Research Data Policy

Responsible availability of educational research data

This policy covers quantitative and qualitative data, transcripts, images, instruments, code, materials, dictionaries, and analytical documentation. It seeks maximum verifiability and reuse without violating consent, privacy, intellectual property, agreements, or law.

Authors plan management and retention; editors check the statement; and reviewers may request strictly necessary materials. The journal does not require openness when unethical or unlawful but does require a precise explanation and controlled-access route where possible.

Availability

Authors must state where and under what conditions data, instruments, materials, and code can be accessed. Whenever ethically and legally possible, they should be deposited in a trusted repository with a persistent identifier.

Restrictions

Personal, sensitive, minor-related, or contractually confidential data must not be published in identifiable form. The statement must explain the restriction, its ethical or legal basis, and, where appropriate, a controlled access mechanism.

Integrity and retention

Authors must retain original data and the analytical history for the period required by their institution or applicable rules. Fabrication, falsification, deceptive selection, or destruction intended to prevent verification is prohibited.

Editorial review

The journal may request data or code to verify results while protecting confidentiality. Unjustified refusal may stop the review process.

Data availability statement

Every research article must state whether data exist, where they are located, how access may be requested, and what restrictions apply. Statements such as “available on request” must identify the contact, access criteria, and reasons an open deposit is unavailable. If no data were generated or analyzed, this is stated expressly.

Recommended deposits include de-identified data, data dictionaries, instruments, analytical protocols, code, and documentation sufficient to interpret the files. Open formats should be used where possible, together with a persistent identifier cited in the manuscript.

Participant protection

Openness never overrides consent, privacy, safety, or applicable law. Re-identification risks must be assessed before deposit, especially for minors, small groups, and linked educational data. De-identification requires more than removing names when other variables may identify people or institutions.

When open access is inappropriate, controlled-access repositories, synthetic data, or descriptive metadata may be used. The statement must identify the access authority and conditions without promising availability that the institution or consent does not permit.

Review and reuse

Data requested for peer review are used only to verify the manuscript and remain confidential. Reviewers may not reuse them or attempt to identify participants. The journal may require corrections when files are incomplete, results conflict with data, or documentation is inadequate.

Data reusers must follow the license, cite the dataset, and meet ethical restrictions. Data publication does not automatically transfer authorship of later analyses or authorize uses incompatible with original consent.

Implementation procedure

  • Include a data availability statement in every research article.
  • Deposit non-sensitive materials in a trusted repository and cite a persistent identifier.
  • De-identify and assess re-identification risk before deposit.
  • Describe restrictions, access authority, conditions, and retention period.
  • Provide data or code confidentially to the editor when verification is required.
  • Update the statement and repository if a correction changes files or analyses.

Evidence of compliance

  • A published availability statement.
  • A functioning link and persistent identifier.
  • A data dictionary, license, and file documentation.
  • Ethical or legal evidence supporting restrictions.
  • Records of verification requests and their resolution.

Potentially identifiable educational data

Datasets containing records on students, teachers, minors, or educational institutions shall be assessed for re-identification risks before open deposit is proposed. The data-availability statement shall identify, as applicable, the repository and DOI, access restrictions, permission authority, and ethical or legal grounds for withholding microdata.

Policy monitoring and review

The journal checks a sample of links and statements after publication. Deposits that are unavailable, incomplete, or inconsistent with the statement must be corrected. Unjustified refusal to permit verification may stop review or trigger post-publication action.