A Guide to Publication in Educational Technology

2008 SITE International Conference, Las Vegas, Nevada, March 5, 2008

A Guide to Publication in Educational Technology

Steve C. Yuen, Ph.D.Professor

University of Southern MississippiE-mail: [email protected]

andPatrivan K. Yuen

Technical Services/Systems LibrarianWilliam Carey University

E-mail: [email protected]

Reason for Writing for Professional Journals

• Reporting research and new ideas • Sharing ideas• Satisfaction• Providing instruction• Achieving recognition• Getting Tenure and promotion

Planning Before Writing

• Have an idea and/or identify the specific journal.

• Determine the audience, types of articles published in the journal, and the type of journal.

• Review a recent issue of the journal • Send a letter of inquiry to the editor

to determine if a manuscript is appropriate for a specific journal.

Types of Journal Articles

• Research articles•Quantitative research•Qualitative research

• Descriptive articles• Practice-based articles• Position papers• Book reviews

Journal Survey

• An online survey conducted in April 2007.• 70 editors from various journals related to

educational technology were invited to participate.

• 42 editors responded in 6 weeks.• Consisted of 27 items such as journal title,

name of editor, email address, frequency of issue, publication format, circulation, audience, acceptance rate, refereed/non refereed journal, number of readings, desired length of articles, preferred style, submission and review process, and publishing fee if any.

• Frequency of Issue• range from 2 to 12 per year• average is about 4 issues per year

• Publication Format• 63% printed, 37 online

• Acceptance Rate• range from 9% to 80%• Average acceptance rate is about 32%

• Refereed• 93% refereed, 7% non-refereed

Journal Survey Results

• Number of Readings• range from 1 to 8 times• average is about 2.7 times

• Time for Editorial Decision• range from 2 to 36 weeks• average is about 12 weeks

• Time for Publication• range from 2 weeks to 2 years• average is about 20.6 weeks

Journal Survey Results (Cont.)

• Preferred Style• 74% APA• 12% Chicago• 10% Others• 2% MLA• 2% Turabian

• Author’s Guidelines• 93% Yes, 7% No

• Electronic Submission• 95% Yes, 5% No

Journal Survey Results (Cont.)

• Open Submission• 100% Yes

• Copies Needed for Submission• range from 1 to 5 copies

• Editorial Assistance• 79% Yes, 21% No

• Honorarium Paid• 5% Yes, 95% No

• Complimentary Issue for Author• 69% Yes, 31% No

Journal Survey Results (Cont.)

http://journal.yuen.us/

By Acceptance Rate

http://journal.yuen.us/

Advance Search

http://journal.yuen.us/

Before Starting to Write

• Drop down ideas in a free form and create a general outline for the paper.

• What is the message of the paper?• What is the new result or

contribution that you want to describe?

• What do you want to convince readers of?

Writing the Manuscript

• Tell them what you set up to do

• Tell them what you did• Tell them what you found• Discuss what you found• Follow the style and format

Writing Tips

• Organize your paper logically and coherently.• Have a clear structure.• Be clear, crisp, simple, informal and direct.• Use active verbs and straightforward language so readers

can tell who did what, when, and where.• Let your scholarship show in the depth and insight of

what you have to say, not in the way you say it.• Bear in mind what your task is to explain, describe and

clarify – not to impress the reader or to complicate the topic.

• Minimize your use of gimmicks such as capitalization, underlining or italics.

• Use strong, simple openings and closings.

Submitting the Manuscript

• Have your colleagues or co-authors critically evaluate the manuscript before sending it to a journal.

• Follow submission guidelines.• Double-check and triple-check your

manuscript is error-free (including grammatical errors, stylistic errors).

• Masking the submission (remove all references to your name and other info that would reveal your identity).

• Send your manuscript out to only one journal at a time.

The Review Process

• Preliminary editorial review• Editorial review (2 to 4 reviewers)• Double-masked review process.• Take several weeks or months for

reviewers to complete their review.

• The editor’s decision• Revise and Resubmit• Accept Pending Revision• Reject

• Lack of fit between the manuscript and the chosen journal.

• Failure to establish the importance of the topic.• Too many grammatical, spelling, or other

mechanical errors.• Failure to employ the writing style designated by

the chosen journal.• Poor choice of title; incomplete or otherwise

inappropriate literature review.• Lack of organization.• Methodological problems.• Data analysis problems.• Lack of coherent conclusions, limitations, or

implications.

Common Problems

Tips for Successful Publishing

• Budget sufficient time for first draft, second, and third draft.

• Get feedback from colleagues and professors.• Ask for criticism, not praise.• Find out the genre of the intended journal as

well as the acceptance rate.• Aim for journals in your field for which the

manuscript is appropriate. You will get the best feedback from more prestigious journals.

• Check the journal guidelines before sending your manuscript.

THE END

Questions or Comments?

Thank You for Attending Our session!

This presentation is available on the Web at:

www.slideshare.net/scyuen/