What type of proposal topics can enter?

Submitted research proposals should be in the broad area of English language teaching (ELT)/ Math or IT teaching, and proposals can be based on qualitative, quantitative, or mixed-method designs.

Who can participate in the competition?

• CPS faculty members with a minimum teaching experience of one year at the CPS can enter into the competition.
• Proposals submitted for the competition can be individual or collaborative.
• Up to two researchers can submit a common research project. Up to 8 hours can be given to collaborative research. The researcher in individual research and the researchers in collaborative research need to submit a weekly schedule delineating the number of hours required for conducting research activities. The final allotted release-time is decided by the CPS administration and the winners informed early in the Spring semester.
   

What are the deadlines?

• Application deadline for the submission of documents will be stated in the email announcement for the competition. 
• The deadline for the announcement of winner(s) is beginning of Spring semester.
   

How to apply?

Submit soft copies of the following documents to the Deputy Director for Professional Development and Community Service by the announced deadline. 

• A completed Research Competition Proposal Form 
• An extended abstract, with independent sections for the Title, Abstract, Theoretical background, Research goals & questions, or hypotheses, Data collection, Data analysis and ethical procedures, Resources required for the conduct of research and References section. Guidelines for this are available in the attached document.
• Any developed instrumentation in part or in full.
   

How are proposals reviewed?

Proposals are reviewed independently by a panel of five members.

Who are the panel members?
Three Central Research and Conference Committee members excluding the Chair + two CPS faculty members upon invitation.

What criteria are used to judge proposals?

• Relevance & usefulness of research to CPS
• Feasibility & manageability
• Originality of research & novelty of design
• Scientific soundness
   

What steps are followed to review proposals?

1. Anonymous copies of all complete submissions are given to all panel members.
2. An induction meeting is scheduled for panelists on the intended interpretation of the review criteria.
3. Panelists attempt independent, first-round reviews based on given criteria.
4. Panelists rank nominees independently.
5. Panelists write their recommendation report for the best three research proposals ranking them in order.
6. In case of discrepancy in ranking amongst the majority of panelists, nominee proposals are sorted out through majority voting. Only 60% of panelists are required to be present for the votes.
7. The winners’ names are submitted to Deputy Director for Professional Development and Community Service for approval.

What are the obligations of the researchers?

In accordance to the release time given, researchers need to:

• Submit one written progress report to the CPS Research and Conference Committee Chair, the deadline of which is based on agreement between the researcher(s) and the Chair.
• Deliver a presentation to share the findings of the study.
• Submit a final report on the study, the major findings, and the recommendations for policy makers and teachers at the CPS. The final report is due at the end of the Spring semester, and should be submitted to the Chair of the CPS Research and Conference Committee.

Researchers can still continue with the project after the end of the Spring semester, but no more release time will be given. A final report is still expected at the conclusion of the research project.