Defining research chairs
A chair is essentially a fund dedicating resources to an area of research that an institution values and wants to support for longer than a short-term grant would cover. Research chairs differ in terms of who offers them, how long they last and what’s expected of the chairholder. Besides collaborative research, chairholders generally spread knowledge from their research and promote its use. OLBI research chairs advance OLBI’s commitment to impactful research for academic, professional and public stakeholders. They also support student mentorship in research and professional development.
OLBI’s language assessment literacy chair
Baker’s chair serves to explore and share essential knowledge and skills in language assessment. The findings help multiple stakeholders: the general public, test-takers, teachers, education administrators, university admissions decision-makers and immigration or citizenship policymakers. This chair is the only one of its kind in Canada, and perhaps the world. As chairholder, Baker is pursuing multiple research and professional development projects across Canada, Europe and Haiti.
Greater knowledge of language assessment means better decision-making
The value of this chair, says Baker, is that “greater knowledge of the affordances and limits of language assessment translates to better policy decision-making and improved educational outcomes.”
Improving teachers’ skills and confidence around assessments has an incalculable effect in language classrooms. And because language tests serve a gatekeeping function, policymakers knowing more about testing can benefit uOttawa applicants and Canada’s immigration and citizenship applicants.
In other words, research chairs help ensure that the knowledge they produce leads to informed decisions, effective public policy planning and real impacts for stakeholders.
Outcomes of OLBI research chair activities
Important results of OLBI research chairs include
- academic publications
- teacher training resources, such as textbooks
- international and domestic partnerships — for example, Baker’s team has developed workshops on classroom assessment essentials in Haiti
- participation in lectures, keynotes and conference presentations in Canada and abroad
Undeniable benefits for students and alumni
Students and novice researchers get hired and trained from research chairs’ funds, including several students and graduates from OLBI’s Master of Arts (MA) in Bilingualism Studies. Some receive mentorship in all stages of the research process. A few students co-authored an upcoming publication with Baker. “The work of the chair would be impossible without them,” she says.
“This chair is a recognition by OLBI of its role as a leader in language assessment research in Canada. It’s also a vote of confidence in me to advance this mission at uOttawa and beyond, so I’m very appreciative.”
Beverly Baker
— OLBI chairholder
When asked what challenges she faces, Baker answers, “Finding time to complete all these activities and to disseminate our findings to the people that count and can benefit from them (test-takers, teachers, policymakers). The work of the chair is a full-time job in and of itself.”