Publication Ethics

Natural Science: Jurnal Penelitian Bidang IPA dan Pendidikan IPA is a scholarly journal managed by the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teacher Training, State Islamic University Imam Bonjol Padang. It was first published in March 2015. This journal is published both online and in print and publishes scientific articles or research papers in the field of natural sciences and science education.

This statement of publication ethics is a code of ethics that applies to all parties involved in the publication process of this journal: managers, editors, peer reviewers, and authors. The essence of this Publication Ethics Code is to uphold three core values in publication: (i) Neutrality, free from conflicts of interest in publication management; (ii) Fairness, giving authorship rights to those entitled to it; and (iii) Honesty, free from duplication, fabrication, falsification, and plagiarism in publication.

After reading these Publication Ethics Guidelines, please download the Ethics Statement and Copyright Agreement. Kindly sign and submit the Ethics Statement as part of your initial article submission. The Copyright Agreement must be submitted before your article can be published. Both documents may be sent by post, email, or fax.

Responsibilities of the Journal Manager

  1. Define the journal's name, scope, publication frequency, and accreditation (if needed).
  2. Appoint the editorial board members.
  3. Define relationships among publishers, editors, reviewers, and other related parties through a formal agreement.
  4. Respect the confidentiality of contributors, authors, editors, and reviewers.
  5. Implement policies regarding intellectual property rights, especially copyrights.
  6. Review and communicate the journal’s editorial policies to stakeholders.
  7. Provide ethical behavior guidelines for editors and reviewers.
  8. Ensure consistent and timely journal publication.
  9. Ensure financial support for journal sustainability.
  10. Establish networking and marketing strategies.
  11. Handle licensing and legal matters.

Responsibilities of the Editor

  1. Bridge the needs of readers and authors.
  2. Continuously improve publication quality.
  3. Ensure the quality of published articles.
  4. Promote objective freedom of expression.
  5. Maintain the academic integrity of authors.
  6. Issue corrections, clarifications, retractions, or apologies when needed.
  7. Be responsible for style and format; authors are responsible for content.
  8. Seek feedback from stakeholders to improve quality.
  9. Encourage evaluations when issues arise.
  10. Require Ethics Clearance Forms for research-related publications.
  11. Promote ethical publication education.
  12. Assess and improve editorial policies and their impact.
  13. Remain open to differing viewpoints.
  14. Avoid bias or external influence in editorial decisions.
  15. Encourage authors to revise manuscripts for publication readiness.

Responsibilities of the Reviewer (Peer Reviewer)

  1. Review manuscripts at the editor’s request and provide eligibility feedback.
  2. Avoid reviewing manuscripts with conflicts of interest.
  3. Maintain confidentiality and provide constructive feedback.
  4. Encourage authors to revise and improve their work.
  5. Re-review revised manuscripts according to standards.
  6. Conduct timely and standard-based reviews according to scientific principles.

Responsibilities of the Author

  1. Ensure all listed authors meet authorship criteria.
  2. Take collective responsibility for content accuracy and detail.
  3. Disclose all sources of research funding.
  4. Clarify research limitations.
  5. Respond to peer review comments professionally and promptly.
  6. Inform the editor of any withdrawal decisions.
  7. Declare the work as original, unpublished, and not under review elsewhere.