daCi Research Guidelines and the Application Form

Introducton

Many daCi members around the world seek the opportunity to attend a daCi international conference, to benefit from the shared expertise and rich experiences offered, resulting in exchanges and communications. Consequently, daCi has developed an initiative that enables its members to collaborate on an international Research Project to focus on important themes as identified by daCi.

The purpose of this Research Project initiative is to:

  • Promote research about children’s/youth dance among daCi members;
  • Promote exchange across national, regional and cultural borders;
  • Support daCi members’ research that furthers daCi aims;
  • Facilitate understanding of cultural and worldview differences in research methodology;
  • Build a cross-cultural knowledge base of children’s/youth dance;
  • Activate the 2024 daCi Ljubljana Declaration: https://daci.international/about/daci-ljubljana-declaration

The Research Project aims are to:

  • Build awareness and visibility of children’s/youth dance through research activities based on the development of empathy and connectedness with a worldview;
  • Foster connections by creating opportunities for meaningful relationships and collaborations that stimulate participants to nurture research skills and acquire knowledge in responsible ways;
  • Increase daCi membership by creating an environment of inclusivity and visibility where non-daCi members may experience and benefit from the daCi network;
  • Generate knowledge regarding issues that may be external to mainstream dance research, practice, education, and/or scholarship.

What daCi offers

  • The daCi Research Project Fund provides financial assistance of up to $5000 for daCi member collaborators with a minimum guarantee of $1000 CAD, to design and conduct Research Projects that meet the stated aims of the daCi Research Project that will advance children’s/youth dance in diverse communities.
  • Research Projects costing more than $5,000 will be considered if applicants have financial support from other funding bodies and agencies.
  • Successful Research Project applicants may receive instalments of the grant yearly over the years leading up to the triennial daCi conference.

How To Apply

• All applicants must be current daCi members;

  • Calls for application are published online in the month of August, two years prior to the conference (e.g. for conference in 2027, the call will be in August 2025)
  • Host applicants will submit one (1) electronic copy of the Application Form for the daCi Research Project to the Secretary of daCi no later than 15 October 2025
  • Applications in the English language are preferred; however, applications in other languages will be accepted.

Assessment of Applications

  • daCi Research Project Applications will be reviewed and assessed by three members of the daCi Research Project Committee which comprises a chair and two evaluators; substitutions may be made as necessary to avoid conflicts of interest;
  • New and emerging as well as more experienced practitioners/researchers will be considered on an equal basis relevant to the proposed research project;
  • Applications will be assessed on overall quality and purpose of the proposed research project.
  • Awards will be made depending upon the availability of funds.

Projects will be selected based on the following criteria:

  • Accordance with daCi objectives and developmental appropriateness of the project for participants (see daCi’s vision and mission statements for further information: https://daci.international/en/about/vision-mission);
  • Significance of research and potential to meet the Research Project aims;
  • Clear and thorough description of Research Project as per #2 of daCi Research Project Application Form;
  • Appropriateness of proposed methodology;
  • Degree of promotion of collaboration and exchange between different nations and cultures;
  • Degree of contribution to overall culture of research;
  • Potential impact of Research Project on both national and international levels;
  • Projected contribution of research in building a cross-cultural knowledge base on children’s/youth dance;
  • Specification and justification of funding requirements.

Announcement of Research Project Grant Recipients

All individuals applying for daCi Research Project funding will be notified within two months of the application deadline. Funding will be disbursed one and a half years prior to the daCi conference (which typically occurs the second week of July in the conference year).

Funds may be used for:

  • Research assistance for database searches, transcribing, computer data entry etc. The amount for transcribing and coding will be based on current rates;
  • Travel and accommodation (based on the best rates available);
  • Original invoices and receipts will be required in order to claim any expenses;
  • Funds should be used for only the purposes specified in the application. Please notify the committee if there are proposed changes to those in the original application.

Funds will not normally cover the following:

  • Computer hardware or software that is readily available and commonly used;
  • Equipment purchase (e.g. dvd/cd players, cameras, TV monitors, digital recorders);
  • Other overheads such as meals or employment related expenses.

Guidelines for Research Project Grant Recipients

  • daCi Research Projects should take place within the years leading up to the triennial daCi international conference. Research participants will be in close communication with each other during the project planning period, exchanging ideas and visions of the research project. They are required to conduct the research project collaboratively, following a framework that they will work out within this collaboration;
  • Progress reports should be provided at six monthly intervals to the daCi Research Officer and a final report will be submitted once the project has been completed. This report should include a copy of publications or forthcoming publications resulting from the research;
  • Expenditure of Funds: Allocated funds need to be spent by December 31 (of the year in which the conference takes place). Any unused funds need to be returned to daCi. If the funds have not been spent for the purpose for which they were granted, the money must be repaid to daCi;
  • If ethical requirements need to be considered, funding will not be supplied until proof of ethics approval is provided.

Successful applicants are obligated to provide daCi with a final report. The final report is due to the daCi Treasurer three months after the completion date specified in the proposal, and shall include:

  • A description and evaluation of the project;
  • A detailed financial report with receipts;
  • Documentation (videotape, newspaper articles, programs, etc.) of the project;

daCi Research Projects should culminate in a presentation at the upcoming daCi conference. Grantees are required to generate and upload a final video (format details to be provided) of the Research project to daCi Connect which should be submitted within two months after the conference for website publication to promote daCi. Additionally, grantees are encouraged to explore other ways of disseminating the results of the Research Project.

Further, all public mention of this project must include the following statement:

This project was partially supported by a grant from dance and the Child international (daCi), with generous support from the Cooper-Newell Foundation.

Conference Registration

All participants of daCi Research Projects, including those who have been supported by daCi funds, must pay the conference registration fee to present the project at the conference and to be recognised by daCi in associated conference literature.

Application Form >>