Grants & Scholarships

IAFOR Grant & Scholarship Recipients 2018

Our warmest congratulations go to Omneya Omar, Omar J. Salaam and Shahla Simin, recipients of IAFOR Scholarships, who have been selected by the conference Organising Committee to receive financial support to present their research at The IAFOR International Conference on Education – Dubai 2018 and The IAFOR International Conference on Language Learning – Dubai 2018.

IAFOR's grants and scholarships programme provides financial support to PhD students and early career academics, with the aim of helping them pursue research excellence and achieve their academic goals through interdisciplinary study and interaction. Awards are based on the appropriateness of the educational opportunity in relation to the applicant's field of study, financial need, and contributions to their community and to IAFOR's mission of interdisciplinarity. Scholarships are awarded based on availability of funds from IAFOR and vary with each conference.

The Organising Committee of the relevant IAFOR conference awards scholarships to eligible applicants who have submitted exceptional abstracts that have passed the blind peer review process and have been accepted for presentation at the conference.


Omneya Omar, Lancaster University, UK

IAFOR Scholarship Recipient

Ms Omneya Omar is currently a Doctoral Student at Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Higher Education Research department, Lancaster University, UK, and was previously an Academic Counseling Team Leader at American University of the Middle East, Kuwait. Ms Omar earned her MSc. in Business Psychology from Heriot Watt University. Her research focus well being through learning, with specific focus on lifelong learning and capturing informal learning experiences within the society and workplace.

Abstract

The UAE’s Education Standardization Within the Global Image: A Critical Discourse Analysis to the Qualifications Framework of Emirates

In this paper, I critically analyze the newly published qualifications framework of the United Arab Emirates as discursive policy text replete with symbolic meaning related to the culture, economy and educational goals of the country. This policy is expected to reveal a great deal about the ways in which the United Arab Emirates seeks to position and legitimize itself on a global scale as a leader in education. I argue that beneath the generalized rhetoric of institutional mission statements, lie powerful coded objectives. Findings reveal evidence that policies such as the Qualification Framework Emirates and the state power revealed through language within, contribute to the globalization and democratization of education. This article contributes to the larger discussions surrounding policy sociology and the critical discourse practice. I identify the contributions of the framework as it seeks through power language and social policy messages assumed by the responsible government authority ie. National Qualification Authority, to improve the global image of the UAE. This is guided by an overarching research question, which seeks to reveal how the UAE qualification framework is an example of the globalization of higher education and the impact this will have on the Emirates. The coming sections are designed to assist my research in answering three main questions, which are: 1) What is the aim of the QFEmirates’ underlying message(s)? 2) How does the QFEmirates reflect the changing socio-cultural dimension of the Emirates as the country implements plans to draw closer to globalization?


Omar J. Salaam, University of South Florida, USA

IAFOR Scholarship Recipient

Omar J. Salaam holds an MEd in Educational Leadership with a concentration on the Principalship, a BA in Music Education, and is scheduled for a final defense of his dissertation this semester to complete a PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of South Florida, USA. His twenty-plus years of experiences in K-12 education incorporate success in private and public schools, local and international schools abroad, and as both a teacher and an assistant principal and principal. His global brand management style also resulted in the corporate experience of working as an educational consultant. He has worked extensively in the areas of global education, diversity and social justice endeavors. Now living and working in Saudi Arabia as a College & Careers Counselor at an International School, Omar looks forward to networking within the Middle East region in his pursuit of a professorship in this region.

Abstract

Intercultural Conversations: Parents, School Staff and Community Members Open Discussions on Human Differences

The objective/purpose/goal of this project was to find methods for how to navigate answering the questions of both students and their parents regarding to how best to function with an appreciation and understanding of human differences. Parents of various racial and cultural backgrounds on the PTA, along with school leadership, agreed that issues around racial, cultural and other human differences needed to be addressed by the PTA and school leadership. They wanted to learn how to better communicate with their children and other parents around the nature of these differences. One parent shared that Caucasian classmates of her African-American son called him after the Trayvon Martin killing and advised him not to wear a hoodie anymore and that they would always walk with him to make sure he never walks alone. This is just one of the many examples parents shared in our initial meeting leading to this study. “More often than not, students from kindergarten through graduate school find exploring race edgy, provocative, and nourishing (Singleton, G., & Hays, C., 2008, p. 18).” These parents and staff members were in desire of pursuing these conversations in the best manner possible regarding their children’s questions about racial, ethnic, cultural and religious differences. Using a Participatory Action Research (PAR) design (Kemmit, S. & McTaggart, R., 2011), my research examined: 1- parent and community engagement, 2- participation in efforts to better understand human differences, and 3- globalization in education and the International Baccalaureate curriculum.


Shahla Simin, Teacher Training University, Iran

IAFOR Scholarship Recipient

Dr Shahla Simin, holds a PhD in Applied Linguistics from the University of Isfahan, Iran, and an MA and BA in TEFL. She is currently an English instructor in a teaching training program in Isfahan, Iran. Her research interests lie in the areas of pragmatics, sociopragmatics, sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, ESP/EAP and online communication.

Abstract

Pragmatic Strategies in Email Communication: A Comparative Study of Apology Emails between Iranian EFL Learners and Native English Speaking Students

Shahla Simin, Teacher Training University, Iran
Zohreh R. Eslami, Texas A&M University, USA

This descriptive-comparative study aimed at examining how Iranian EFL learners, compared with American Native English speaking students, formulate apology emails and what differences could be observed in the realization patterns of their e-mails. The data for the study were 400 e-mail messages addressed to Iranian EFL learners’ instructors, and 200 e-mail messages addressed to American native English speaking students’ instructors. The data were collected from different universities in Iran and the United States. To analyze the emails, three main sequences in the apology emails – opening, body and closing – were identified to find the level of formality, the types and frequencies of strategies, and the modifications employed by Iranian EFL learners and American native English speaking students. The study also examined the influence of two social variables (i.e. gender of instructors and severity of offense) on the level of formality involved in openings and closings and in the use of apology strategies. The findings indicated that both Iranian EFL learners and American native English speaking students used relatively the same set of apology strategies, yet with significantly different preferences. In addition, it was found that the use of strategies and modifications correlated with the level of offense: the more serious the rate of offense, the greater number of strategies used. However, the gender of instructors did not make any significant differences in the realization patterns of apology e-mails.


IAFOR Academic Grants and Scholarships

About IAFOR's Grants and Scholarships

IAFOR is dedicated to helping young scholars achieve their research and academic goals, while also encouraging them to apply the principles of interdisciplinary study to their work.

IAFOR offers travel and accommodation grants and full or partial scholarships covering conference registration fees to select postgraduate students and early career academics who might not otherwise have the financial resources to be able to attend our academic conferences.

Who can receive an IAFOR grant or scholarship?

Awards are based on the appropriateness of the educational opportunity in relation to the applicant’s field of study, financial need, and contributions to their community and to IAFOR’s mission of interdisciplinarity. Scholarships will be awarded based on availability of funds from IAFOR and will vary with each conference.

How are recipients of an IAFOR grant or scholarship selected?

The Conference Committee of The IAFOR International Conference on Education – Dubai will award scholarships to eligible applicants who have submitted exceptional abstracts that have passed the blind peer review process and been accepted for presentation at the conference.

How can I apply for an IAFOR grant or scholarship?

If you are eligible for an IAFOR grant or scholarship and would like to be considered, please submit your abstract via the Call for Papers page and select the checkbox for the relevant award during the submission process. Abstracts must be submitted by the initial submission deadline of October 10, 2017 in order to be considered for funding. Applicants will be notified of results within three to four weeks of the initial submission deadline.


IAFOR Academic Grants and Scholarships 4

IAFOR Scholarships

Full and partial conference scholarships are available to cover registration fees for postgraduate students and early career academics to present at IAFOR conferences. Priority will be given to attendees whose work crosses borders of nation, culture and discipline.

Eligibility:

  • Students currently enrolled in a PhD or Master’s degree programme
  • Early career academics (academics who have completed a postgraduate degree programme within the last five years)

Conditions:

Abstracts submitted after the initial submission deadline of October 10, 2017 will not be considered for the scholarship. If you are awarded a grant or scholarship it is understood that you will attend the applicable IAFOR conference. If you are unable to attend the conference, your grant or scholarship will be forfeited.


The Reverend Professor Stuart D. B. Picken (1942-2016)Order of

The Reverend Professor Stuart D. B. Picken (IAFOR), Professor Arthur Stockwin, OBE (The University of Oxford) and Professor Jun Arima (University of Tokyo) discuss Japanese security at The European Conference on Economics, Politics and Law 2014.

The Stuart D. B. Picken Grant and Scholarship

The Stuart D. B. Picken Grant and Scholarship is awarded to postgraduate students and early career academics who are in need of funding to complete their research, and whose work demonstrates academic excellence. Priority will be given to attendees whose work is interdisciplinary in nature. Recipients receive a grant of up to 500 USD towards airfare and accommodation, as well as a scholarship to cover full conference registration fees for the IAFOR conference at which their work will be showcased.

Eligibility:

  • Students currently enrolled in a PhD or Master’s degree programme
  • Early career academics (academics who have completed a postgraduate degree programme within the last five years)

Conditions:

Abstracts submitted after the initial submission deadline of October 10, 2017 will not be considered for the scholarship. If you are awarded a grant or scholarship it is understood that you will attend the applicable IAFOR conference. If you are unable to attend the conference, your grant or scholarship will be forfeited.

About the Stuart D. B. Picken Memorial Fund

Stuart D. B. Picken was a cherished friend and an inspiration to IAFOR and its community of supporters. In honour of Professor Picken and his dedication to academia, the ideals of intercultural understanding and the principles of interdisciplinary study, IAFOR has created the Stuart D. B. Picken Grant and Scholarship, an award supported by the Stuart D. B. Picken Memorial Fund. Awards will be made to postgraduate students and early career academics who are in need of funding to complete their research, and whose work demonstrates excellence in the core values of academic rigour, intercultural sensitivity and interdisciplinarity.

About Stuart D. B. Picken (1942–2016)

The late Reverend Professor Stuart D. B. Picken began his distinguished career in academia as a Rotary Scholar on a research trip to Japan. A native of Scotland who had dedicated himself to religious studies, he immediately became fascinated by Japanese culture and the practice of Shinto. He was particularly drawn to the parallels and differences he saw in Western pedagogy compared to that of the East and began a lifelong mission to bridge the communication and knowledge gap between the two worlds.

Professor Stuart D. B. Picken

The late Reverend Professor Stuart D. B. Picken

Picken was appointed Professor of Philosophy at the International Christian University (ICU) in 1972. Here he turned his Western theological and philosophical training to comparative religious and cultural studies of Japan, at a time when the country was emerging from the shadows of the Second World War.

His groundbreaking and controversial work on suicide in Japan made his name within the country, but it was his subsequent work on Shinto that influenced the rehabilitation of the religion at a time when it was dismissed in the West as pagan and primitive, or unjustly caricatured for its wartime associations.

Whether in his research or teaching, Picken devoted much of his life to increasing understanding between his adopted country of Japan and the West, and in 2007 he was recognised with the Order of the Sacred Treasure, an imperial decoration for his pioneering research and outstanding contribution to the promotion of friendship and mutual understanding between Japan and the United Kingdom. He also served as the International Adviser to the High Priest of the Tsubaki Grand Shrine, one of Japan’s largest and oldest shrines.

From 2009 he was the founding Chairman of The International Academic Forum (IAFOR), where he was highly active in helping nurture and mentor a new generation of academics, and facilitating better intercultural and international awareness and understanding.


IAFOR Academic Grants and Scholarships 3

IAFOR–Institution Scholarships

IAFOR also partners with specific institutions or courses to offer scholarships that cover conference registration fees. These scholarships are only available to students who meet the criteria detailed below.

IAFOR–OSIPP Scholarship

This scholarship covers registration fees for Master’s students at the Osaka School of International Public Policy (OSIPP), Osaka University, to attend any IAFOR conference held in Japan. Available to all Master’s students at OSIPP.

IAFOR–Barcelona University Scholarship

This scholarship covers registration fees for two postgraduate students at the University of Barcelona to attend and present at The Barcelona Conference on Education (BCE) and The Barcelona Conference on Arts, Media & Culture (BAMC) in Barcelona, Spain.


Discounts for Members, Returnees & IAFOR Global Partners

IAFOR is pleased to offer an exclusive 15% discount on any conference registration package to its members. Membership is open to all those with a strong professional interest in education (scholars, professionals, policymakers, researchers, or students), and who share a commitment to the values of IAFOR, as expressed in our mission. By becoming a member, you will become a stakeholder in the IAFOR mission of facilitating international exchange, encouraging intercultural awareness, and promoting interdisciplinary discussion in the hope and expectation of generating and sharing new knowledge. Join us now in this growing global organisation, and help make a difference today. Further information at https://iafor.org/membership/

IAFOR is pleased to offer a 10% discount on conference registration to current students and staff members of IAFOR Global Partners, whose support contributes to making IAFOR conferences a truly rewarding experience - https://iafor.org/about/partners/

In addition, IAFOR offers a 10% discount to participants who have attended an IAFOR conference in the past, as well as a 50% discount for participants wishing to present a second paper at the same conference. We currently offer Early Bird and Advance Registration rates for presenters and an Early Bird rate for audience members.

Learn more about IICEDubai registration rates.


The International Academic Forum (IAFOR)

Japan Postgraduate Scholars Programme

IAFOR believes in supporting young academics and providing opportunities for them to present their work at international conferences. To encourage participation from postgraduate students, IAFOR’s Postgraduate Scholars Programme allows students undertaking Master’s or Doctoral studies to have conference registration fees covered in exchange for assisting with the operation of the conference.

Applicants must:
- be currently enrolled in a PhD or Master’s programme in Japan
- have an accepted abstract for presentation at an IAFOR conference in Japan
- show a professional demeanour and a positive attitude

Accepted Scholars:
- must attend a pre-conference training and preparation day
- be available to work each day of the conference (apart from the day of their presentation)

Application Deadline:
The application deadline is the conference final submission deadline, but early application is encouraged. Scholarships are limited for each conference, and preference will be given to early applicants.

Application and Further Details:
Please email: support@iafor.org.