Ethics

Research and Publication Ethics

The Journal of Research in Mathematics, Science, and Technology Education (JRSMTE) is committed to publishing and disseminating high-quality research. Upholding rigorous ethical standards that ensure transparency and fairness is fundamental to our editorial operations. The scholarly publishing ecosystem, which includes editors, authors, reviewers, and publishers, demands a mutual understanding and adherence to JRSMTE's publication ethics and malpractice policies. These policies are closely aligned with the Core Practices of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), available at COPE Core Practices. We expect all participants to uphold these ethical guidelines to maintain the integrity and quality of our journal.

Research Ethics

For research involving human subjects, materials, tissues, or data, authors must obtain approval from the relevant local institutional review board or ethics committee, ensuring adherence to both national and international ethical standards. Each manuscript must include an 'Institutional Review Board Statement' with the project identification code, approval date, and the name of the ethics committee.

In non-interventional studies, such as surveys or research using social media data, authors are required to fully inform participants, secure their informed consent, maintain their anonymity, clearly state the research purpose, and outline how the data will be used while disclosing any potential risks.

The JRSMTE editorial team will rigorously review manuscripts to ensure compliance with these ethical guidelines. Authors should be prepared to provide documentation, such as consent forms or ethics board approvals, upon request to verify adherence to ethical standards.

Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement

JRSMTE is dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and actively combating publication malpractice. Our editorial processes adhere to strict ethical guidelines, ensuring integrity, transparency, and fairness. We expect all participants in the publication process, including authors, reviewers, and editors, to fully comply with these standards. Any instances of unethical behavior or malpractice are taken seriously and will be investigated thoroughly. All stakeholders are expected to understand and adhere to JRSMTE's ethical policies to uphold the quality and credibility of the research we publish.

International Standards for Editors

Editors of JRSMTE are committed to upholding the highest international standards in their editorial practices. They are responsible for ensuring the integrity, confidentiality, and transparency of the peer review process, and for making unbiased decisions based solely on the academic merit of the submitted manuscripts. Editors must avoid conflicts of interest and disclose any relationships that could affect their judgment. They are also tasked with safeguarding the anonymity of reviewers and authors to maintain the integrity of the review process. Additionally, editors must address any ethical issues promptly and work diligently to correct or retract papers when necessary.

Confidentiality

Editors of JRSMTE are committed to maintaining the highest standards of confidentiality throughout the editorial process. They must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, and other editorial advisors, as appropriate. Manuscripts and their content are treated as privileged information, and editors are responsible for ensuring that this confidentiality is upheld. Reviewers must also respect the confidentiality of the manuscript and are prohibited from using knowledge gained through peer review for personal advantage.

Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest

Editors, authors, and reviewers of JRSMTE are required to disclose any potential conflicts of interest that could affect the integrity and objectivity of the publication process. Conflicts of interest can arise from financial, personal, or professional relationships that may influence one's work. Authors must disclose all funding sources and any potential conflicts in their manuscript. Reviewers and editors must recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where they have a conflict of interest. Transparency in disclosing conflicts helps maintain the credibility of the research published in JRSMTE. If conflicts of interest are identified after publication, appropriate actions, such as corrections or retractions, will be taken to uphold the integrity of the journal.

International Standards for Authors

Authors submitting to JRSMTE must adhere to rigorous international standards of ethical conduct in research and publication. It is essential that authors present their research findings accurately, including an objective discussion of their significance, and clearly state the results and their implications. To facilitate the replication of studies, authors must provide a detailed description of their methodology and make raw data used in statistical analyses available to reviewers and editors upon request.

Manuscripts must be original and not contain previously published information unless proper permission for publication under the CC-BY license has been obtained for any figures or images. Submission of the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously is strictly prohibited. Authors are obligated to promptly inform the journal editor or publisher of any significant errors or inaccuracies in their published work and to cooperate in retracting or correcting the paper.

Plagiarism, data fabrication, and image manipulation are strictly prohibited. Plagiarism includes the unauthorized use of text, ideas, images, or data from another source, including the author’s own publications, without proper attribution. If the design, structure, or language of a manuscript is inspired by previous works, these must be explicitly cited. Manuscripts found to contain plagiarism or irregular image manipulation during the peer review process will be rejected, and if discovered after publication, the paper will be retracted.

Allegations of publication misconduct are investigated thoroughly by our editorial team, which may contact the authors' institutions or funders if necessary. Evidence of misconduct will result in corrective actions or retraction. Submissions are checked for plagiarism using anti-plagiarism software, and any manuscripts found to have at least 15% similarity without proper citation will be subject to investigation. Authors found to have committed plagiarism will be given an opportunity to respond, but unsatisfactory rebuttals will lead to manuscript retraction and a publishing ban for a period determined by the editors. Authors are expected to uphold the highest ethical publication practices when submitting to JRSMTE.

Citation Policy

JRSMTE adheres to a stringent citation policy to maintain the integrity and credibility of the research we publish. Authors must ensure that all sources and references used in their manuscripts are properly cited. This includes any text, data, images, or ideas that are not originally their own. Proper attribution should be given to all sources, and direct quotes must be clearly indicated and referenced.

Authors are encouraged to cite relevant and recent literature to provide context and support for their research findings. Self-citation should be minimized and only included when absolutely necessary to avoid any appearance of self-promotion or citation manipulation. It is crucial to avoid citing sources that are not peer-reviewed, such as personal blogs or non-academic websites, unless they are indispensable to the research and are clearly identified as such.

The accuracy of all references is the responsibility of the authors. They must ensure that all citations are complete and correctly formatted according to the journal's guidelines. Any uncited use of another's work constitutes plagiarism and will be treated as a serious breach of ethical standards. If plagiarism is detected during the review process, the manuscript will be rejected. If discovered post-publication, the paper will be retracted.