends. Continued funding will be conditional on the submission and approval of an annual report that provides

a description of activities accomplished,
a year-end financial statement,
projected activities and outcomes for the following year(s), and
a description of a long-term strategy.

At the end of the three-year period, each ERU will be expected to have achieved the following:

the capacity to be financially self-sustaining, through the procurement of external research grants, matched funding arrangements, cost recovery workshops, and so forth;
the establishment of partnerships with external institutions or associations;
an innovative scholarly research program which will significantly advance the field, enhance graduate student research and convey benefits to educational practitioners in the field.

A final ERU report, documenting activities accomplished and a long-term strategy, will be required at the end of the three-year period. The Committee reserves the right to discontinue ERU funding if these conditions are not met.

Annual Presentation on ERU accomplishments

Once a year, the Educational Research Units will report their accomplishments in a public presentation. Also, the Vice-Dean (Research) will organize an annual meeting of all ERU members of the Faculty of Education to discuss the orientation of the Research Units.

Evaluation Criteria for Educational Research Units

The following are the evaluation criteria for Educational Research Units:

The quality of the proposed research program
The quality of the research dossier of the ERU
members and its relevance for the proposed research program
The recruiting and participation of graduate students (in number and in quality)
The recruiting of new members
The proposed budget: its justification and the choices related to the granted funds
The promotion activities of the unit and its accomplishments (in number and in quality)
The anticipated scholarly production (in number and in quality)
The increase of the production of the group above that which single professors
would produce alone (in number and in quality)
The impact on the Faculty of Education’s visibility
Precise and realistic external sources of funding and their relevance for the
proposed research program
The link between research and teaching
Interdisciplinarity (potential)

Continuity of the Educational Research Units beyond the funding period offered by the Faculty

The Educational Research Units will be able to pursue their activities beyond the funding period offered by the Faculty as long as they continue to respond to the above-mentioned criteria. They will therefore have to submit an annual report to the Management Committee for Educational Research Units which will submit its recommendation to the Dean.