1. Aim, Scope, and Principles

The Ordu University Journal of Education Faculty (“the Journal”) is a peer-reviewed journal publishing original research and review articles in education and related fields. The Journal is committed to the integrity, fairness, transparency, and accountability of scholarly communication.

This policy is aligned with COPE best practices and the YÖK Directive on Scientific Research and Publication Ethics. All stakeholders (authors, reviewers, editors, the publisher, and readers) are expected to comply with these standards.

2. Open Access and Fees

The Journal provides immediate open access to all published content.

The Journal charges no fees to authors, readers, or institutions (no submission fees, no APC).

3. Copyright and License (CC BY 4.0)
3.1 Copyright Ownership

Authors retain copyright in their published works. By publishing, authors grant the Journal a perpetual, non-exclusive license to publish, distribute, publicly communicate, and preserve the work, and to identify the Journal as the original place of publication.

3.2 License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

All content is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Under this license, users may:

read, download, copy, share, and print the content,

adapt, modify, and create derivatives (including translations),

use the content for commercial purposes,

provided that proper attribution is given and changes are indicated (if any).

Recommended attribution:
Author(s). (Year). Title. Ordu University Journal of Education Faculty, Volume(Issue), pages. DOI/URL

3.3 Third-Party Material

Third-party materials (e.g., some images, instruments, datasets) included in articles may not be covered by CC BY 4.0. Authors are responsible for obtaining permissions where required and providing appropriate rights/credit information.

4. Research Integrity and Zero Tolerance for Misconduct

The Journal maintains a zero-tolerance approach to misconduct, including plagiarism, unacceptable text recycling/self-plagiarism, data fabrication/falsification, selective reporting, image manipulation, duplicate/redundant publication, salami publication, authorship misconduct, peer review manipulation, and citation manipulation.

5. Ethical Responsibilities of Authors
5.1 Originality and Submission Policy

Submissions must be original, not under review elsewhere, and not previously published in a substantially similar form. Any overlapping submissions or multiple outputs from the same dataset must be transparently disclosed.

5.2 Thesis/Project-Derived Work

Manuscripts derived from theses/reports/projects may be considered if clearly disclosed at submission and if no copyright restrictions prevent publication.

5.3 Authorship, Contribution, and Accountability

Authorship must reflect substantial intellectual contribution. Guest/gift authorship and ghost authorship are prohibited. The Journal may request an author contribution statement and corresponding author accountability.

5.4 Authorship Changes

Requests to add/remove/reorder authors after submission require a written justification, written agreement from all authors, and editorial approval. As a rule, authorship changes after peer review has started are not accepted.

5.5 Plagiarism, Similarity Checks, and Citation Practices

All sources must be appropriately cited. The Journal may conduct similarity checks and initiate editorial action when overlap is judged unacceptable.

5.6 Data Integrity and Verifiability

Fabrication, falsification, misleading reporting, and image manipulation are unethical. Editors may request raw data/materials for verification where ethically and legally permissible; any restrictions must be justified.

5.7 Ethics Approval and Informed Consent

Studies involving humans, animals, or sensitive/personal data must obtain appropriate ethics approval and informed consent where required. Manuscripts should report the ethics committee name, approval date, and reference/number. If not required, this must be explicitly stated with justification.

5.8 Conflicts of Interest and Funding

Authors must disclose all actual/potential/perceived conflicts of interest and all funding sources. If none exist, authors should state: “The authors declare no conflict of interest.”

5.9 Duty to Cooperate (Corrections and Investigations)

If authors discover significant errors or ethical issues, they must promptly notify the editorial office and cooperate with correction/investigation procedures.

5.10 Use of AI Tools (Transparency)

If AI tools were used (e.g., language editing), authors must disclose the scope and stage of use. AI tools cannot be listed as authors; authors remain fully responsible for the content.

6. Peer Review and Reviewers’ Responsibilities (Double-Blind)

The Journal operates double-blind peer review. Reviewers must maintain confidentiality, declare conflicts of interest and decline when appropriate, provide objective and constructive feedback, meet deadlines, and report suspected ethical issues to the editors.

7. Editors’ Responsibilities and Editorial Independence

Editorial decisions are based solely on scholarly merit and are independent of commercial, institutional, or political influence. Editors protect confidentiality, manage conflicts of interest, and may reassign manuscripts to independent editors when needed. The Journal takes measures against peer review manipulation (e.g., identity checks when necessary).

8. Handling Allegations of Misconduct (COPE)

Allegations are handled confidentially and based on evidence:

receipt and triage,

securing records (files, peer review logs, correspondence),

requesting author responses and documentation,

consulting independent experts and/or institutions when necessary,

final editorial decision.

9. Corrections, Expressions of Concern, and Retractions

The Journal may publish corrections, expressions of concern, or retractions to protect the scholarly record. Notices are dated, publicly accessible, and linked to the original article. Retracted articles remain part of the scholarly record and are clearly marked.

10. Complaints and Appeals

Authors may submit complaints/appeals regarding editorial decisions or process. Cases are handled confidentially and may be reviewed by independent editors when appropriate.

11. Confidentiality, Privacy, and Archiving

All manuscripts and peer-review materials are confidential. Personal data are processed in accordance with applicable regulations. The Journal may use preservation mechanisms (e.g., OAI-PMH, LOCKSS/CLOCKSS, institutional repositories) to ensure long-term access.

12. Contact for Ethics Concerns

For ethics-related concerns, suspected misconduct, or questions: hasanhuseyinmutlu@odu.edu.tr
(Please include the article title, DOI/URL, a description of the concern, and supporting evidence where possible.)