Why
Monitor and Assess?
Under its
Terms of Reference, the Council is required to monitor the implementation
of research funded via the Earmarked Research Grant, and to report at
least annually to the Government through the University Grants Committee.
The Council
considers that the monitoring of on-going projects and assessment of completed
projects is necessary for reasons of public accountability. Each holder
of a Council-funded project grant is therefore required to submit annual
progress reports and a completion report on the project for monitoring
and scrutiny by subject panel members. In addition, policies and procedures
for the monitoring of Council-funded projects are constantly reviewed
to ensure that project grants are used properly.
How
Monitoring is Carried Out
Under the
existing monitoring mechanism for the assessment of Council-funded projects,
one subject panel member is assigned to each funded project with the responsibility
for monitoring, on the basis of annual progress reports and completion
reports, that the project is proceeding on schedule and that any problems
identified are followed up.
Monitoring
of On-Going Projects
On-going
projects are monitored by the members of the appropriate subject panels
through annual progress reports submitted by Principal Investigators (PIs)
through their respective institutions. The panel member reviews the annual
progress report and, where required, any comments are conveyed to the
Principal Investigator for reference and follow-up action.
As
of December 2000, there were 2,461 active Council-funded projects being
monitored. This number includes projects approved in 2000-2001.
Assessment
of Completed Projects
Within
18 months of the scheduled completion date of a project, the PI concerned
is required to submit a completion report detailing the outcome of the
research project, the results achieved, students trained, and publications
produced, as well as reporting on the use and application of the grant
awarded. These completion reports are passed to the responsible panel
members for final assessment.
Completion
projects are rated either as "Satisfactory" or "Unsatisfactory".
Results of such assessments are also taken into account when assessing
new grant applications from the PIs concerned.
As of December
2000, the Council had received completion reports for a cumulative total
of 1,675 projects of which 891 were assessed in December 2000, with the
final ratings endorsed by the RGC at its Council meetings.
Feedback
on Assessments
Feedback
is an important part of the Council's effort to encourage and assure quality
standards in research projects. The feedback forms an essential part of
the peer review process and enables researchers to improve and refine
their research methodologies. It also represents a valuable input into
Hong Kong academia of new ideas and expertise from colleagues overseas.
As a matter
of policy, the Council arranges to feed back anonymously all comments
of external assessors to applicants in CERG exercises and, where necessary,
convey additional comments from the subject panels.
Review
on Monitoring and Assessment of Projects
In the interest
of public accountability, the RGC attaches great importance to both the
monitoring of on-going projects and the assessment of those that are completed.
As part of its efforts to strive for improvement, the Council constantly
reviews its monitoring and assessment system with a view to streamlining
the relevant processes and enhancing overall effectiveness.
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