Learning Innovation and Teaching Enhancement (LITE) Seed Grant Guidelines

The purpose of University of Waterloo’s LITE grants is to provide support for investigating student learning and alternative approaches to teaching and assessing student learning at the individual, departmental, Faculty, or institutional levels. The overall aims are to foster deep student learning and promote curiosity, reflection, and exploration in the areas of teaching and learning. LITE grant projects must contribute to these aims. The program consists of two types of grants: LITE Seed Grants and LITE Full Grants.

The intent of the Seed Grants is to support small-scale investigations and instructional development (teaching enhancement) activities.  Proposals may focus on one or a combination of the following themes:  

• assessing new approaches to teaching and learning (what is possible and does it work?) 
• critically examining student learning with existing instructional approaches (what is happening and what could be improved?)
• pursuing instructional development opportunities (how could I teach differently to better facilitate deep student learning?).

Amount: Up to $7,500 

Application Deadline: (3 annually): February 1st, June 1st, and October 1st

Consultation Deadline: One week prior to application deadline

Number of projects funded: Up to six (6) per application deadline

• Tenured and tenure-track faculty members
• Lecturers         
• Laboratory instructors and teaching staff
• Academic support staff
• Postdoctoral fellows (Important note: Postdoctoral fellows may apply as principal applicant for LITE Seed Grants, but funds must be set up and remain in a faculty member collaborator’s account.) 

Notes on eligibility         

• Please note that individuals with limited term appointments may apply. Appointments should cover the completion date of the grant, or the applicant should have as a collaborator someone with a continuing appointment. Please provide documentation confirming eligibility (e.g. copy of letter of appointment indicating that research is included in role). For further details regarding eligibility to conduct research of individuals with limited term appointments, please consult the relevant guidelines on the Office of Research Ethics website.
• A person may hold only one active LITE Grant at a time as principal applicant.
• Collaborations with people outside of the University of Waterloo are encouraged; however, the principal applicant must be from the University of Waterloo.
• In order to be considered eligible, you must consult with Annik Bilodeau (Educational Developer, Research and Consulting - a2bilodeau@uwaterloo.ca) and/or Brianna Bennett (Educational Research Associate - bfgbenne@uwaterloo.ca) at least one week prior to the grant deadline.

• Funds requested for new course design, fully online course redevelopment, computer purchases, and basic infrastructure maintenance or replacement. Individuals should seek these funds through their department chair or Faculty dean. 
• Funds to conduct an academic program review, or any similar initiative that normally would be expected for ongoing program development/improvement (e.g., co-curricular program evaluations).
• Teaching release and the development of standard course materials. 
• Regular teaching retreats.
• Tuition fees for credit courses taken as part of an academic program – Please refer to University of Waterloo Policy 4 “Benefits to Faculty and Staff Undertaking Part-time Educational Programs”.

• Funds requested mainly for subsidizing travel and related expenses for students enrolled in a course. Funds paid to students as research assistants are an exception.
• Journal subscriptions and professional memberships.
• Conference registration and travel expenses exceeding $2,000 (combined, both for principal applicant(s) and co-applicant(s)). Should the conference expenses exceed $2,000, faculty members should consider using their Faculty Professional Expense Reimbursement (FPER), when available.
• Fees for publishing manuscripts in open access journals exceeding $1,500. Fees for open access journals of $1,500 or less are eligible, but applicants must provide a rationale for why the manuscript is being submitted to an open access journal. Please refer to the University of Waterloo Library’s Open Access Guide for resources on publishing in open access journals. The Library also provides resources on assessing journals for credibility and impact. Applicants may check specific journals for the publishers’ open access, copyright, and self-archiving policies using the SHERPA/RoMEO database.

• Software and electronic tools expenses exceeding $750.
• Transcription services where free alternatives (e.g., MS Stream) can provide an adequate transcript of audio recorded via an online meeting.

• Honoraria for members of the University of Waterloo on-campus community (e.g., faculty members, staff members, etc.) who collaborate in the research project.
• Honoraria for guest speakers external to the University of Waterloo exceeding $500 per speaker. Please refer to the University of Waterloo’s Human Resources guide on Honorariums. (Be mindful that hosting guest speakers can be hard to reconcile with the LITE grant’s “sustainability” objective (see Section J of the proposal), and that recording presentations for future use must follow intellectual property guidelines as outlined in the University of Waterloo Policy 73 Intellectual Property Rights. The Associate Vice-President, Academic’s memo Remote Teaching and Intellectual Property also provides useful information.)
• Honoraria for sessional instructors, graduate, and undergraduate students will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Again, be mindful that such participation can be hard to reconcile with the LITE grant’s “sustainability” objective.
• Work for which a University of Waterloo unit already has budgeted support.
• Salary for applicant(s) and co-applicant(s).
• Salaries for Graduate Research Studentships (distinct from Graduate Research Assistantships) at the University of Waterloo or at other institutions.
• Salaries for research assistants at other institutions.
• Funds for experts from elsewhere, when similar resources and expertise are available at the University of Waterloo.
• Participation incentives should be for the University’s community only.  Participation incentives for study participants from other institutions will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

• Services already funded at the University of Waterloo.
• Catering services will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Consult Catering and Event Services page for prices and provide a detailed breakdown / itemize the cost.
• Retroactive expenses incurred before the project launch date.

• Conduct a research-informed pilot investigation into the impact on student learning of a new or existing instructional method. Investigations of current practices would be done to establish baselines on current learning impact before investigating the impact of a new method.
• Develop innovative courses, materials, or activities that promote the internationalization of curriculum, pedagogies, and student learning (for example, integrating study/co-op experience abroad into the curriculum; curricular initiatives that promote greater interaction among home and international students; transcultural programs and courses; teaching, assessing, and supervising international students).  If you want to discuss a project idea related to internationalization, please contact Svitlana Taraban-Gordon. 
• Conduct investigations of pedagogical activities that support reflection on and integration of co-operative education and work-integrated learning experiences, or which examine the outcomes of co-operative education and work-integrated learning. If you would like to discuss a project idea related to these areas, please contact Anne Fannon. 
• Develop course materials or activities that promote the Indigenization of the curriculum and sharing of Indigenous knowledge, or conduct investigations of pedagogical activities that promote these areas.
• Present pedagogical scholarship at a disciplinary or higher education teaching conference outside of the University of Waterloo.
• Invite a guest speaker or facilitator to work with a department, school, or Faculty to implement a different instructional approach and provide examples of methods for assessing learning (for example, peer instruction, case-based learning, problem-based learning).
• Attend a formal, recognized training session to learn how to use a new teaching method (for example, Problem-based Learning experience at McMaster, Facilitator Development Workshop for Instructional Skills Workshops, Harvard Case Method) – individuals or teams may apply.
• Coordinate an inaugural departmental, school-wide, or faculty-wide event focused on exchanging instructional innovations and best practices.
• Create innovative course designs or activities in which digital course materials, tools, or learning objects are part of the innovation. Note: Depending on the nature of the project, the Centre for Extended Learning (CEL) may be able to provide development support. You are encouraged to consult Aldo Caputo at CEL before submission to discuss project needs and timelines, to determine if the work can be accommodated with available resources and/or completed within the time allotted by the grant. If so, a development plan created in collaboration with CEL and confirmation of their assent should be included in your submission. 
• For ideas of SoTL projects, consult SoTL Snapshots (Office of Teaching and Learning, University of Guelph). 
• For descriptions of successfully funded projects, please visit the Funded LITE Grant Projects page.

• If your research involves human participants, please ensure that you have met the University’s requirements for completing training (online tutorial) for the second edition of the Tri-Council Policy Statement for the Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans.

• The Office of Research Ethics has developed detailed guidelines for conducting research in classes or with students as study participants. Please consult these guidelines when designing your project and developing your proposal. Proposed incentives should be aligned with social science research practices and should not cause undue influence of participants’ consent to participate in the research.

• For projects involving students in courses as participants, the research should be described in the course syllabus. The syllabus should also describe any course activities and what is expected of students. If applicable, credit for participating in an alternate activity should be described. For a list of items to include in the course syllabus, please consult the guidelines on the Office of Research Ethics website. When applicable, it is recommended that a course syllabus, or a draft of the syllabus, be provided with the research ethics application.

• The Office of Research has developed guidelines for research integrity, which includes information on breaches to research integrity, procedures for maintaining research-participant confidentiality, and available training and resources. The Tri-Agency Framework also provides guidelines for the responsible conduct of research. Please consult these guidelines before beginning your project. 

• Deadlines for submitting an application for review

  • March 15 for a project to begin in the Spring term
  • July 15 for a project to begin in the Fall term
  • November 15 for a project to begin in the Winter term

• If you are unsure about whether or not your project requires ethics clearance, please contact the Office of Research Ethics.

• If you need help to fill out the Research Protocol, you can book a consultation with a Research Ethics Advisor and/or watch the tutorial Submitting a New Research Ethics Protocol on Youtube.

A complete application consists of:

• LITE Seed Grant Proposal Cover Page (DOC)* [Updated September 2017] 
• LITE Seed Grant Proposal Template (DOC)* [Updated November 2023]
• Office of Research Cover Sheet for Sponsored Research [Electronic as of 2021]

*Please note you must use the templates (proposal, and cover page) linked above (also found in Required application templates section below) for your application to be considered.

In order for your application to be considered, applicants are required to meet with Annik Bilodeau, Educational Developer, Research and Consulting and/or Brianna Bennett, Educational Research Associate within the first three weeks of the term. This meeting must occur, at the latest, 1 week prior to the submission deadline. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss your project proposal and research plan, and suggest ways to enhance the quality and clarity of the application.

Please contact Annik Bilodeau to schedule this meeting.

Applicants must submit a completed electronic cover sheet along with their LITE Grant application. On this cover sheet you will be asked to provide information on your project including:

1. Project information:
   1. Indicate "Yes" when asked if this is a new project
   2. Provide the title of your proposed project
   3. Start and end dates:
      • For February Seed Grants: May 1 to April 30 of the following year
      • For June Seed Grants: September 1 to August 31 of the following year
      • For October Seed Grants: January 1 to December 31 of the same year
   4. Keywords relevant to your project
2. Funding
   1. Sponsor Type should be "Internal Funding"
   2. Project Sponsor is "UW Learning Innovation and Teaching Enhancement Grant"
   3. When asked if you have included the maximum overhead select "Yes"
   4. When entering your Budget, input your proposed budget into the "Cash" field. Input "0" for "overhead" and "in-kind", and then click Calculate below to fill out the "Total" field.
3. Unit
   1. Select "Academic/Administrative Unit" and then choose the unit/department that you belong to.
4. Co-Investigators
   1. Input any co-investigators of your project (note that individuals who will be research assistants and paid via funds cannot be co-investigators)
5. Risks
   1. Of special note, you must declare whether your project requires ethics clearance and if applicable, the ORE approval number. In most cases, this means clicking "Yes" on the second risk listed.
      1. Release of funds for successful applicants: If ethics clearance is required for the project but the project has not yet been approved, the Office of Research will contact the principal investigator to verify that they have received ethics clearance before the funds are released. If funds are needed immediately before ethics clearance can be sought, the principal investigator can complete an early release form provided by the Office of Research. 
6. Documents
   1. Attach your completed LITE Grant application and select "Sponsor Application/Proposal" as the File Description
7. Summary
   1. You can ignore this section due to you including your application above
8. PI Acceptance & Waterloo Approvals
   1. When the above is finished, you can proceed to both PI Acceptance and Waterloo Approvals, which will forward your materials to the respective individuals (either your Chair or Unit Director) to approve.

1. Applicants must use the Required application templates and submit them as Word documents.

2. Maximum word count for Seed Grant proposals: 2000 words. The project summary, timeline, budget, references, and relevant appendices (e.g., research instruments, protocols) are not included in the word count. Proposals should be written in 12-point font.

3. The proposal review process is blind. Please ensure that all identifying information has been removed from the body of the proposal.

4. Supporting materials should be included with your LITE Grant proposal whenever possible to help clarify and support the project’s assessment plans. Relevant materials may include course outlines, assignment descriptions, protocols, assignment rubrics, course learning outcomes, survey tools, etc.

5. Please refer to the report from “The Task Force on Innovative Teaching Practices to Promote Deep Learning at the University of Waterloo” for important references and definitions of terms that may be central to your proposal, such as “innovative teaching practices,” “deep learning,” and “effective teaching.”

6. Please connect the outcomes of your project to the Undergraduate Degree Level Expectations (UDLEs), and if applicable, program and accreditation outcomes.

7. The project timeline should reflect the following grant start dates:

• For applications due February 1st, funding for approved projects begins May 1st

• For applications due June 1st, funding for approved projects begins September 1st

• For applications due October 1^st, funding for approved projects begins January 1^st of the following year

8. Please note that grant holders will be held responsible for reimbursing over-expenditures. Please refer to the University of Waterloo’s deficit resolution procedure. Typically if funds remain in the account at the conclusion of the grant period, they will revert to the Office of the Associate Vice President, Academic or the Centre for the Advancement of Co-operative Education.
9. Please note that any equipment or tools purchased with LITE Grant funds remain property of the University of Waterloo. Justification to retain equipment or tools purchased with LITE Grant funds in the department or school must be provided; otherwise such equipment must be returned at the conclusion of the project to CTE, where it may be made available for other initiatives.
10. New for 2021: The table in Section E has been redesigned and expanded to allow you to fully explain how you intend to conduct your project (see below for an example of how you might complete this table). As part of completing section E, please complete this table as well. 

Example of how to complete Section E table

• In order for your application to be considered, applicants are required to meet with Annik Bilodeau, Educational Developer, Research and Consulting or Brianna Bennett, Educational Research Associate, within the first three weeks of the term. This meeting must occur, at the latest, 1 week prior to the submission deadline. At this meeting, we will discuss your project proposal and research plan, and suggest ways to enhance the quality and clarity of the application.
• Please contact Annik Bilodeau and/or Brianna Bennett to schedule this meeting.
• Please submit the proposal as Microsoft Word documents using the provided templates to cte-lite@uwaterloo.ca.

• Teaching and Learning Research Guide: a comprehensive resource for designing and conducting research related to teaching and learning, created by CTE, Office of Research Ethics, and the Library
• Office of Research Ethics guidelines for conducting research in classes or with students as study participants
  • We especially recommend reading the “Undue Influence and Manipulation” section of these guidelines
• Recommended salary rates for research assistants
• Guidelines about participant recruitment and anti-spam legislation
• Guidelines concerning fees related to learning resources and field trips

• "Integrating 3D digital multimedia into anatomical education"
• "Gamifying history: Designing and implementing a game-based learning course design framework"
• "Needs identification for Engineering capstone design projects"
• "Improving student data literacy and engagement in research in the Faculty of Environment"

Seed Grants will be reviewed by two senior members of the Centre for Teaching Excellence. Recommendations will be made to the Associate Vice-President, Academic for final approval.

a. Adherence to the submission requirements

Does the proposal include all elements required under the LITE Grant Proposal Guidelines?

b. Clarity of project goals/outcomes

Are the intended outcomes of the project stated in terms of student learning and/or enhanced teaching? Does the research question articulate a clearly-defined issue? 

c. Project rationale and description, including review of relevant literature

• Is a sound rationale established for the project?
• Is this rationale based on a succinct review of the relevant literature?
• Does the proposal describe how the project will build upon and contribute to student learning and/or enhanced teaching?

d. Plans for carrying out and assessing the project

• Are project outcomes, student learning outcomes, and/or teaching enhancement outcomes clearly identified?
• Will evidence gathered as part of the research convincingly relate to the project, student learning, and/or teaching enhancement outcomes?
• Are the proposed research methods (data acquisition, analysis, etc.) appropriate to the project goals?
• If the project requires expertise in a certain area (e.g., qualitative research, statistical analysis, etc.), does the proposal confirm whether this expertise is held or not by the applicant(s)? If applicants do not have the expertise required, does the proposal explain where it will be sought and ensure that any related expenses are accounted for in the budget?

e. Feasibility

Does the proposed timeline seem realistic and achievable, given the scope of the project?

f. Impact and transferability

Are the contributions of the project to the members of the University of Waterloo learning community clearly articulated?

g. Plan for dissemination

Are there clearly articulated plans for sharing the outcomes of the project with others at the University of Waterloo?

h. Budget

Does the budget provide sufficient detail and justification regarding how funds will be spent? Is the budget realistic, given the scope of the project?

i. Sustainability

Does the proposal demonstrate the practical and financial sustainability of the initiative beyond the grant’s funds?

1. Participate in one or two meetings per semester where project questions and progress will be shared with other grant recipients. These meetings will be hosted and facilitated by the Centre for Teaching Excellence.
2. Disseminate findings of the project locally to the University of Waterloo learning community (as outlined in the Proposal Guidelines). Grant recipients may consult with members of the Centre for Teaching Excellence for suggestions regarding dissemination.

Normally, funds for LITE Seed Grants should be spent within one year. In certain cases, however, and when the project design warrants, projects may run for 18 months. This may occur, for example, when the intent of the study is to gain evidence of the effect on student learning of implementing a change in a course offered only once a year (e.g., Fall 2021 and again in Fall 2022).

A final project report must be submitted one month after the completion of the project to cte-lite@uwaterloo.ca. The report will then be sent to David DeVidi, Associate Vice President, Academic (AVPA). Information from this report will be used to highlight the LITE Grant on the CTE website.