The ELI welcomes research in our program if it meshes with our program goals and does not interfere with our operations and our primary mission. Feel free to reach out to the ELI Director (faucette@hawaii.edu) early if you are hoping to conduct research in the ELI.
In general, there are two types of research conducted in the ELI: 1.) Conducting research in ELI classes and 2.) Soliciting student volunteers for research purposes. If you would like to do research on our placement test, schedule an appointment with the ELI Director.
These are the recommended steps for both types of research:
- *Important Timing– If you wish to conduct research or recruit participants at the start of any semester, your research proposal must be discussed with the ELI Director and approved before Week Zero of the semester. No research proposals will be reviewed during Weeks 1-3 of the semester.
- Please refer to the ELI research agenda, a list of topics that the ELI staff has prioritized. To some degree we can assist with other research topics, but we 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, and so forth.
- Have your advising professor send a simple, brief email to the ELI Director (faucette@) stating something like this: 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.
- 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. Please refer to this checklist.
- Submit your proposal to the ELI Director as a google doc. If we see any problems with the design of your study, or its effect on the ELI or its students, we will send it 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 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.
- Once the ELI Director has approved your study, 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.
Access to student volunteers
This is the most common type of access granted. In addition to the steps above, you should draft a one-page handout or simple slide that is addressed to potential volunteers, at a level that is easily understandable for the students being solicited and that sounds appealing to them. 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 some type of compensation like movie tickets, gift cards, tutoring, or proofreading help). Remember, the professor advising your study must approve your slide.
Policies related to writing your paper
- Read previous studies of research done in the ELI. See ScholarSpace
- 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.
- Double-check all “facts” about the ELI with the Director before you finish and submit your paper.
- If your research will be 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.
Courtesy copies of your paper
After you write up your research, please provide the ELI with an electronic/digital copy. We may publish 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 June 2024