As an online adjunct faculty member, I do believe we have to practice what we preach. Most of us are lifelong learners and if we are going to follow our own mantra, then we should try to continue to practice to write in either peer-reviewed journals or in academic blogs or other newsletters if the opportunity presents itself. We should take advantage of those opportunities. I am on the precipice of my faculty career about 3 years in, and I can remember my dissertation committee and chair stating that this was just the beginning and I thought to myself, I just want to teach at the collegiate level. But that is not enough. So here I am trying to put together a short case study for publication with some of my peers, submitting to academic blogs, and presenting online to other faculty members. It has been a whirlwind. I suffer from doubting my ability to write, revise, and edit. I taught writing for over 10 years, and still, I believe I am better at extrapolating good writing from others than writing a good piece of text by my hand. That doesn't mean I am going to stop. I will work at it, revise it, and continue to learn. 

Mirta,

I'm glad you brought up the idea of faculty practicing what they expect from their students. Thinking of that in terms of writing makes me remember an article I read last month that might be of interest to you and any others who are reading this discussion. If anyone wants to discuss that article, please feel free to do so in this discussion. I think that often our students might also doubt their ability to do their writing assignments so you are likely able to empathize with them in that regard. I know that for me when I struggle with writing and doing well at it I remind myself that my students probably often feel the way I do and I hope that my experience helps me better guide my students through the writing process and the struggles.

Brenda,

Wow. After I read the article, I felt like we were on the same wavelength today. I do agree that we need to support our students to continue to improve their writing. We can offer feedback that is strategic and focused. We can offer them suggestions and examples of what "good writing" looks like or resources they can read or view online to support any issues they may be struggling with during their course(s).

I hope everyone had an enjoyable 4th of July yesterday. Maybe you spent some time writing : )

For this first week, I introduced the question of whether or not teachers should write for publication. There are teachers who have strong opinions, one way or the other, on that question. Take, for instance, something that happened a few decades ago.

In 1990, a high school writing teacher in Wisconsin sparked a debate about whether or not teachers should write. The English Journal published a brief article in which that teacher declared, in no uncertain terms, that high school writing teachers should not try to write for publication. She wrote that article in response to a trend at that time of writing teachers being encouraged to write. The rationale of proponents was that writing teachers should complete whatever assignments their students had to write and they should also attempt to write for publication. With a fair bit of snark, the author presented her main argument in opposition: time. She claimed that it was not worth the time and effort for teachers to write, especially if it didn’t advance their careers, because they already had too much to do and too little time to do it. 

Even though her focus was on high school writing teachers, I think we can relate it to our discussion here so I am posing two questions:

1. Should college faculty write along with their students and complete the same writing assignments that their students have to write? Why or why not?

2. Should college faculty try to write for publication even if being published will not help advance their career (e.g., tenure or rank)? Why or why not?

Jost, K. (1990, March). Rebuttal: Why High-School Writing Teachers Should Not Write. The English Journal. 79(3), 65-66.

Brenda,

As an ex-writing teacher in K-12 public education, I participated in several professional development opportunities that proposed teachers write alongside students during writer's workshop. This way students could constantly see a model of good writing. However, the pieces did not always have to be developed. 

For example, during the 1st writing project, faculty may draft alongside the students in free-writing or during brainstorming. As time progresses, faculty could write several leads with students, or write to revise a portion of a piece the teacher had written. 

In public education, I did do this alongside my students, and I believed it fostered a sense of writing for purpose and enjoyment. I led by example. Some of the professional development that supported this idea is The Lucy Calkins Writing Project, Six Traits Plus One Writing, and The New Jersey Writing Project, all of which were instrumental in producing a better writing teacher. I may not feel like I was a great writer, but I could solicit good writing from my students. 

As for faculty, we do write with our students during a course. As we have to respond to our students on the discussion boards we have to address the prompt, address the students insights, and cite our sources. I do see the benefit of this idea if faculty members are focused on being continual learners. The more faculty analyzes or evaluates text and responds to it, the more familar and in-depth faculty would become on certain topics. Thus, this could catapult faculty in pursuing writing opportunities and seeking publication based on the collaboration they may already be participating in during online or face to face courses. 

Overall, in some format, faculty does write with their students, but perhaps not as much as an English or Creative Writing faculty member might do. I do see the benefit to it; however, I do believe faculty could choose certain instances where they may write a little to model, but not so much as it can be overwhelming. With a full course load to teach, meetings to attend, professional development to develop and present, conferences to attend, papers to grade, and outside personal and family commitments as well, we have to find a balance. 

Mirta

Brenda,

I think the answer is a "YES" for me. I do have to be honest and reveal that I had no desire to publish, but as my higher education career grew, I saw the need. I am not only an instructor but a researcher. It is imperative, that I keep abreast of all the new pedagogy and any new instructional theories or ideas that may be developing or surfacing. In my view, the business of publication can only result in positive outcomes. Universities are interested in faculty members who continue to learn and publish. 

In order to have high expectations of my students, I need to have high expectations for myself. 

WHY?: I may not be looking for tenure at this point and maybe I never will, but it is beneficial to continue to teach and share my knowledge and learn from others as well.  I have to continue to grow as an academic individual and part of that is seeking publication. In doing this, I will improve various skills, and I believe the benefits are endless.  

Mirta

Mirta,

I'm enjoying our discussion and I think you make good points about why teachers should write and what they should write. Thanks for taking the time to join this discussion even though you are busy teaching, writing, and preparing for an upcoming webinar. If I have my dates correct, you will be presenting something on Monday, July 8 that all faculty are invited to join (the latest newsletter has a link for folks to register).

1. If for no other reason, I think faculty should attempt the writing assignments in their courses just so they can see how difficult it is to churn out high-quality researched writing in a short amount of time. I teach a course that is seven weeks long and there is a substantial writing assignment due at the end of each week in addition to the weekly DQs that require a lot of research and writing. Maybe I'm just slower than others, but I definitely need more than one week's time to do a good job with an essay. 

2. Yes, I think faculty should try to write for publication. Writing is a way of thinking and also a way of learning. I could simply research something in history, but if I write about what I have researched, then I am thinking critically about the topic and also joining the conversation with others who have written about the topic. And if I receive yet another rejection from a publisher, then that is a learning experience for me as well.

Brenda,

I agree on both points. I feel blessed to be a faculty member as I benefit from this process. My own analytical and writing skills improve as I continue on this academic path. At least, those are my hopes. We never cease to learn. I was lucky to obtain my BA and M.Ed in face to face environment but obtained my additional graduate principal certification and Ed.D online, so I have had the advantage of understanding how both modes of learning function and how challenging coursework can be on both fronts. I do try to be cognizant of that when teaching in any format. I do remember having to churn out essays quickly. 

At any rate,  I usually want to review and reflect on my written responses to my students. Later, I think I should have written something else instead. We are our own critics.

Mirta

Mirta,

I, too, completed my undergrad and a graduate degree in a traditional face-to-face setting. I also completed another graduate degree through distance learning (it was all through email and snail mail to the professors). Since about 2012, I have completed many (100+) courses online that I have used for my own personal enrichment and for professional development. I'm glad to have had all those various experiences as a student.

I recently completed an article about how I try to help the focus of my online class be on doing high-quality work, rather than just doing work quickly. I'm told the article might be published online at the end of July or beginning of August. If that happens before this month's discussion is done, maybe I might try to work that into my schedule for this July discussion.

Brenda,

I think it is helpful to have those experiences as a faculty member. I am right there with you. If there is professional development that I participate in online for free, I take it. Luckily, this university offers many resources for us, but other organizations offer free and low-cost professional development as well, and it has always been beneficial. 

I am so hopeful for publication as well. I have submitted some for educational blogs and those will be posted soon, but I am working on a case study right now and I hope I can finish it before the fall to submit. Good Luck to both of us. I am already thinking about the next one. 

Mirta

Brenda-Thank you for sharing the article. It is a meaningful article, which helps one to self reflect on his/her own thoughts on writing. It is an encouragement for me to pick up the pen and start writing. Thanks again.

Elmay

Elmay, Thanks for following the discussion. I'm glad you like it thus far. 

Week 2 - Risks: What are some pitfalls of writing (or attempting to write) for publication?

For week two of this month’s discussion, let’s list and discuss some of the risks of having your writing published or of attempting to get published. Last week I mentioned a high school English teacher who had an article published which, ironically, was about why teachers shouldn’t write for publication. It could be said that by taking the time to write and submitting her article for publication she disproved her own claim that teachers don’t have time to write and shouldn’t write for publication. At any rate, it’s a good example to lead us into discussing potential risks of writing for publication.

That teacher took a risk in writing the article. She didn’t know how it would be received or what people would think of her for writing it. She received some support, but also criticism. However, she was willing to take that risk and her article sparked a good debate and caused people to stop and think about the issue and craft their own argument either in agreement or disagreement with her claim. 

We take risks when we write for publication or attempt to write for publication. One of the risks of attempting to write is receiving rejection letters (or emails) and one of the risks of having something published is that we might receive criticism. However, if success and praise are the result of having one’s writing published, then a pitfall of that could be pride or arrogance. 

What are some other possible risks or pitfalls that teachers might face and should be aware of when attempting to write for publication or when having their writing published?

Brenda,

I can come up with a couple of items. 

For one, currently I am writing with another peer and we have broken up the responsibilities in parts, so it is taking her a little longer to complete her pieces and at this point, if it is not done by the end of the week, I am going to have to go it alone.

2. Some journals require payment to submit, so that can become costly.

3. The fear of rejection is always looming over my head. 

4. And of course, there is always a fear of self-criticism, we are our worst critics. I see many journal articles with Errata sheets. I know it is inevitable to have mistakes, we are only human. However, I would like to submit without having to follow it with an Errata sheet later. 

Note: Thank you for prompting this discussion. It is so purposeful.

Mirta

1. Should college faculty write along with their students and complete the same writing assignments that their students have to write? Why or why not?

I certainly would not deter someone from doing so but I personally do feel that faculty perhaps should write beyond the  the assignments that the students write and as a means to identify new problems/opportunities

2. Should college faculty try to write for publication even if being published will not help advance their career (e.g., tenure or rank)? Why or why not?

Interesting question..... I would venture that those with a Doctorate, in principle, are supposed to write for publication or at least publish presentations based on research. At least this is what my instructor mentioned for the first doctoral course that I had taken. I remember something akin to "the idea that those with a doctorate are tasked with furthering the research community as a means to spread knowledge and seek the truth". I just do it because I want to so and regardless of the benefits. Although, I would venture that someone who publishes work will achieve opportunities in academia involving tenure and rank if this is what the individual wants. 

Other than this I would recommend giving it a try; its not easy but it is worth the effort to see what people can do to make a difference in a world full of problems to be identified and resolved.

Mike,

You are correct about writing for publication once you have your doctorate, it's almost an unspoken requirement. Some who have tenure and are full-time faculty are required to publish as part of their contract, and I am sure the policies vary from university to university. However, not as much pressure is placed on adjunct faculty, but there is still an academic need that propels us to continually learn and collaborate with others.

Mirta

Indeed... this is where the publish or perish concept is relevant. It's not too bad but it is kind of funny to be excited about a 40% acceptance rate from a target publisher and it goes down hill from there... I even had one publisher that wanted to accept my research but in the end whomever controls the journal did not want to publish it because they did not want to touch the subject. Such is life...

It's good to have Mike join the discussion. I like your point, Mike, about how writing helps identify problems and opportunities. I agree that there are benefits to writing beyond academic title or rank.

Mirta and Mike have brought up two issues that I want to address at this point. 

Paying to be Published

If there is a publisher (either online or print) that requires writers to pay a fee, that can be a red flag that you need to do some more investigation into that publisher. There are predatory publishers out there and one of their characteristics is that they make authors pay. That isn't to say that every publisher that has that policy is a predatory publisher, but it is something to be on guard about. Writing for a disreputable publisher can have a negative effect on your academic reputation.

Possible rejection can be a big deterrant to some people. More than once I have had an editor respond positively to my query and express interest in my article idea. I would then spend a lot of time and effort to write the article only to have the peer reviewers or someone else reject it. However, those were valuable learning experiences. I don't know many people who like to fail, but failure is part of learning.

Mike, 

That is harsh. We live to submit another day to another journal. :0) I'm at the point where I just want to complete what I am working on to submit, but when you collaborate wait time is necessary for other parties. Have you ever reviewed a book in your content/discipline? I have gotten close, but every resource I choose has been reviewed, so I am looking for something that is more recent. Reviews are a little easier to publish and allow you to work on your writing skills and overall build your experiences with submissions, deadlines, and organizations.

Mirta

Brenda,

(Paying to be published). 

I think you are correct there aren't too many out there that ask you to pay to publish, but I have heard the stories. Luckily, thus far those I wish to submit to do not have a submission fee, but it is good to air on the side of caution. 

Mirta

Hello Everyone, I have been privy to both scenarios; rejections and asked to pay a fee. I have to say that I was a very naive scholarly writer when I was considering the fee. I am glad that I opted against it, due to some timely advice from colleagues. That being said, I have submitted a couple articles for publication consideration that were rejected. I know that I did not invest enough time and have to add that I very recently completed my dissertation, so I fell into the "trap" of submitting text that mirrored my dissertation research and was not necessarily appropriate for the journal selected. Once again, chalk that up to some level of scholarly naivety. So, I ask; what advice can you all provide? Thank you, Dwight

I just keep going Dwight; the more rejections we receive creates the road for an acceptance and something awesome. Patience and persistence... just as when we write a thesis or dissertation. I just go into this with the mindset that I have published in some journal and nothing or no one will stop me from moving onward. I also keep the mindset that it is not if I will publish but how many times over will I publish?

Dwight, 

I agree with Mike, keep submitting. A colleague of mine suggested collaborating with others, so that is where I am right now. I am co-writing with someone, but that is hard to organize and muddle through as I have come to realize with schedules and other issues. But, in my discipline, I do see various collaborations among professors/researchers. For now, I have submitted to college newsletters and blogs to help hone my writing skills, and I have submitted proposals to present. I have presented a couple of times. I really do enjoy it. I look forward to publishing in a journal soon. Good Luck everyone.

Mirta

Colleagues,

Here is a link to journals/organizations that accept submissions.

https://provost.tufts.edu/celt/files/SoTL-Journals.pdf

Dwight, Thanks for joining the discussion and sharing your experiences. Mirta has provided a good list for those interested in SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) writing. However, if someone is trying to get started and/or desires to keep up their writing skills, I agree with Mirta that newsletters, blogs, etc. would be good venues. Start with what you read. In my opinion, good writers are readers. Hopefully you are reading journals, magazines, newsletters, etc. either in print or online. Those are places you could pitch your writing to after you become familiar with the types of articles that they publish and the style of writing that they prefer. Mike also provides good advice about being patient and persistent. Although we might not prefer it, we might have to write for free. Your "pay" is that you get a byline and clips that demonstrate you've been published. I've written articles for free and I still do. One time I got paid in copies (the magazine sent me 10 free copies of the issue where my article appeared). I've also been paid for my writing. It hasn't amounted to much, but it was money, not copies : )

As I was reading through the recent comments in this discussion, I realized I should mention another risk: be aware of the rights on any writing contract you sign. This webpage provides a good overview of the different types of rights. When I am writing for publication, I do not pitch to publishers who want All Rights. However, I have worked for organizations where part of my job involved writing and, in those cases, all my writing was considered a "Work for Hire" which is basically the same as "All Rights." In fact, the writing that I'm doing here in this discussion is a "work for hire" which means that I can't take my comments from here and then publish them somewhere else.

Brenda,

You bring up many important points. Specifically, the "all rights" clauses in contracts are items we need to pay close attention to in our line of work. When I have worked for a certain organization whatever we wrote belonged to them. I too have published for free. When I worked in public education, I reviewed young adult literature and my payment was free books and access to free online magazines where my pieces would be featured. No monetary incentives were given, but I felt the experience was a positive one. Plus, it was a great way to read books for free, build my classroom library as well as have an opportunity to publish. 

Once again, Brenda, you have shared some very important insights with us about publishing and writing. It is painstaking to wait to be published, but exhilarating as well. Additionally, the comment you made about being readers first is true. In this profession, we are fortunate to be immersed in reading that fosters discussions with our students within the courses we instruct. However, I sometimes miss reading topics I find more interesting. That is next on my list. Thank you for the reminder.

Mirta

Thank you all for your recommendations and the resources provided. I am certainly planning to do whatever I can to keep up with my writing and research. I am glad that I can participate in this forum, as it gives me another appropriate and useful primary resource. 

Yes, Brenda, I read as much as I can; just to stay abreast of the many changes in technology and cyber-security. In many instances, the industry moves so quickly that it is difficult to keep up. This creates its own writing challenge; we have to be careful that we are writing about something that is pertinent to the topic and the time frame of the topic. Conversely, we cannot allow our scholarly writing to become a prediction or projection of future developments. I have discovered that this challenge has caused some hesitation. What do you all think? 

John Marangos’ focal points of research are the transition processes in Russia, Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union and Asia, international development, and innovative methodologies for teaching economics. The publications or in the process of publication include: 12 books (two books have been translated into Greek), 17 book chapters, 70 refereed journal articles, 9 refereed papers in conference proceedings, 14 entries in encyclopedias, one report, seven book reviews, four multimedia developments projects and nine research grants. He is among the top 5% authors in the world according to the criteria: Number of Journal Pages and Number of Journal Pages Weighted by Number of Authors (http://ideas.repec.org/f/pma340.html). He is currently, Associate Editor, International Journal of Social Economics from 2017. Editor of the Forum for Social Economics, a referee journal published by the Association of Social Economics. Appointed for 2006-11, and Section Editor International Economics and Development Studies of the Global Business & Economics Review, 2007-10. Guest editor, Review of Social Economy with the theme “Living Standards and Social Well-Being”, for publication in February 2007 (with Deborah M. Figart) and Global Business & Economics Review, with the theme “The Political Economy of Transition”, published in December 2005. Member of the editorial boards of the Hellenic Open Business Administration Journal, Forum for Social Economics, Πανοeconomics Studies in Economics and Finance (2009-2013), Global Business & Economics Review (2004-6). He has been invited to offer workshops on “how to write an article for publication in an international ranked journal” and “how to publish an article for publication in an international ranked journal”. To download a paper, please follow the link www.johnmarangos.eu.

Mirta, Do you think it would be helpful if FAB had a future discussion on this forum about copyright and author's rights?

Dwight, I hope you didn't think I was implying that you don't read. I apologize if my comment sounded like that. Thanks for letting us know your area of expertise. Your field definitely is always changing. However, I think in any field there is a risk in writing. I've written in the field of history and there is the risk that someone else might, through their research, discover or uncover something that contradicts what I wrote. However, I've been on the opposite side of that. The first time I was published in a history journal was because I wrote an article that used other historical evidence to disprove something that had previously appeared in that journal. 

John, Thanks for joining our discussion. I will assume from your list of publications that you think faculty should be writing for publication. So, based on your vast experience, do you have any risks or pitfalls to add to our discussion this week?

Hello Brenda, I did not think that at all; I do appreciate your feedback and I am happy to be a participant in this forum. I have already cataloged a ton of information on what I need to be a consistent published writer. I look forward to additional information. Thank you!

Colleagues! I have a silly question - I submitted an article to a journal and now they have asked me to review an article. Is there a template to follow for this endeavor? 

Just a Noobie

Dwight, Thank you! I hope that any additional information that I, or others, share during this month's discussion will be beneficial and helpful to you.

Lisa! Welcome to the discussion. My only experience with reviewing was through Scholastica and this article from that organization might be of interest to you. If others have experience reviewing, I hope they add their tips and advice to this discussion.

Brenda,

I do think it is an important discussion we should have among ourselves. I have some minimal experience with self-publishing as I worked with someone that did this, and we had to go to Bower to purchase our own ISBN and some of the information touched on copyright and so forth. But, it was not extensive. I did not feel like I gained any new knowledge that would carry over to my professional academic career. I would love to learn more about copyright and author's rights as it pertains to publishing in journals and how we can retain access to our own work.

Mirta

Hi All,

I do believe that teachers should write for publication.  It's important to the profession, it's important to our students, that we are willing to go a step further past our degrees to continue exploring the boundaries of our expertise. 

For me, the biggest roadblocks have been time and where to start. I like Mirta's suggestion to collaborate with others on articles, have you all just collaborated with face-to-face colleagues in the past? 

Thanks,

Rebecca

Has anyone tried the CIRT's INK 8-week program?

It's great to see so many interested in this topic. If people want to talk about resources now, that's great - I like the enthusiasm. Here on CIRT there is THINK and INK. Feel free to look at those now keeping in mind that during week four I'm planning on getting more detailed about resources. 

Rebecca, I haven't done any collaboration in writing, but I'm sure others have and will join in this discussion to share their experiences.

Rebecca,

Currently, I am collaborating with another individual with a terminal degree. She is currently using her talents to work for an educational research institute of some kind, and she would also like to expand her publication experience. I am writing with her because she is family and we know one another well. I think in the near future, I would like to write with someone who works with GCU or another institution after I become better acquainted with others. I look forward to writing more.

Lisa,

I will look into the CIRT INK 8-week program, can you elaborate on it? I can look it up, but if you are online can you give us a 1 to 2 sentence summary?

Mirta

Mirta, it was in one of those newsletters we get -> 

Think and Ink Programs- Get Started with Research

Think and Ink is a research support group designed to help researchers connect with one another and navigate the process. The initial “Think” portion consists of eight weeks of planning, design and going through the approval process. The experience culminates with the “Ink” portion, during which researchers will design a publication for submission over a 10-week span.
Sign up online now to learn more about this exciting initiative.

I signed up and the lady wrote me right back. I said June would be better and as RL turns out, August might actually be better. Life happens to us all!

Lisa

Lisa,

Thanks. Brenda just posted the link. I will look into it right now. I so want to participate in anything that can support me professionally and support my academic growth.

Thanks,

Mirta

Time is a big factor when it comes to faculty and their writing. This article addresses how to manage multiple projects and this article includes strategies for completing writing projects. 

What are some things in either of those two articles with which you find yourself agreeing or disagreeing? 

What are some helpful tips from either of those two articles that you plan to implement for yourself?

Regarding the first article that I linked to in my previous comment, I disagree with tip number two. When it comes to avoiding procrastination, having good time management, and getting things done, it's recommended that you eat the frog first.

Regarding the second article that I linked to in my previous comment, I found it helpful in that it urges me to have a plan. I tend to just have sticky notes in various places on my desk and on the wall near my desk with lists of writing ideas. On my weekly/daily to-do lists, I sometimes just have "write" but I need to get more specific with my plans.

Brenda,

I am always busy. Luckily, I happen to love what I do. But, currently, I am starting a project with one colleague and in the middle of another. I skimmed the articles, but the gist of it for me was making time to write every day. I do agree with Beating the Writing Summer Blues that we almost need a road map, so we see the destination. We know where we are and where we are heading. Additionally,  we need to be organized and intentional in our projects. Personally, I do not like to wait until the last minute. I like to attack my writing projects with time. I usually set up a calendar. I try to follow it.

Mirta

Brenda,

In regards to "eating the frog" I am in agreement. I usually like to accomplish a big part of my project first and then worry about the smaller parts. I am not a procrastinator. It's actually a pet peeve of mine. This is why I have a hard time working with others that are more laid back. I'd like to make a commitment to setting up a schedule and sticking to it if all possible. However, as I experience the process of writing for publication, I am sure I will learn additional strategies in regards to collaborating with others along the way.

Mirta

Mirta,

Thank you for sharing the challenges you've experienced while trying to collaborate on a writing project with others. I think when students are required to do group projects that they run into some of those same problems. 

I also am busy, and I intentionally do that. The busier I am it seems the better I am at organizing my time and not wasting time. I know many others are busy, too, and they have pressures put upon them that they can't control. I want this discussion to be a benefit and not a burden, so if people just want to read the comments and don't have time to write a comment, that's fine with me. I'll just keep posting things to think about and posing questions that people can consider on their own or can respond to here in the discussion.

______________________________

Speaking of having things to do, I want to remind those reading this discussion that you have only a couple of days left to retrieve anything you want to keep from the old LMS. If I have my information correct, the old LMS will be archived on Monday, July 15, and we will lose access to the online class sections we taught on the old LMS. 

Next week in this discussion I plan to circle back to the topic of benefits. That will overlap a bit with the focus of our discussion during week one, but that's okay because it will give others an opportunity to join in where we started and also will help us get more detailed about how our writing can benefit us and others.

As an online adjunct, I believe strongly in our need to write and publish. After I graduated, I felt lost without access to a full university library, to continue my own research. Since coming on board here, I have continued to publish with my old classmates, and now with peers here and my recent graduates. We add to the body of knowledge that way. I saw that someone posted a list of journals, thank you. I have several that education based, that I can share as well. 

Brenda,

I actually welcome this discussion board as it allows me to collaborate with others. I do enjoy working with others. Thank you for reminding us of the old LMS updating this week. I do need to save some of my responses and CATs to a Faq Sheet.

Mirta

Mirta, I  know what you are saying about procrastination. I call what I do "percolating". I sit there and ponder for a while and then write gobs of information down and overall it seems to work well. Of course if the sense of urgency is there I will not percolate but rather I will take immediate action. 

Another thought, if anyone is interested in a "think tank" to brainstorm a research collaboration ideas I would be interested. My areas for research include: Economics, Business, Management/Leadership, Human Resources and to a certain degree public policy. My email is [email protected]

Just a thought....

Mike,

I am collaborating on two projects currently, and I often set deadlines. I have one colleague who never meets deadlines, while the other one does. However, I have to admit that one is not currently involved in higher education, so that may be where the lack of urgency is at this time, whereas my career and growth academically depends on the publication of my research and writing.

Mirta

Mike, 

I wish I was more familiar with those disciplines. I would take you up on your offer. Perhaps leadership. I do have a question for others: is it common practice to have peers edit your work and offer them praise in the acknowledgment section of article/case studies or is that more often found in the publication of books?

Mirta

Mirta, I was on this one research team (someone asked me to participate for some reason so I said sure!) and it was to measure the differences between critical thinking levels between MBA graduates and DM graduates for a specific university. We did well overall together but then the team lead had to step down. Plus we could not get a good sample despite best efforts to ensure that the research would be reliable and valid. In the end we parted ways but it was a good lesson that we have to be confident early onset that we can get the sample. This is why I like analyzing various pieces of secondary data instead..The other issue we had was that the work would probably have been better (if we finished it) in an education journal but none of us were directly involved in that industry so our target was leadership journals..

Here are a few of my lists.

I will also try to find the presentation I do with recent graduates, on publishing their dissertations. 

Jeff,

Thank you for sharing those extensive lists of journals. If others have resources or comments pertaining to writing for publication, feel free to share those whenever you have the time. I realize that people can’t be here for every week throughout the month.

________________________________

Week 3 - Results: How can (or can't) writing for publication benefit teachers and/or their readers?

We kicked off this month’s discussion by talking about reasons why faculty should or should not write for publication. Based on the comments shared thus far, I have compiled a list (see below) of the reasons that have been shared. I encourage those of you reading this discussion to select one (or more, if you would like) of the reasons below and share the results you have experienced that pertain to the reason(s) you’ve selected.

Or, if you would rather not share a result, feel free to suggest more reasons (other than what is listed below) for why faculty should write for publication.

Reasons

• Furthers your career 
• Shows that you do practice what you preach to your students
• Helps you better see your own shortcomings 
• Enables you to collaborate and network with others
• Improves your research and writing
• Assists you in empathizing with your students and being an example to them
• Fosters continual learning
• Keeps you up-to-date in your academic field and in higher education
• Improves your organizational skills
• Makes you face any fears you might have about writing for publication
• Contributes to current research 
• Develops patience and persistence

Results

One of the reasons why I write is that I think it can help me be a better teacher. There have been a couple of times when students have struggled with understanding something in the course material and, even though I understood the idea or concept, I struggled to explain it to them adequately. Those instances prompted me to write on those topics and submit what I wrote for publication. As a result of going through that process of wrestling with the idea/concept and expressing/explaining it in writing, I am now better prepared when those questions come up in the discussion forum.   

What results, or additional reasons, would some of you like to share?

----------- Interlude --------------

I frequently take free online courses and last week I completed a course that used recorded lectures from someone who had been a seminary professor for decades. Sometimes that seasoned professor would pause during a lecture to tell a joke or two. Even though this discussion is not a lecture, I think I will pause to insert something lighthearted about writing. 

I have a number of writing journals, but three of them have sayings printed on the front covers that make me chuckle every time I see them. One says "Apathy: I could take it or leave it" and one says "I'm no rocket surgeon" and the third says "I avoid cliches like the plague."

I will share another result that has to do with the benefit of developing patience. Last week I thought I was all set to submit an article when I realized that I needed to include a specific quote. I was having difficulty finding the exact wording of the quote and its source. Eventually I figured out where I could find the quote, but it was in a resource that I did not have access to on the day I wanted to complete my article. I found the resource through the public library system in my state and requested it. Here I am, almost one week later, still waiting for the resource. At first I was frustrated at having to wait. Every day I checked the status of my request only to watch it move very slowly from “pending” to “in transit.” Not only is this experience teaching me patience when it comes to my own writing, but also patience when it comes to waiting for others.  

As a result, I’ve had extra time to work on the article and noticed many areas of it that needed improvement. Waiting has not only worked on my character by helping to develop patience, but also has benefited my writing by giving me more time to polish it.  

To those of you who are reading this discussion: 

What results have you experienced as it relates to any of the reasons (listed two posts ago) for writing? 

Or 

If you are like the teacher I mentioned early on in this discussion who thinks teachers should not write for publication, what has led you to think there are no benefits?

My plan for next week is to focus on resources. Some in this discussion have already shared resources (thank you!), in the form of academic journals, that faculty can consider for potential publication. I think we also need to consider the possibility of publishing in places other than academic journals. Some in this discussion have already suggested blogs and newsletters (thank you!) and I look forward to getting more specific about those and hearing from others regarding their ideas. 

I've also shared articles in this discussion that talk about time management and how to organize and prioritize multiple projects. If others have resources to share on that topic, we would like to hear from you, too.

Something else related to resources has to do with those that help us become better writers. In order to spur your thinking about that in preparation for wrapping up this month's discussion, consider the following question and then click on it to read the article it is associated with:

"What are the essential ingredients for a publishable research article?"

Hello all, I'm just seeing this discussion. So exciting! I just had an article published with Dr. Scott Greenberger in Active Learning in Higher Education entitled: An interdisciplinary perspective: The value that instructors place on giving written feedback

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1469787418810127

It is my first one, and now I'm stuck!

I'd like to write a reflection piece for a SOTL journal, but I really need to look at some models. Any suggestions?
Thank you for this discussion, Brenda.

Dr. Knight-Hay

Brenda,

I submitted a piece of writing recently to one of GCUs newsletters with the COE, so I am hoping it is published in Septemeber or October. I will continue to submit to those newsletters as I do believe it helps us as faculty practice our writing skills. I am currently working on completing an article and hopefully, it is ready by August, so I can submit. Additionally, thanks to all the colleagues who shared their resources and links to academic journals.

Mirta

Stephanie,

That topic (feedback) is of utmost importance to those of us who are online faculty since face to face interaction is less likely. My article deals with faculty instructional feedback. I look forward to reading it. Congrats!

Mirta

Mirta,

I didn't know the COE had a newsletter. Thank you for letting us know. I wish that those of us who are not part of the COE could read that newsletter. I know that the COT (College of Theology) has a blog that faculty can submit to, and that blog is viewable by anyone (last I checked). A couple of years ago I wrote some articles for that blog.

Stephanie,

It's great to have you join the discussion. Congrats on being published in that journal. I agree with Mirta that feedback is an important topic. I was recently reading a book titled How People Learn and one section of it discussed the importance of feedback from instructors and how effective feedback focuses on helping students assess and revise their own thinking and understanding.

The 2019 Spring into Summer Online Conference had a session about SoTL. If you were not able to be part of that, I think you can watch a recording by going to this page and then scrolling down until you see the SoTL heading. Perhaps that presentation would be helpful to you (and others!).

Brenda,

I just found out myself a month ago. I guess it is a blog/newsletter format. But, I also think they have a newsletter as well, like an online magazine. Still researching the sources here at GCU. Here is the link: https://blogs.gcu.edu/college-of-education/

Mirta

Thank you, Mirta! I've just discovered that it looks like all the colleges have a blog. Since you've provided a link to the COE blog, I'll provide links to the others that I found.

College of Business

College of Fine Arts

College of Humanities

College of Nursing

College of Science

College of Theology

If anyone reading this discussion knows of other GCU-sponsored blogs that faculty can submit articles to, please share those so we can add them to the list.

We're now beginning week four when I planned to focus on resources that can help us all become better writers and resources where we can attempt to get published. Some of your colleagues have already provided links to potential publishers of peer-reviewed academic journal articles and also GCU-sponsored blogs. Take a look through the comments thus far and you will see those resources. Throughout the remainder of this month feel free to continue posting and commenting on resources that could be in any one of the following categories (or maybe some different categories not listed below):

• peer-reviewed journals
• academic/educational blogs
• academic/educational newsletters
• books about writing
• articles about writing
• websites or online courses about writing

I'll kick off this week with this article that discusses tips for both writers and reviewers.

This is resources week, so today I have two more resources. Some of you may have noticed that I sometimes link to articles in Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle of HIgher Education. Both of those organizations accept submissions from their readers. Perhaps some of you might want to try and pitch an idea. Follow the links I've provided to see their submission guidelines and contact information. 

Many higher ed faculty have written for those sites. What might make you want to or not want to be published there?

Are peer-reviewed articles all they are cracked up to be?

I'm regularly hearing and reading about peer-reviewed articles containing errors or even intentionally faulty data. Just as there are students who cheat, there are academicians who also cheat. The higher the pressure there is on students to get a good grade or on faculty to get published, the more likely cheating occurs. (I'm currently reading about that in a book titled Cheating Lessons by James Lang.) Also, if a peer-reviewed article contains mistakes, it's not easily fixed. Lastly, who is benefiting from peer-reviewed articles when they are often accessible only through a paid subscription (and not available through the library) or they are behind an online paywall?

I have a fun story to share in reference to your post, Brenda....

When I was writing my dissertation I chose a quantitative descriptive analysis (although at the time based on hypotheticals) and it was a bit of a challenge to say the least. Now, in this case I am not sure what cheating means but even speculation alone can be construed as cheating perhaps. So, I borrowed a base case model as it turned out to be from an Author who graduated from Harvard and was part of the RAND corporation and active at UC Santa Barbara. I actually had a 40 minute conversation with this man ( to borrow his model) and the one point that rested in my head was based on his words "there is a certain degree of speculation that exists with research and the idea here is to set ourselves up for others to try and prove us wrong". Now, this resonates with me well based on undergraduate school at the University of Delaware where this is what they did in the Criminal Justice Department all of the time. 

Flash forward: I was part of a dissertation to publication workshop and my second target was a University in Florida who rejected my journal proposal because it was based on speculation (a mistake in my research so to speak) and although they rejected it, it turns out that the results of my data later turned out to be so true that I was able to research and present similar findings for the State of Colorado (CSU Pueblo). 

So I wonder in many respects.. .would I have been critiqued the same way if I went to Harvard? After all, the influence from my research was based on an author from Harvard who essentially was torn apart by many in academia and I personally believe that the author did this on purpose to further research.

Brenda, 

I will look into those resources you provided. Thank you for sharing.

Mirta

Brenda,

As of late, I haven't read any articles that contain faulty data, but I have seen minor errors present in some articles. I know if errors occur some opt to use ERRATA sheet. I know I had some mistakes with my dissertation (the acknowledgment pages). Looking back, I must have submitted the wrong copy (I had about 100 updates). I requested they pull my dissertation down off the web and library, and I resubmitted it with the right copy. Luckily, my submission was only live for a week before I noticed. I always read the content and never concerned myself with the dedication pages.

I would prefer resubmission to an ERRATA sheet. Peer-reviewed is supposed to mean that professionals in the field have read the article prior to publication. I suppose each newsletter or publisher has an expert on hand. In the end, we can only control what we publish, and as I have learned my lesson with my first experience; I will require (of myself) my work to be read by other experts. Hopefully, I do not have to pay to have this done. As you can believe no one wanted to read my almost 200-page dissertation besides my committee. 

As a neophyte lesson learned. 

Thank you,

Mirta

Brenda,

I know waiting can be challenging. Every experience is a learning experience. I am still working on mine as well and I would love to submit it, but I know I need a month to complete it, then just live with it for a moment to make sure I phrased everything as it should be or wrote enough on the literature review. I think we all second guess ourselves. But, then there lies the self-improvement. Good Luck.

Mirta

Mike and Mirta have brought up some good points in regard to writing for peer-reviewed journals. It seems that peer-review's reputation is being damaged by some bad actors. For example, you can read about a Cornell professor and his research misconduct or about unreliable studies by Australian scientists. 

As to Mike's story, it seems a person can actually do good research and have a well-written article, but sometimes it might boil down to who you know or what your education pedigree is. We put that in the "life's not fair" category. It seems a person could follow all the advice, such as what is outlined in this article, yet still receive a rejection. Because of that, I tend to think it might be beneficial to be published in some non-peer-reviewed publications (print or online) as a way to get your name and your work out there for people to see and get to know you before you put a lot of time and effort into writing for peer review. 

I'll share a story about peer review from my experience. At the beginning of summer 2018, I sent a query to an editor of a peer-reviewed history magazine where I had previously had an article published. The editor was not the same one as before, but the new editor liked my idea and asked me to send the full article for review. So I worked on it for a couple of months and sent it in July of 2018. I waited seven months (she told me it would take six months) only to receive a rejection from the peer reviewers. I was not provided with the reviewers' full comments, but the editor shared with me just one or two sentences from the reviewers and they weren't the "revise and resubmit" type of comments, but were the "reject" types of comments. The editor then told me that if I wanted to revise and resubmit, she would accept a revision and send it through the review process again. I thanked her and said I would think about it. What I decided to do is revise the article and try sending it to a different magazine. I have my new target magazine already in mind and I'm actually working on my revision this summer.

 -- Breaking News --

Even though peer review has its place in academia, there are many other issues relevant and important to academia that need to be published and discussed in a much faster time frame and in different venues than are possible through peer-reviewed resources. For example, some huge news in online higher ed broke yesterday that could have major ramifications for GCU and for online GCU students from California if the ruling remains. You can read about it here and here.

Truly the benefits of writing for online newsletters, blogs, etc. are the speed with which issues can be addressed and debated and the reach one has through that type of publishing. However, I think we can all see how speed and reach could also have a negative effect.

Congrats to Dr. Knight. Her recent article starts on page 16 of this publication.

What are your thoughts about academics tending to write in an opaque writing style? Should academics write only for their peers or should we write so that the general public, the average person, and our students - who do not share our expertise - can understand what we've written?

We've reached the end of Resources week. In previous weeks your colleagues provided excellent resources in the form of potential peer-reviewed journals that you can investigate on your own as potential publications to submit your writing and research.

I have provided a few resources in the form of online publications and I have another to add today. I've been in contact with the editor of this blog and he told me "What I would say is that Connect For Education is both an academic publisher and an educational technology company rolled into one.  As such we’re looking for writers who have experience teaching online or using technology in the classroom to enhance learning and engagement. My main goal for the blog is to facilitate more conversations in the comments. This might require us to write on controversial topics or rebuttals to opinions articles – those do really well. Feel free to extend my contact information to any friends or colleagues you think might be interested in writing for us!" The contact info can be found here.

If any of you who are reading this discussion have additional resources to suggest, please post those in a comment.

I plan to use the four remaining days of July next week to tie up any loose ends and wrap up this discussion. There will be opportunities for your input during those four days, so don't check out yet : )

I’ve done a lot of writing (maybe too much) this past week in this discussion so I’m looking forward to hearing from all of you as we wrap things up. 

When we participate in Faculty Development webinars or online facilitated workshops, we are given an opportunity to provide feedback. I want to give you all an opportunity to provide feedback on this discussion. Anyone who has read and/or posted comments is invited to provide feedback. You can do so as public comments in this discussion thread or as private comments by clicking on my name and sending me a message. Below are some areas where your feedback would be helpful to me and I hope to other discussion facilitators in the future. You don’t need to respond to all the questions; just pick the one(s) that you feel comfortable answering.

• The stated objectives of this discussion were to cover reasons, risks, results, and resources related to writing for publication. Did this discussion meet those objectives? If not, which area(s) do you think lacked sufficient coverage?
• For those of you who posted comments, was there something specific that prompted you to make a comment or was it just the general topic?
• For those of you who only read comments, what kept you from participating?
• For those who read and/or posted comments, what did you like about this discussion?
• For those who read and/or posted comments, what do you wish had been included, not included, or different?

For those of you who posted comments, was there something specific that prompted you to make a comment or was it just the general topic?

I jumped at the chance to participate in this forum because I am about to attempt publishing in an academic journal again. Any insight (and there was plenty in this forum) is always welcomed as this will help me improve. At the same time it is nice to help others so I hope I was able to provide some insight based on my experiences. 

Best, 

Mike

Mike, Thank you for that helpful feedback.

Brenda,

I wanted to participate a little more, but I have had one class after another. It's been nonstop. I do appreciate the information that has been disseminated here and I am saving links for future resources. Professional learning communities like this are imperative so we share our knowledge, our setbacks, and our growth. You mentioned writing for the readers in general as opposed to staying strictly to peer-reviewed submissions. Both are necessary. I think it presents versatility. Since I did participate and post some comments I was drawn to the publishing aspect as this is the phase I am in at this point. I have a couple of projects going, and I am trying to stay organized. This forum provided me with information that I will utilize as I move forward in the publishing phase of my career. I know to stay relevant and appealing to universities and other employers I have to publish. Additionally, writing and staying current with various topics in my field also supports my academic career. As I teach a course, I need to know what are the current "terms" and upcoming trends in education.  Brenda, thank you for sharing so many resources.

Mirta

Thanks for the helpful feedback, Mirta.

P.S. Even though this discussion is concluded, I just read an article that I think some of you might appreciate.

Keep on writing : )