Journal Review
NSCI 306 Spring 2014
Instructor J. Farago-Spencer
100 pts
. for paper and 20 pts. for presentation
It is important to know where you can find the newest information in your field. One of the most common ways to stay current in new scientific trends is to follow a journal.
Your assignment is to identify a professional journal in your field that has been in print for at least 5 years. After looking through a few journals, decide on one journal that will help you with future research in your field. Your review of the journal should address the last three (3) to four (4) years.
To review this journal, you will need to:
1.
Name the journals that you initially considered and explain why you rejected two (2) of them. Why did you decide to review the journal that you chose? How will this Journal be important to your research and knowledge in the future?
2.
Give a brief overview of the purpose and content of the journal you chose. This should include information such as: content, clarity, organization, types of studies/articles, frequency of publication (how many issues per volume?), and is it available in print, electronically, or both?
3.
What are the guidelines for submitting a manuscript/paper for publication in the journal? (NOTE: this might be in small print or on a separate page called submission guidelines or œCall for Papers). Are there specific limitations to pages, types of studies, number of tables, etc.? What kind of format do the submissions have to be in (APA, Chicago Manual of Style, AIP, ACS, CSE).
4.
How is the journal arranged? Is there a title page, table of contents, separate sections for empirical study, reviews, comments, letter from the editor, etc. Are there advertisements? If so, what?
5.
When looking at the table of contents, what research/topic trends do you notice? REMEMBER, look at the most current issue and go back 3 to 4 years and identify these trends. Were there any œspecial issues that were different from the regular issues?
6.
NOW FOCUS on two (2) articles. They can be from the same volume, but NOT the same issue.
·
What topic does each article focus on? What is the research question? Where did you find this information in the article?
·
How is the article organized?
·
What kind of article is each? (Is it empirical, literature review, cross sectional, longitudinal, qualitative, quantitative, etc.?) Where did you find this information?
·
If there are data/results, how are they displayed?
·
Assess the quality and level of writing. Who might be the audience for each article?
·
Identify three elements of the article that stood out to you (title, abstract, results, charts, tables, clear writing, etc.). How did each element affect your reading of the article?
7.
Who would you recommend this Journal to? Give specific reasons explaining how the journal is useful. Are there any drawbacks? Explain.
This Journal Review will need to be typed in Times New Roman, double spaced, 12pt. font. You will need to follow APA guidelines for the title page, in-text citations, page number, running head, and references page. (NOTE: We will discuss these in class).
Important Dates:
Bring a copy (paper copy) of your journal™s table of contents from the last 3 to 4 years: 4/17
Bring a copy of one article your will review from your journal: 4/22
Final draft of journal review due: Monday, 4/28 at 7:00p.m. to Blackboard.
Presentations will be on 5/1
