Authorship & Contribution Policy

 

The International Review of Education and Learning Sciences (IRELS) is committed to ensuring transparency and fairness in authorship attribution. Authorship should accurately reflect individuals’ contributions to the research and the preparation of the manuscript.

Authorship Criteria

To qualify as an author, individuals should meet ALL of the following criteria:

  • ✓ Contribution: Made a significant contribution to the conception/design of the study, or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data.
  • ✓ Drafting: Contributed to drafting the manuscript or critically revising it for important intellectual content.
  • ✓ Approval: Approved the final version of the manuscript for submission and publication.
  • ✓ Accountability: Agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work regarding accuracy or integrity.

* Individuals who do not meet these criteria should not be listed as authors.

Corresponding Author Responsibilities

  • Ensuring that all listed authors meet the authorship criteria.
  • Confirming that no eligible contributor has been omitted.
  • Managing communication with the journal throughout the review process.
  • Obtaining agreement from all co-authors on the final version.

Transparency & Changes

Author Contributions Statement

IRELS encourages authors to include a statement describing the specific contributions of each author (e.g., conceptualization, methodology, data analysis). This supports transparency but does not replace the core authorship criteria.

Changes to Authorship

Requests to add, remove, or reorder authors after submission must include a written explanation and written consent from all listed authors. The journal reserves the right to deny unjustified changes.

Unacceptable Practices

IRELS considers the following practices as breaches of publication ethics, which may result in rejection or further action:

  • Guest Authorship: Listing individuals who did not contribute substantially.
  • Gift Authorship: Adding authors as a favor or due to seniority/status.
  • Ghost Authorship: Excluding individuals who made substantial contributions.
Acknowledgements

Individuals who contributed to the work (e.g., language editing, technical assistance, general supervision) but do not meet the criteria for authorship should be acknowledged in an Acknowledgements section, with their permission.