Journal of Educational Sciences

Journal of Educational Sciences (JES)

Introduction

The Journal of Educational Sciences is a peer-reviewed and periodical scientific journal, issued by the College of Education at Qatar University and published by Qatar University Press with three issues per year. The journal publishes original theoretical and applicable research in all educational fields of knowledge in both Arabic and English. The journal was published for the first time by Qatar University’s College of Education in 2002.

Print ISSN: 2706-6711

Online ISSN: 2706-672X

Focus and Scope

The Journal’s publishing fields cover educational and psychological research, edited research based on master’s and doctoral theses, book reviews, and conference reports with an emphasis on local, regional and international educational issues.The journal seeks to publish novel and original educational research which brings new findings in the field.

Publication Frequency

The Journal of Educational Sciences recently increased its publication frequency to three issues per year in April, August, and December, instead of two, since the beginning of 2023; This is in line with the Journal’s vision to enhance its contribution in the dissemination and development of educational knowledge, and along the increasing number of submissions received by the journal.  

Vision and Mission

Vision

Contribute to the development and dissemination of educational knowledge, the development of scientific theories of educational issues, and the improvement of educational decisions and policies.

Mission

The journal aims to achieve its vision by seeking to be a distinguished scientific platform and a reliable source for the dissemination of the original educational knowledge sought by educators in various specializations. This is achieved whilst implementing clear publishing rules and policies in line with international standards, guaranteeing quality and fast peer review, expanding the fields of publication to include contemporary issues and educational trends, and raising the journal’s classification in international indexing databases.

Objectives 

1. Enriching educational knowledge by providing a scientific platform for the dissemination of authentic scientific research in educational fields.

2. Sharing with researchers successful educational experiences in countries with diverse educational and cultural systems.

3. Strengthening the network of communication between researchers in various countries and forming research teams.

4. Mobilizing distinguished researchers to address contemporary educational problems and issues and deal with them according to the latest theories and scientific methods.

5. Developing researchers’ publishing skills by providing information and guidance that help them write distinguished research papers.

6. Supporting educational decision makers in making rational educational decisions based on the results of scholarly educational research.

Editorial Team

• Editor-in-Chief

Prof. Hissa Mohd S M Sadiq, Emeritus Professor of Educational Administration, Qatar University– State of Qatar

Bio: Prof. Hissa Sadiq: the former Dean of the College of Education at Qatar University. She received several research grants from Qatar University and Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF) and published scientific research papers in the fields of educational leadership, education reform, and professional development of educators. She participated in numerous conferences, seminars, and workshops on the development of education, and in 2015, she received the Endorsement State Award in the field of education from the National Council for Culture, Arts, and Heritage for her various contributions in the education fields. Dr. Hissa received her Bachelor of Science and Education degree from the Qatar University, and her Master’s and PhD in educational leadership from Ain Shams University.

Editorial Committee

• Prof. Ayad Taama, Professor of Art Education, Qatar University– State of Qatar
• Prof. Fathi Ihmeideh, Professor of Early Childhood Education, The Hashemite University, Jordan
• Prof. Mohamed Taha, Professor of Psychology, Qatar University– State of Qatar
• Prof. Magda Mohamed Salah El-Din El-Shazly, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Faculty Members Club of Alexandria University
• Prof. Saleh Mohammad Rawadieh, Professor of Education/ Social Studies, Qatar University– State of Qatar
• Prof. Sulaiman Mohammed Al-Balushi, Professor of Science Education, Sultan Qaboos University - Sultanate of Oman
• Dr. Hadeel Alkhateeb, Associate Professor of Language Policy and Language Planning, Qatar University – State of Qatar

Editorial Management

• Aisha Hamad Al-Mudahka, Editorial Committee Secretariat, College of Education, Qatar University

Advisory Team

1. Prof. Abdulaziz Kamal Al-Emadi

Prof. of Mental Health– Department of Psychological Sciences, College of Education – Qatar University

Former Director of Educational Research Center – Former Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Educational Research

Former Member of The Shura Council, State of Qatar

2. Prof. Abdullah Juma’a Al-Kubaisi

Emeritus professor in principles of education- former president of Qatar University College of Education – Qatar University

3. Dr. Asmaa Essa Alfadala

PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy

Director of Research - World Innovation Summit for Education – Qatar Foundation, State of Qatar

4. Prof. Fahad S. Alshaya

Prof. of Science Education – Curriculum and Instruction Department, College of Education – King Saud University, KSA

5. Prof. Abdullah Khamis Ali Ambusaidi

Professor of Curriculum and Science Education in Sultan Qaboos University

Undersecretary for Education at the Ministry of Education, Sultanate of Oman

6. Prof. Abdullah Mohammed Al-Sahikh

Prof. of Curriculum and Math Education- Former Dean of College of Education

College of Education – Kuwait University, State of Kuwait

7. Prof. Ekhleif Yosef Saleh Tarawneh

Prof. of Educational Administration – Former President of Jordan University

School of Educational Sciences - University of Jordan, The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

8. Prof. Douglas J. Palmer

Emeritus professor of Educational Psychology - Former Dean of School of Education and Human Development

School of Education and Human Development

Texas A&M University, USA

9. Prof. Zoubeida R. Dagher

Professor of Science Education

School of Education, University of Delaware, USA

10. Prof. Soon Fook Fong

Professor of Multimedia Education

Director, Centre for E-learning, University Malaysia Sabah, Malaysia

Author Guidelines

Introduction

This guide, issued by the Journal of Educational Sciences, aims to assist authors, peer reviewers, editors, and members of the journal in following unified standard guidelines and writing style for all published articles in order to raise the publishing quality by facilitating and accelerating the review process.

• Author definition

An author is whoever name is mentioned on the submitted article for publishing and meets the following three conditions:

A person should not be listed as an author if he/she does not fulfill the above-mentioned criteria. The acquisition of funding, collection of data, or supervision of the research group are not enough to justify authorship alone, however, such contributions shall be listed in the acknowledgments section. Research papers submitted by two or more authors to the journal must obtain the consent of all participating authors in the research.

• He/she must have contributed to the conception and design of the study or to the acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data.

• Drafted the research paper or critically revised it.

• Gave final approval to the research paper’s version submitted for publication.

• Submission of Research Papers

Research papers and studies must be submitted to the Journal of Educational Science’s Editorial Board through the journal’s platform on the following link. 

Authors are expected to ensure that they follow the journal's writing guidelines and conditions before submitting their research paper to the journal, otherwise, the journal shall return the submission for further amendments and compliance before evaluation.

• Required documents

Authors must ensure that the following files are uploaded upon submission through the journal platform:

• Title page and author(s) information.

• Abstract in both Arabic and English.

• An anonymized file of the research paper (delete any information that reveals the identity of the author).

• A completed and signed Author Declaration form.

• Checklist for compliance with publishing conditions and guide.

Publishing standards

• The journal accepts research studies in both Arabic and English, provided that the following conditions are met:

  • The research must be in line with the goals and research scope of the journal.

  • The research must be original and should not be previously published or submitted for publishing elsewhere, neither partially nor in full. Accordingly, the author(s) must submit a written acknowledgment of that along the submission.

  • The research should be novel, and should have a clear contribution to its field.

  • The author/s shall abide by the intellectual property law, scientific integrity as well as research methods and ethics principles mentioned on the journal’s website .

  • The author undertakes to perform the required amendments provided by peer reviewers, in line with the journal’s peer review process mentioned on the website .

  • The journal may accept the publishing of a research paper built or extracted from a scientific thesis (Master’s or PhD), at the condition that that it is restructured, edited, and updated. In this case, this must be disclosed in the author’s declaration form, and referred to in the first footnote (linked to the title) of the research paper. Purely identical research copied from a master’s or doctoral theses is not accepted.

  • The research paper words count should range between a minimum of 6000 words and a maximum of 10000 words, including figures, illustrations, tables, appendices, and references.

  • All research submissions are screened through iThenticate plagiarism software.

  • The research shall be based on recent data and scholarly resources that foster the specialization’s research developments.

• Research Structure

The following research structure shall be followed:

1. Title page and author(s) information:

   The names of co-authors should be arranged sequentially according to the research contribution and efforts and in line with international scholarly publishing ethics.

   • Full title of the research paper (not more than fifteen words, including headlines and subheadings)
   • Principal author’s full name
   • Author’s scientific rank, specialization and affiliation, country
   • Email address
   • ORCID number of the Principal author. To open an account visit https://orcid.org/register
2. Abstract (in English and Arabic):
   • The abstract should not exceed 250 words.
   • The abstract briefly discusses the research problem, objectives, and importance of study. It then briefly explain the research methods, tools and methodologies, and most important analysis and statistics. Finally, it gives a glimpse on the most important conclusions, recommendations or scientific value.
3. Research body: 

   The research paper includes a general introduction about the research subject where the author paves the way for the research discussions. Then, the research questions, hypotheses, importance of study, objectives, and terminologies are elaborated. Later, the theoretical framework, literature review and previous studies are discussed in way that relate to the research constructs and questions. It is important to address the research limitations (objective, human, temporal, procedural, or other). After that, the research methodology is presented with the study population, target sample, sampling method, data collection tools and procedures, and statistical methods and tools used for data analysis. Then, the discussions and analyses on the study’s results are presented in relation with the hypotheses and questions. Finally, the conclusion, which contains a summary of the study’s findings, recommendations, and proposed future studies, is provided.

   - It is possible to add an acknowledgment note (at the end of the research) in which the author expresses his gratitude to everyone or anyone who contributed to the research in a valuable way.

   - If the research is funded, an acknowledgement for the entity/funding institution must be provided with the disclosure of the grant number and full name of the grating institution in the first margin of the research paper.

   - In case the paper is extracted from a master’s or doctoral thesis, the author must disclose this fact in the first footnote of the research, with reference to the original title, grating university, date, and link to the original study, if available.

• Approved style guide

The writing of citations and reference list should be standardized according to the seventh edition of the American Psychological Association (APA) style, which can be viewed on the link: https://apastyle.apa.org 

The author should set a bibliography of sources and references at the end of the research paper, in the same style of citing footnotes, but arranged in alphabetical order by the author’s family name.

• Submission Format

Authors should ensure that their research paper adheres to the following guidelines:

• The research should be written correctly with proper use of the language and grammatical structure, and correct spelling and punctuation.

• Citations and references should be recent

• The research paper should be formatted in an editable Word format document, where Times New Roman font size 12 is used, and paragraph spacing is set at 1.5

• Use bold font style for main headlines and sub-headlines instead of underline and organize the research papers by numbering its sections.

• Use font size 10 points for the tables’ titles and content as well as for the illustrations.

• Use of bold should be limited in the text and may only be used for scientific indication.

• The page numbers should appear in the middle of the bottom of the research pages.

• Illustrations, figures and tables

The numbering of all illustrations, tables and figures should be consecutive (for example: Table No. 1, Figure No. 1). In case of multiple numbering divisions, each division should be classified (for example Figure 1 (A), Figure 1 (B).

The captions of the figures should be descriptive and written in bold, such as: Figure 1, Figure 2.

Each illustration, figure or table should be provided as a separate file named and numbered according to the research and in high resolution that is suitable for design.

Note: The author must obtain permission from the copyright holder to reproduce figures in the journal published elsewhere. Failure to provide this permission can result in images not being included.

• Supplying Digital Images

Most images sourced on the internet will not be of a high enough resolution and cannot be used. If you locate an image on the internet, you will need to find its original source and request a high-resolution version.

You will need to clear permission as necessary for the use of images.

Photographs

Scan at a minimum of 300 dpi and save as a TIFF image for PC.

Final size of scan to be approximately 250 x 200 mm.

Line illustrations (maps, graphs, etc.)

Scan at a minimum of 1200 dpi and save as a TIFF image for PC.

Final size of the scan to be approximately 250 x 200 mm.

Tints

Tints used on computer-generated illustrations should be no lighter than 15% and no darker than 70%. Do not use pattern fills. Do not use color fills.

Line weights Bearing in mind that line illustrations supplied at approximately 250 x 200 mm will be reduced in size to fit comfortably on an average page size of 234 x 156 mm, the line weights will be reduced correspondingly. Do not, therefore, use a line weight of less than 1 point/pixel in illustrations.

Illustration file types TIFF

Save files as TIFF images for PC. We would prefer you not to compress TIFF files; if you need to compress them, use a lossless compression software package such as LZW.

EPS

Images can also be supplied as EPS files, with a laser print for identification. EPS files cannot be altered; if we are required to edit these files, the original application files should be supplied with all fonts used.

Other digital formats

JPGs and images downloaded from the internet are normally low resolution (72 dpi) and are not usually suitable for reproduction by conventional printing methods.

Unacceptable file types: MS Word and Excel.

Print images

If you are supplying print images, mark each illustration very lightly on the back (in the corner) in a soft pencil with its number (e.g. Figure 4.1).

Reviewer Guidelines

Detailed information on peer reviewer process and guidelines is available below:

• New Registration
• Registration Guidelines as Reviewer
• Reviewing Guidelines

Malpractice and Ethics Statement

The Position of JES on Publishing Ethics

JES journal is committed to maintaining the highest ethical standards for all parties involved in the process of publishing in a peer reviewed journal, namely: the author, the editor of the journal, the peer reviewer and the publisher.

The publishing ethics of JES, both internal and external, are based on and adhere to the below mentioned codes and guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

By submitting an article to JES, author(s) are aware of and agree to comply with the above-mentioned Publication Ethics stated by (COPE).

• Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors (March 2011) 
• Ethical guidelines for peer reviewers (September 2017). 
• A Short Guide to Ethical Editing for New Editors (January 2016).
• Other COPE guidelines: Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing 
• Core Practices 

Editor Responsibilities

Accountability: : The editors of JES are accountable and responsible for deciding which of the articles submitted to the journal should be published. The editor shall be guided by the journal’s editorial board policies and constrained by such legal requirements and shall then take appropriate action regarding libel, copyright infringement and plagiarism. The editor may confer with other editors or reviewers in making this decision.

Impartiality: The reviewing process and publication decision will be taken without regard to race, gender, religious beliefs, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy of the authors.

Confidentiality: The editor(s) and any editorial staff will not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, other editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate.

Fair play: Editors should ensure the integrity of the publication review process. As such, editors should not reveal either the identity of authors of manuscripts to the reviewers, or the identity of reviewers to authors.

Disclosure and conflicts of interest: Unpublished materials disclosed in a submitted manuscript will not be used in an editor’s own research without the express written consent of the author. Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review will be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. Editors make fair and unbiased decisions, independent of commercial considerations, and ensure a fair and appropriate peer review process. Editors shall recuse themselves (i.e. should ask a co-editor, associate editor or other member of the editorial board instead to review and consider) from considering manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or (possibly) institutions connected to the papers. Editors will require all contributors to disclose relevant competing interests and publish corrections if competing interests are revealed after publication. If needed, other appropriate action will be taken, such as the publication of a retraction or expression of concern.

Involvement and cooperation in investigations: Editors of JES will guard the integrity of the published record by issuing corrections and retractions when needed and pursuing suspected or alleged research and publication misconduct. Editors should pursue reviewer and editorial misconduct. An editor should take reasonably responsive measures when ethical complaints have been presented concerning a submitted manuscript or published paper, in conjunction with the publisher. Such measures will generally include contacting the author of the manuscript or paper and giving due consideration to the respective complaint or claims made, but may also include further communications to the relevant institutions and research bodies, and if the complaint is upheld, the publication of a correction, retraction, expression of concern, or other note, as may be relevant. Every reported act of unethical publishing behavior must be looked into, even if it is discovered years after publication.

Plagiarism Detection

Prevention of plagiarism is essential as it provides scientific and academic integrity. Hence, JES uses the iThenticate Plagiarism Detection Software for checking plagiarism.

In case of plagiarism, misuse of published articles, and/or illegal distribution of research papers is proven, the journal immediately takes the necessary actions as to control and prevent any unethical action.

Reviewers Responsibilities

Contribution of Editorial Decisions: The peer review process assists the editor in making editorial decisions; it may also assist the author in improving the paper through the editorial communications and feedback given to the author.

Promptness: Any selected referee who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript or knows that its prompt review will be impossible should notify the editor and excuse himself from the review process.

Confidentiality: Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shown to, or discussed with others except as authorized by the editor.

Standards of Objectivity: Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate. Referees should express their views clearly with supporting arguments.

Acknowledgement of Sources: Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument had been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation. A reviewer should also call to the editor’s attention any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published paper of which they have personal knowledge.

Disclosure and Conflict of Interest: Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer-review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.

Editorial Board’s Responsibilities

JES’s Editorial Board members oversee the peer-review process for the journal, including evaluating submissions, selecting reviewers and assessing their comments, and making editorial decisions. Together with Advisory Editorial Board Members, they are involved in the development of journal policies and ethics standards and work to promote JES’s mission to provide resources, support and advice for early stage researchers in their journey from writing to publishing their scientific papers while at the same time making free public access to scientific research.

Author Responsibilities

Reporting standards: Authors should present their results clearly, honestly, and without fabrication, and inappropriate data manipulation. Authors should describe their methods clearly and unambiguously so that others can confirm their findings.

Originality and plagiarism: Authors should sign an “Author Declaration Form” and adhere to publication requirements that the submitted work is original, is not plagiarized, and has not been published elsewhere. Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable. If the authors have used the work and/or words of others, that this has been appropriately cited or quoted and accurately reflects individuals’ contributions to the work and its reporting. JES reserves the right to reject papers the editors believe have been plagiarized from other sources, including the author’s own previous publications. In case of plagiarism, misuse of published articles, and/or illegal distribution of research papers, JES is very proactive in the legal actions it takes so as to prevent such unethical action.

Data Access and Retention: Authors may be asked to provide the raw data in connection with a paper for editorial review, and should in any event be prepared to retain such data for a reasonable time after publication.

Ethics: Authors should only submit papers of work that has been conducted in an ethical and responsible manner and that complies with all relevant legislation. Authors should get necessary ethical approvals from involved institutions and individuals in the research.

Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest: All authors should disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflict of interest that might be construed to influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of financial support for the project should be disclosed.

Authorship of the Paper : Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported study. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. Where there are others who have participated in certain substantive aspects of the research project, they should be acknowledged or listed as contributors. The corresponding author should ensure that all appropriate co-authors and no disqualifying co-authors are included on the paper, and that all co-authors have seen and approved the final version of the paper and have agreed to its submission for publication.

Multiple, Redundant or Concurrent Publications: An author should not generally publish manuscripts describing essentially the same research in more than one journal or primary publication. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.

Fundamental errors in Published works: When an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in his/her own published work, it is the author’s obligation to promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and cooperate with the editor to retract or correct the paper. If the editor or the publisher learns from a third party that a published work contains a significant error, it is the obligation of the author to promptly retract or correct the paper or provide evidence to the editor of the correctness of the original paper.

Publisher’s Responsibilities

The College of Education, Qatar University, as the managing entity of JES and Qatar University Press (QU Press) as the Publisher, require the editors to follow the COPE Code of Conduct for the Editors. QU Press provides reasonable practical support to editors so that they can follow the COPE Code of Conduct for Journals. QU Press defines the relationship between the publisher, editor and other parties in a contract, respects privacy (for example, for research participants, for authors, for peer-reviewers), protects intellectual property and copyright, and fosters editorial independence.

The publisher works with journal editors to set journal policies appropriately and aims to meet such objectives, particularly with respect to:

Publisher works with journal editors to:

• Editorial independence.
• Research ethics, including confidentiality, consent, and the special requirements for human and animal research.
• Authorship.
• Transparency and integrity (for example, conflicts of interest, research funding, reporting standards.
• Peer-review and the role of editorial team beyond that of the journal editor.
• Appeals and complaints.
• Communicate journal policies (for example, to authors, readers, peer reviewers).
• Review journal policies periodically, particularly with respect to new recommendations from the COPE Code of Conduct for Editors and the COPE Best Practice Guidelines.
• Maintain the integrity of the academic record.
• Assist the parties (for example, institutions, grant funders, governing bodies) responsible for the investigation of suspected research and publication misconduct and, where possible, facilitate in the resolution of these cases.
• Publish corrections, clarifications, and retractions.
• Publish content on a timely basis.

Peer Review Process

The peer review of articles is a cornerstone of the publication process, which improves the publishing quality of JES journal. Peer review is designed to select valid research of significant impact.

As a double-blind peer reviewed journal, JES journal relies on expert comments of reviewers to ensure the quality of the papers we publish. Feedback from reviewers is conveyed to authors which frequently results in manuscripts being revised by the author and refined in order to reach the highest publishing quality.

• Initial evaluation stage

All new submissions are screened for compliance with checklist requirements and adherence to the Authors Guide. The ones that pass are then evaluated by the Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Committee for consideration to assignment for peer review. Authors of rejected articles at initial evaluation stage will normally be informed within one month of receipt.

• Peer review stage

Referring to our policy, each article is evaluated by two independent reviewers. Referees can either accept the article without any modification, with minor modifications, with substantial amendments, or reject the article.

Whilst the reviewers are selected by the editorial committee, the authors’ names are not revealed in any way to the reviewers. The blinding of reviews is intended to favor a scholarly evaluation while fostering critical and honest reviews. Reviewers are asked to provide anonymous comments to the author and also given the option of providing confidential comments to the editor. Should the reviewers’ reports contradict one another or a report is unduly delayed, a further expert opinion will be sought. Depending on the availability of reviewers, the peer review typically takes around two months.

Review decisions require authors to work on a revised version of their article based on the review comments and feedback. Authors would be given a timeframe of around a week or two, depending on the changes required. In case the required amendments are substantial, the author is granted a longer period, which may stretch up to a month and a half.

The Editor-in-Chief and the journal’s Editorial Committee issue the final recommendations regarding the acceptance or rejection of a specific paper, in light of the peer reviewers’ recommendations and opinions. The author is notified about the final decision within a period ranging between two months to a maximum of six months from the submission date.

• Reviewer’s role

Reviewing an article written by a fellow researcher is a time-consuming responsibility. Hence, JES’s Editorial Board, authors, and audiences appreciate the referees’ willingness to accept this responsibility and dedication. JES journal adheres to a double-blind peer review process that is rapid and fair, and ensures a high quality of articles published. In so doing, JES needs reviewers who can provide insightful and helpful comments on submitted articles with a turnaround time of about two weeks to one month. Maintaining JES as a scientific journal of high quality depends on reviewers’ ability to be objective and fair in their evaluation of articles.

• How the reviewers are selected

Selection of reviewers is critical to the publication process, and we base our choice on many criteria, including expertise, reputation, specific recommendations and our own previous experience of a reviewer. The reviewer is required to judge the quality of the research, analyze and assess the validity of its assumptions and assess the significance of the work to the field.

• Using the online review system

The peer review and editorial processes are facilitated through Open Journal Systems (OJS), an online editorial system. The system sends the reviewer an email notification with a review request, initiated by the Editor-in-Chief. The online system will also notify about delays in the reviewing stage and confirm a successful review submission. The email notifications contain stepwise instructions about the actions needed at each stage along with the link to the respective manuscript (accessible only after login).

The Public Knowledge Project provides a free online course on how to become a Reviewer including guidance on the use of the OJS system. If you have additional questions or concerns, please contact the editorial team.

Note: Accepted articles go through copyediting and typesetting by QU Press prior to publication.

• Writing the review report

The primary purpose of reviewing is to provide us the information needed to reach a decision. The review should also instruct the authors on how they can strengthen their paper to the point where it may be acceptable.

A negative review should explain to the authors the weaknesses of their manuscript, so that rejected authors can understand the basis for the decision and see in broad terms what needs to be done to improve the manuscript for publication.

Review reports are required to provide in-depth feedback on the following four points and as per the journal’s review form:

1. Scholarly quality: quality and depth of research; originality of the contribution including presence of new and creative thought; and validity and reliability of the argument.

2. Literary quality: writing style and structure, including paragraphing, language, syntax, and flow.

3. Use of resources: including over/under-referencing, sources quality, relationship of sources to the text.

4. Benefit to the readers and the advancement of the field.

• Promptness:

Any selected referee who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript or knows that its prompt review will be impossible should notify the editor and excuse himself from the review process.

• Confidentiality:

Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shown to, or discussed with others except as authorized by the editor. Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage.

• Standards of Objectivity:

Reviews should be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is inappropriate. Referees should express their views clearly with supporting arguments.

• Acknowledgement of Sources:

Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument had been previously reported should be accompanied by the relevant citation. A reviewer should also call to the editor's attention any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published paper of which they have personal knowledge.

• Conflict of interest:

Reviewers should refuse the invitation to review manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships or connections with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers. Reviewers who feel not able to provide an objective judgement on the research reported in a manuscript should refuse to review the manuscript.

• Handling ethical concerns

Sometimes reviewers may discover serious ethical breaches during the review such as noticing that all or part of the paper has been previously published by the same or other authors. Reviewers might also find text or ideas that may be copied without permission or appropriate attribution from others works.

In such cases of suspected duplicative publication or plagiarism, reviewers should obtain and carefully examine copies of the original documents to confirm and inform the initial impression to the journal.

QU Press follows the Code of Conduct of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the COPE Flowcharts for Resolving Cases of Suspected Misconduct.

Open Access Policy

Sharing of the research results is an important component of the research process; research can only advance by sharing the results, and the value of an investment in research is only maximized through wide use of its results. Open Access articles are free to all interested readers, and the publishers place no financial or copyright barriers between the readers and the article. On this basis, JES provides immediate open access to its content where all content is freely available and accessible without charge. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search or link to the full texts of the articles, or use them for any other lawful purpose, without asking prior permission from JES or the author, provided the author and the journal are properly credited.

Benefits of open access for authors include:

1. Free access for all users worldwide.

2. Authors retain copyright to their work.

3. Increased visibility and readership.

4. Rapid publication.

5. No spatial constraints.

Free of charge publishing 

JES does not charge any Article Processing Charges (APC), submission charges, or any another fee. The entire process of article publication is free of charge.

Indexing and Ranking

JES is currently indexed and registered in the: Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Arab Citation & Impact Factor (ARCIF), Al-Mandumah, CORE, Sherpa Romeo, I4OC, Open Archives Initiative (OAI), Google Scholar, EBSCO Discovery Service and CrossRef DOI.

Through QU Press, JES is a member of the Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers (UK) and the Association of University Presses (USA).

Copyrights Notices

JES provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.

JES is an open access journal, which means all its content is freely available without charge to the user or institution. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles, or use them for any other lawful purpose, without asking prior permission from the publisher or the author as long as they cite the source.

Upon submission and acceptance, the author(s) grants the journal and Qatar University Press a license to publish, including to display, store, copy, and reuse the content under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0), which permits non-commercial use of the material, appropriate credit, and indication if changes in the material were made. This means that the author(s) retains copyright, but the content is free to download, distribute, and build upon the material for non-commercial purposes, given appropriate attribution/reference to the original article. The full terms of this license may be seen at this link: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/. 

This license does not apply to third-party materials that display a copyright notice to prohibit copying. Unless the third-party content is also subject to a CC-BY Creative Commons attribution license, or an equally permissive license, the author(s) must comply with any third-party copyright notices.

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