"TIRF encourages TESOL researchers to do good work and to make a difference in the world as the findings from their research inform and enrich the learning and teaching of English around the world."

Diane Larsen-Freeman,
TIRF Supporter

The International Research
Foundation
for English Language Education

Research > Apply for Grants and Fellowships > Sheikh Nahayan Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships

Sheikh Nahayan Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships

The competition for 2010 Sheikh Nahayan Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships will be announced in late 2009.

About The International Research Foundation for English Language Education (TIRF)

The International Research Foundation for English Language Education was created in 1999 as an international, non-profit foundation. Its aim is to generate new knowledge and to collect and organize existing knowledge about the teaching and learning of English as a second or foreign language for the purposes of informing educational policy; improving classroom practices; and, ultimately, expanding educational, occupational, and social opportunities for individuals in a global society. The Foundation is governed by a Board of Trustees comprised of scholars, authors, and individuals from the corporate sector. TIRF is supported by charitable donations.

TIRF is committed to developing and implementing an innovative, proactive applied research program, the ultimate purpose of which is to help ensure that English as a second or foreign language is taught, learned, and assessed in a manner that is demonstrably effective, expedient, and economical. It is also committed to strengthening links between theory, practice, and policy, and to fostering partnerships among researchers around the world.

The Sheikh Nahayan Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships

Sheikh Nahayan Bin Mubarak Al Nahayan of the United Arab Emirates has made a generous contribution to TIRF to stimulate language education research on issues of specific relevance and importance to educators in the Arab world. The fund will support three doctoral dissertation grants per year for each of three years for a total of nine Sheikh Nahayan Fellowships.

This research will address topics of concern and provide input for policy makers. The fellowships will generate such research by providing financial support for graduate students enrolled in doctoral programs in language education throughout the world who focus their own dissertations on topics that would inform education policy makers in the Arab world. There have already been funding competitions in 2007-2008 and 2008-2009, and it is anticipated that a third will take place in 2009-2010. Applicants are encouraged to read about the work of the previous Sheikh Nahayan Fellowship recipients.

Applicants have been allowed choose any one of the following topics:

• Effective Grammar Instruction for English Language Learners in Primary and Secondary Education Contexts
• Teachers' English Proficiency and Effective English Language Education
• Students' Age and Effective English Language Education in Schools
• Optimal Uses of Technology in the Delivery of English Language Instruction
• Cultural Content of Instructional Materials

Doctoral candidates may also submit research proposals on any other topic of direct relevance to the teaching and learning of English in the Arab world.