Peer-Reviewed, Scholarly, and Non-Scholarly Material
This week, you will explore the differences between scholarly, peer-reviewed, and non-scholarly resources. Scholarly resources are those that are written by experts in a particular field, and the purpose of those resources is to advance the ongoing body of work within their discipline. Some scholarly sources, particularly journal articles, are peer-reviewed or refereed. A peer-reviewed or refereed article has been reviewed by other scholars in the author’s field. These peers critically assess drafts of the article so that the final, published work is of the highest quality.
Consider an example from health education. The journal article, Social media use among health education specialists: A pilot study, is from the American Journal of Health Studies, a peer-reviewed academic journal. In contrast, What is a Migraine? is from the online health magazine, Prevention, a Hearst Publication, which is not an accepted scholarly reference. However, there are a few print and online education magazines that are considered research-based magazines (for example, the magazine, Psychology), and are therefore accepted as scholarly references. With Google and Google Scholar at your fingertips, it is easy to think that you can type in a topic and acquire scholarly references with a few mouse clicks; however, this is not the case.
For website examples, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is a government organization that conducts research and maintains a research-based website that provides health education statistics, while Health is a commercial website, published by the Meredith Corporation, which is not accepted as a scholarly reference. An example of a national organization website is the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), a national professional education organization that works to promote high-quality early learning for children. It is considered a scholarly resource.
In contrast, EarlyLearningSuccess.net is a website that offers preschool curriculum. Although it is directed by an educator with an M.S., it is not considered a scholarly resource because it is a commercial entity offering services for profit. For-profit websites, including magazine websites, are not scholarly references.
When seeking statistics on a topic, government organizations and departments and national professional organizations are considered scholarly resources for current data on topics. An example of a government organization is the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). An example of a national professional organization is the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
Another example of a scholarly resource is College-aged African American students’ perceived benefits and barriers of participation in outdoor recreation as leisure-time physical activity at select universities in Mississippi: A mixed methods study, a research-based presentation that has been presented at a conference and documented in written form as a conference proceeding. A topic encyclopedia is a resource book that includes different scholars’ works to define terms for a particular education topic. An example would be The SAGE Encyclopedia of Contemporary Early Childhood Education.
An example of a scholarly textbook is The Innovative University: Changing the DNA of Higher Education From the Inside Out, published by Jossey-Bass, a textbook publisher. In contrast is Restoring the Promise: Higher Education in America, published by the Independent Institute in Oakland, CA. While Restoring the Promise is not considered a textbook, as it is not published by a textbook publisher, this title could be considered a scholarly reference because this particular institute is recognized by educators.
To complicate the task of finding scholarly material to support your research topic, some scholarly journals do not have their article submissions peer-reviewed. A scholarly publication is regarded as scholarly if it is authored by experts, for experts. The publication is academic in focus as it reports original research (experimentation), research methodology or theory, but the articles are not peer-reviewed by two to three experts in the field, and the author does not receive constructive peer feedback before publication. However, scholarly journals are allowed as references.
Peer-reviewed journals publish articles only if they have passed through the official editorial process. The peer-review and evaluation system is used to safeguard, maintain, and improve the quality of published scholarly materials. To be on the safe side, use articles from peer-reviewed journals as much as possible; the majority of academic journals are peer-reviewed journals. Note that, in general, theses and dissertations are not accepted as scholarly references by NCU as the research has not been published in a peer-reviewed scholarly journal. The exception is that some dissertation Chairs may allow minimal dissertation references if the research topic is extremely narrow in scope or is an emerging topic.
With all these different available resources, know that every publication has a purpose. Generally, non-scholarly material is written to give the average American information on a topic. In contrast, scholarly material is material in which research has been conducted, and this material is used in textbooks for K-12 and higher education courses and published in scholarly and peer-reviewed journals to advance the field of research in the topic area. The key to remember is that scholarly material is backed by research and statistics. Whenever you are unsure if a reference is considered a scholarly reference, email your professor for guidance.
The many different types of education resources may seem overwhelming at first, but that is why this week’s assignment is critical in helping you to define scholarly versus non-scholarly material as you develop as an academic scholar.
This week, you will research and document examples of scholarly and non-scholarly material using the Week 2 assignment template included in this week’s resources. After you are finished with the assignment, reflect on your work.
- What is the difference between a scholarly education journal and an education magazine? Why is the citing of some education magazines allowed, while others are not considered scholarly references?
- What is the difference between a research-based education website and a commercial education website?
- What is a conference proceeding?
- What is an education encyclopedia publication?
- What is the difference between an education textbook and a layman’s education book?
References
Biechi, J. (2018, July 2). What is a migraine? Prevention.
Bliss, K., Zarco, E., Trovato, M., & Miller A. (2018). Social media use among health education specialists: A pilot study. American Journal of Health Studies, 33(3), 127-137.
Christenson, C. M., & Eyring, H. J. (2011). The innovative university: Changing the DNA of higher education from the inside out. Jossey-Bass Higher and Adult Education Series.
Davis, T. M. (2017). College-aged African American students’ perceived benefits and barriers of participation in outdoor recreation as leisure-time physical activity at select universities in Mississippi: A mixed methods study. Association of Outdoor Recreation & Education Conference Proceedings, 29-31.
Early Learning Success, LLC. (2016). About us. Early Learning Success.
Framer, L. (2017). The SAGE encyclopedia of contemporary early childhood education. Booklist, 113(13), 24-25.
Meredith Corporation. (2020). Health. Meredith Corporation.
National Association of Secondary School Principals. (2020). National Association of Secondary School Principals.
Vedder, R. K. (2019). Restoring the promise: Higher education in America [Kindle Edition]. Independent Institute.
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. (n.d.). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Weekly Resources
Academic, Popular, Trade Publications
Evaluating Research: Diversity and credibility of information sources
Mahmood, A., & Ayub, J. M. (2018). Evaluating research: Diversity and credibility of information sources. Dialogue (Pakistan), 13(4), 353-368.
National Center for Education Statistics
SUU EBSCO Academic Search Ultimate
Scholarly vs. Peer-Reviewed Journals
Week 2 – Assignment: Categorize Scholarly and Non-Scholarly Material
Instructions
Download the Week 2 assignment template from the weekly resources and save it to your computer.
Use the same broad topic that you came up with last week, and note that topic at the top of the template. Then, after reading this week’s resources and examining the assignment template, access the SUU Library and search for the different types of research-based materials asked for in the assignment template. Next, using Google or another search engine, search for government or national professional association websites and non-scholarly materials. Complete the template with website titles and hyperlinks.
Length: one complete table
References: Include 7 resources, as indicated by the assignment template.
The completed assignment should address all of the assignment requirements, exhibit evidence of concept knowledge, and demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the content presented in the course. The writing should integrate scholarly resources, reflect academic expectations and current APA standards, and adhere to Southern Utah University’s Academic Integrity Policy.
Hayden Coombs 