Status: closed
We invite research proposals from B.C. post-secondary educators and students who are committed to exploring and improving student learning and who are eager to conduct and share their research with others.
Each BCcampus Research Fellowship will have an 18-month term and an award of up to $6,000 CAD.
The program is designed to achieve the following results:
- To support educators and students conducting small-scale research on teaching and learning
- To support the development and dissemination of evidence-based teaching practices in B.C. post-secondary education that focus on student success and learning
- To help educators and students participate in scholarly work through conference attendance, research support, and dissemination of their work
Current areas of focus:
- Online learning and teaching, with a special interest in projects about “pivoting” online, adopting alternative assessment and exam strategies (e.g., moving away from online or face-to-face proctored exams), and experiential learning online (e.g., how to do hands-on or lab work online)
- Open educational practices, including implementing open assignments and activities and the impact of open educational practices on teaching and learning and post-secondary education
- Indigenization and decolonization in B.C. post-secondary teaching and learning
- Trades education in B.C. post-secondary teaching and learning
- Educational technology in B.C. post-secondary teaching and learning
- Diversity, equity, and inclusion in B.C. post-secondary teaching and learning
A combination of 2+ areas of focus (e.g., open pedagogy and online trades education) is strongly encouraged.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the BCcampus Research Fellowship, applicants must be an instructor, staff, faculty member, or student at a British Columbia public post-secondary institution. Candidates who have been BCcampus grant recipients in the previous two years are not eligible.
Proposal Criteria
Proposals must fall into one or more of the areas of focus listed above. Review of proposals will be done by a committee and assessed using the following criteria:
- Improving student learning and experience: Potential impact or benefit of the research project to student learning in B.C. post-secondary education (up to 50 points)
- Clarity and feasibility of proposal: articulation of a clear research problem, research questions, and methodology (up to 40 points)
Our aim is to support research in a variety of institutions across the B.C. post-secondary system. Therefore, additional points (up to a total of 10 points) will be awarded for proposals that:
- Are from B.C. institutions in northern, rural, and remote regions
- Include collaborations between departments, institutions, and roles
- Support researchers in equity-seeking groups and under-supported roles, including part-time and contract instructors, as well as student researchers
Appointment Terms
- Appointments will be for 18 months beginning August 3, 2020, with projects expected to be completed by January 31, 2022.
- Each fellow will receive a stipend to support the research project outlined in their proposal (to a maximum of $6,000).
- All materials created as part of this project will be shared under a Creative Commons open licence (CC BY).
Fellows will:
- Conduct research according to an approved research plan, outlined in the application form
- Present their research from this project at one or more BCcampus events, such as ETUG workshops or the Symposium on Teaching & Learning
- Author two posts for the BCcampus blog related to their research
- Attend periodic research fellow check-ins with BCcampus (up to once a month for 30–60 minutes)
- Publish the results of their research in an open format on the BCcampus website and optionally, a suitable academic journal (preferably open access)
- Acknowledge BCcampus as a funder for the research in all papers, publications, and presentations
How funding should be used
- To provide technical, pedagogical, and research support for the duration of the project (e.g., support with data collection, transcription, etc.)
- Travel, accommodation, and expenses related to presenting research at a minimum of one BCcampus-sponsored event
- Open access publishing fees (if applicable)
Important Dates
| Milestone | Date |
| Call opens | May 19, 2020 |
| Application deadline | July 6, 2020 |
| Adjudication of proposals | July 6–17, 2020 |
| Notifications to successful applicants | July 20, 2020 |
| BCcampus fellows appointment starts | August 3, 2020 *** 18 months |
| Research window | September 2020–December 2021 |
| Start-up check-in (plus additional meetings as needed) | By October 31, 2020 |
| Presentation by fellows (minimum 2 events) | ETUG Fall 2020 | Symposium 2021 |
| Final research reports due | January 31, 2022 |