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Procedures for Conducting Research in the ELI

This document is primarily addressed to student members of the Department of Second Language Studies. Please register the fact that it will take time to complete the various steps. Research that is conceptualized and conducted hastily is unlikely to produce a satisfactory outcome, and is most likely to make us less willing to grant access in future.  Tact, courtesy, and sensitivity are always necessary, regardless of the kind of research envisaged.

Policies regarding approval to conduct research in the ELI or to solicit student volunteers from ELI classes

Refer to the ELI research agenda. This is a list of topics that the ELI staff would like to see research done on, to assist us with developing our program or investigating high-priority areas. To some degree we can assist with other research topics, but we will will give priority to research on our own program needs and concerns.

Discuss the details of your study with your advising professor, to make sure that your methodology is sound, your instruments are well designed, and that your study fits well with your intended participants, context, etc.

After you’ve worked out your study with your advising professor, develop a research proposal, which describes the topic and how you want to do the research. You do not need IRB approval before submitting the proposal. This should include the following:

  • A brief description of your study and the purpose for which the study is being used (a course paper, a Scholarly Paper, etc.).
  • A brief description of the methodology you will use.
  • Examples of any instruments you will use (if applicable).
  • Information about what kind of access to ELI students your study requires: a.) access to specific ELI classes or b.) access to recruit student participants
  • A handout designed to attract students to participate in your study.
  • A copy of the request for permission to be sent to ELI teachers (if applicable).
  • A copy of the consent form(s) you intend to use.
  • Advising professor approval verifying that the design, instruments, and handouts meet with her/his approval (see below for more information).

Submit your proposal to the ELI Director,  by email to faucette@hawaii.edu. If we see any problems with the design of your study, or its effect on the ELI or its students, we will send you back to you to reformulate the proposal.

After your advisor/professor and the ELI have approved your study, you can proceed with getting approval from the human subjects committee, if need be. If your study is exempted from human subjects approval, you merely need to let us know when submitting your proposal. However, if your study requires the approval of the human subjects committee, you will have to wait until you get their approval before you will be able to approach ELI teachers or students. The ELI Director needs to be informed about this before you can approach ELI classes or ELI students.

Obtain approval of any ELI teacher you hope to involve in your study. Note that, even if the ELI administration approves a project, individual teachers have the right to refuse to participate or to have their class participate in a study, if they feel it interferes with instruction or the aims of the course.

Policies related to writing your paper

  1. Read previous studies of research done in the ELI. See ScholarSpace
  2. Check the current UH-Manoa catalog, ELI website or other relevant sources for up-to-date factual information about policies, courses, etc. related to the ELI.
  3. Double-check all “facts” about the ELI with the Director before you finish and submit your paper. (Note: If we find that you misrepresented the ELI, we will ask you to re-do your paper with the corrected information.)
  4. If your research was done in specific ELI classes, or involving specific teachers, give those teachers the opportunity to review and comment on your paper (or at least those parts of your paper that relate to their class, their teaching, etc.) to ensure that you are representing the teacher and the class fairly and accurately.

Access to ELI classes, test data, or students

Access to ELI classes and ELI test data will only be possible if the study meshes with ELI needs.

Access to student volunteers is the most common type of access granted. If you need to do this, you should draft a one-page handout that is addressed to potential volunteers, at a level that is easily understandable for the students being solicited. The handout should explain what you need the students to volunteer for, where data gathering procedures will take place, how long it will take, what language insights ELI students can gain from participating, how volunteers can contact you, and what compensation they will receive (generally at least in the form of some type of instructional feedback related to the study, or occasionally some type of compensation like movie tickets, gift cards, tutoring, or proofreading help). Remember, the professor advising your study must approve your handout.

Approval of your advising professor

The ELI does not have time to help researchers edit their instruments, handouts, or consent forms. You will need to get advice and editing help from the professor advising your study. It is our hope that this requirement will help ensure that your study gets approved by the ELI more quickly. Copy and paste the following information into an email message:

    I have seen and approved [student’s name]’s proposal for research in the ELI, including the research design, instruments (if any), volunteer handouts, and consent forms to be used in this study.

Ask your advising professor to adjust it to fit you and your study, and then, after they have reviewed your methodology and instruments, they can send it via email to the ELI Director (faucette@hawaii.edu). This will serve as their formal approval of your study.

Courtesy copies of your paper

After you write up your research, please provide the ELI with one electronic copy of your paper. Please send us the electronic/digital copy as an email attachment. We may post a .pdf version of your paper on ScholarSpace so it can be accessible to other researchers and to ELI staff. Thus, unless we receive a request from you specifically not to make it available, we will assume that you have given your consent.

Revised September 2023