Ngā Pūtea | Funding

2024 TLRI funding round

This year, the TLRI fund is prioritising funding for the following proposals:

• Research on topics of strategic importance within the early childhood education (ECE), primary and/or secondary school sectors.
• Research that focuses on success for Māori learners as Māori in any sector.
• Research that focuses on success for Pacific learners as Pacific in any sector.

Open Pathway and Pacific-focused applications must submit an Expression of Interest (EOI).

Whatua Tū Aka applications can be at the Full Proposal phase only or an EOI can be submitted first. All EOI proposals receive feedback.

Expressions of interest and Full Proposals are now closed for 2024, with the announcement of recipients in late 2024. Applications will reopen in early 2025.

Ngā mahi kōtui i waenga i te hunga rangahau me te hunga tautōhito │

Partnerships between researchers and practitioners

To be eligible for the fund, proposals need to come from partnerships involving education practitioners and researchers. Practitioners may include but are not limited to teachers and kaiako in kindergartens, early childhood centres, kōhanga reo, and Pacific language nests; teachers in kura, primary, intermediate, and secondary schools; and lecturers and tutors working in universities, wānanga, polytechnics, and private training establishments. Students and ākonga; families and whānau; hapū, iwi and communities may also be part of the partnership.

Researcher–practitioner partnerships should be integral to the design of the project. There needs to be a focus on the individuals in the team using their collective expertise, and on all team members having the opportunity to learn from each other, rather than on explicitly developing the research skills of the practitioner members of the project team. In this partnership, practitioners might take the role of advisors, data gatherers, informants, etc. and not necessarily be integral to all aspects of the thinking inside the partnership.

The TLRI is open to researchers working in organisations (e.g., universities or other tertiary institutions) or independently. The TLRI will not enter into contracts with individuals, requiring that contracts be with incorporated societies or similar legal entities. Staff members of the Ministry of Education or other government departments are not eligible to apply.

Applicants from an institution that does not have access to an experienced researcher may contact the TLRI tlri@nzcer.org.nz who may be able to link you with an appropriate person. Please note that postgraduate students can be on project teams, but the TLRI cannot directly fund PhD or Masters study.

Ngā momo kaupapa me ngā taumata whāngai pūtea │

Types of projects and levels of funding

Since 2020 there have been two pathways to funding. The Open Pathway and Whatua Tū Aka, the kaupapa Māori pathway. The first pathway, the Open Pathway is open to proposals from all contexts and settings that meet its criteria. The TLRI’s second pathway, Whatua Tū Aka, was established in 2020 and is for projects that meet the criteria for a kaupapa Māori project. Links to the criteria for both pathways are available below. 

In 2022, the TLRI introduced a set of Pacific criteria for Pacific-focused Open Pathway applications. Researchers submitting Pacific-focused applications through the Open Pathway can now choose to have their proposals assessed against the new Pacific criteria.

The TLRI encourages applications for projects at different levels of funding. The level of funding requested needs to be appropriate for the scale and scope of the proposed research (e.g., a small pilot study, or a large-scale project involving multiple sites).

Projects will be funded for one, two, or three years. The amount requested may be different for each year. If your project is to continue beyond one year, you must state clearly the amount of funding you seek for the subsequent years. Note that future funding is subject to ongoing government funding, and to satisfactory performance in the first year. All figures are GST exclusive.

Projects funded through the TLRI can be part of a wider programme of work, but there needs to be clear value added by TLRI funding. Please state if this proposal is part of a larger programme of research, and if so, indicate any other sources of funding.

Projects that are “business as usual” e.g., evaluating course changes at an institution, without demonstrating wider strategic and practice value, do not fit the intent of the TLRI. Similarly, while “tool development” may be one of the outputs from a TLRI project (and a contributor to its practice value), the production of a tool without a core and significant research component is out of scope for TLRI funding.

Te whiringa wāhanga-rua me te hātepe urupare │

Two-stage selection and feedback process

When applying through the Open Pathway, including Pacific Research there is a two-stage process for submitting proposals. Stage 1 is an Expression of Interest proposal and Stage 2 is a Full Proposal. Selection panel feedback is provided to applicants at both stages. Within the Open Pathway, Expressions of Interest will be used to establish a shortlist of applicants who will be invited to submit Full Proposals to the Open Pathway. These proposals will be due in August.

When applying through the Whatua Tū Aka pathway, applicants can choose between a one OR two stage process for submitting proposals. Stage 1 is optional and involves submitting and receiving feedback about an Expression of Interest proposal. Stage 2 is a Full Proposal. An open call will be made for Whatua Tū Aka Full Proposals in May (after the closing date for Expression of Interest proposals). To be considered for funding, Whatua Tū Aka applicants must submit a Full Proposal in August.

At the Full Proposal stage, applicants to both pathways will be required to demonstrate that there is a partnership agreement in place between researchers and practitioners.

There is no limit on the number of Expression of Interest proposals that can be submitted by individuals or organisations. However, at any one time a person can be named as principal investigator for only one funded TLRI project unless otherwise negotiated with the TLRI team.

An individual can submit applications for both pathways, the Open Pathway and the Whatua Tū Aka pathway. However, these would be different proposals.

Ngā whakaritenga kirimana │Contractual arrangements

A contract is signed between the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) acting as co-ordinators of the TLRI, and the principal investigator’s institution (the Contractor). NZCER will not enter into contracts with individuals, requiring that contracts be with incorporated societies or similar legal entities.

The following conditions will apply to those who are successful at the Full Proposal stage:

Funding beyond one year is conditional upon continued government funding of the TLRI and satisfactory performance in the first year of the project.

The TLRI must be acknowledged as the funding source in any publications, presentations, or similar materials that result from the project.

Funding period

Funding for the successful projects will commence on 1 January in the year following selection, subject to contracts being signed. It is expected that research projects will start from the date of commencement stated in the successful applicants’ contracts.

Use of funds

The TLRI seeks to obtain the best value for its funds. This means that purchases of large-scale capital items, such as computers, will not be funded, nor will overseas travel. Depending on their purpose within the project, it may be possible for smaller items to be funded.

Reporting

All projects will be required to provide quarterly or 6-monthly progress reports. Specific requirements will be stipulated in the contract.

Selection process

Full Proposals are assessed by a selection panel using the criteria set out in the guidance documents and templates for
each pathway. Rangahau Mātauranga o Aotearoa | New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER) co-ordinates and administers the fund on contract to the Ministry of Education. Each pathway has its own selection panel comprising of leading researchers external to NZCER. People undertaking this role must not have submitted a proposal themselves in the current round. Decisions made by selectors at the Full Proposal stage are independent of the NZCER-based TLRI team. Selection panels make a recommendation to the TLRI Advisory Board who make the final decision about project funding. Feedback will be provided to all applicants. The process is subject to independent audit.

For further information on who can apply and what to expect in the application process, please select the funding criteria you are interested in below.

	Whatua Tū Aka for kaupapa Māori research.
	Open Pathway for all other research.
	Pacific Research  focused on Pacific values, methodologies and knowledge systems within the Open Pathway.