Trends and Issues in Student-Run Peer-Reviewed Journals of Education

Tim T. Andress; Alex J. Armonda

doi:10.14507/cie.vol24iss2.2180

Authors

Tim T. Andress The University of Texas at Austin https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4566-9731
Alex J. Armonda The University of Texas at Austin https://orcid.org/0009-0006-0898-7075

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14507/cie.vol24iss2.2180

Keywords:

student-run journals, journals of education, Mixed Methods, bibliometric analysis

Abstract

The purpose of this mixed methods bibliometric study was to identify the trends and issues in student-run peer-reviewed journals of education and to determine predictive factors of journal longevity. To that end, a search for journals was conducted, yielding 11 journals and 1,105 records. Journals were coded for editorial procedures, goals, and guidelines. Records were coded for publication characteristics, author characteristics, and keywords and abstracts. The analysis consisted of calculating descriptive statistics for journals, authors, and affiliations, implementing text mining on titles, keywords, and abstracts, and fitting a logistic regression model to predict journal longevity. Results revealed that student-run journals are somewhat prone to gaps in publication, but that effective editorial practices such as requiring abstracts and publishing issues consistently predict journal longevity. Three themes emerged across journals: a transformative focus, leaning into the margin, and inconsistent guidelines & processes. Recommendations for student-run peer-reviewed journals of education are to (a) form sustainable editorial structures, (b) follow consistent publication patterns, (c) solicit authors purposefully, and (d) continue leaning into the margin.

Author Biographies

Tim T. Andress, The University of Texas at Austin

Tim T. Andress is a doctoral student pursuing a degree in Special Education at the University of Texas at Austin. He is a former bilingual educator at the elementary level. His primary research interest involves developing and testing the efficacy of literacy interventions for multilingual students with and without disabilities. Additionally, he is interested in assessing the effects of bilingual education and cross-linguistic transfer on academic outcomes in English and Spanish. He is the current editor-in-chief of Texas Education Review.

Alex J. Armonda, The University of Texas at Austin

Alex J. Armonda serves as Assistant Professor of Practice in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at The University of Texas at Austin. He works primarily in the fields of critical pedagogy and educational philosophy, and has been published in notable outlets including Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies, The Oxford Encyclopedia of Curriculum Studies, The Routledge Handbook to Critical Approaches to Politics and Policy of Education, and Educational Theory (forthcoming). Alex is a former Managing Editor of Texas Education Review.