Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement
Open Education is committed to maintaining the highest standards of
publication ethics and integrity. This statement outlines our core principles and
practices, aligned with international guidelines (Committee on Publication
Ethics).
1. Authorship and Contributorship
All authors listed on a manuscript must have made substantial contributions to
the research and/or writing. Contributors who do not meet authorship criteria
should be acknowledged appropriately. Guest, honorary, or ghost authorship
is not permitted. Any changes to the author list must be approved by all co-
authors and explained in writing.
2. Complaints and Appeals
Authors, reviewers, or readers with concerns or complaints about editorial
decisions, peer review, or ethical conduct may submit them to the editorial
office. Appeals are reviewed transparently and independently by the editor-in-
chief and/or an ethics advisory board.
3. Allegations of Research Misconduct
The journal takes all allegations of misconduct seriously, including plagiarism,
falsification, data fabrication, and unethical experimentation. If such
allegations arise, we follow COPE’s flowcharts and may initiate investigations,
request raw data, notify institutions, and take corrective action.
4. Conflicts of Interest
All authors, editors, and reviewers must disclose any financial or personal
relationships that may bias their work. These include employment,
consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, or any
affiliations that could be perceived as a conflict of interest.
5. Data Sharing and Reproducibility
Authors are encouraged to share raw data, protocols, and code, where
appropriate, to support reproducibility and transparency. Data availability
statements should be included in submitted manuscripts.
6. Ethical Oversight
Research involving humans or animals must comply with international ethical
standards (e.g., Declaration of Helsinki) and be approved by appropriate
ethics committees. Authors must provide evidence of such approval upon
submission.
7. Intellectual Property
All submitted content must be original and not under consideration elsewhere.
Authors retain copyright unless otherwise agreed. Proper citation and
permission must be obtained for reused material. Plagiarism and copyright
infringement are strictly prohibited.
8. Post-publication Discussions and Corrections
Readers may submit comments or queries about published work. The journal
supports post-publication discourse through letters to the editor or online
commentaries. Valid errors will be corrected via errata, corrigenda, or
retractions, as appropriate.
9. Corrections and Retractions
Corrections will be issued for honest errors that do not affect the conclusions
of the work. Retractions will occur if findings are proven to be invalid due to
misconduct or major errors. Retractions follow COPE retraction guidelines
and are clearly indicated in the record.
10. Integrity of the Scholarly Record
The editorial board actively monitors published content for issues such as
plagiarism, citation manipulation, duplicate publication, and data falsification.
Suspected misconduct will be investigated thoroughly, and appropriate action
will be taken to uphold academic integrity.
Contact Information:
For any ethical concerns or inquiries, please contact the editorial office at: [email protected]
