DIRASATUL IBTIDAIYAH: Jurnal Pendidikan Dasar is a peer-reviewed journal published by the Study Program of Islamic Elementary School Teacher Education (Pendidikan Guru Madrasah Ibtidaiyah), Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teacher Training, Universitas Islam Negeri Syekh Ali Hasan Ahmad Addary Padangsidimpuan, Indonesia. It is available online as an open-access source. This statement clarifies the ethical behavior of all parties involved in the act of publishing an article in this journal, including the author, the editor-in-chief, the Editorial Board, the peer reviewer, and the publisher. This statement is strictly based on COPE’s (Committee on Publication Ethics) Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors.

Ethical Guidelines for Journal Publication

The publication of an article in DIRASATUL IBTIDAIYAH is an essential building block in the development of a coherent and respected network of knowledge in the field of primary and elementary education. It is a direct reflection of the quality of the work of the authors and the institutions that support them. Peer-reviewed articles support and embody the scientific method. It is therefore critical to agree upon standards of expected ethical behavior for all parties involved: the author, the editor, the reviewer, the publisher, and the academic society.

As the publisher, the Study Program of Islamic Elementary School Teacher Education, FTIK, UIN Syekh Ali Hasan Ahmad Addary Padangsidimpuan takes its duties of guardianship over all stages of publishing seriously and recognizes its ethical and academic responsibilities.

Duties of Editors

Publication Decisions

The editors of DIRASATUL IBTIDAIYAH are responsible for deciding which of the articles submitted to the journal should be published. The validation of the work in question and its academic importance to researchers and readers must always drive such decisions. The editors are guided by the policies of the journal's editorial board and constrained by current legal requirements regarding libel, copyright infringement, and plagiarism. The editors may confer with other editors or reviewers in making their final decisions.

Plagiarism Screening

It is fundamentally the author’s duty to submit a manuscript that is free from plagiarism and academic malpractice. The editorial office, however, double-checks each article before peer review and publication using professional detection software (such as Turnitin) against global online databases.

Fair Play

An editor evaluates manuscripts for their intellectual and scientific content without regard to race, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, ethnic origin, citizenship, or political philosophy of the authors.

Confidentiality

The editors and any editorial staff must not disclose any information about a submitted manuscript to anyone other than the corresponding author, reviewers, potential reviewers, other editorial advisers, and the publisher, as appropriate.

Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest

Unpublished materials disclosed in a submitted manuscript must not be used in an editor's own research without the express written consent of the author.

Duties of Reviewers

Contribution to Editorial Decisions

Peer review assists the editors in making editorial decisions, and through editorial communications with the authors, it may also assist the author in improving the quality and clarity of the paper.

Promptness

Any selected referee who feels unqualified to review the research reported in a manuscript, or knows that its prompt review will be impossible, should notify the editors immediately and excuse themselves from the review process.

Confidentiality

Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shown to or discussed with others except as authorized by the Editor-in-Chief.

Standards of Objectivity

Reviews must be conducted objectively. Personal criticism of the author is highly inappropriate. Referees should express their views clearly with supporting arguments and academic evidence.

Acknowledgement of Sources

Reviewers should identify relevant published work that has not been cited by the authors. Any statement that an observation, derivation, or argument had been previously reported should be accompanied by a proper citation. A reviewer must also call to the editors' attention any substantial similarity or overlap between the manuscript under consideration and any other published paper of which they have personal knowledge.

Disclosure and Conflict of Interest

Privileged information or ideas obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and not used for personal advantage. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest resulting from competitive, collaborative, or other relationships with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.

Review Process

Every manuscript submitted to DIRASATUL IBTIDAIYAH is independently reviewed by at least two reviewers in the form of a "Double-Blind Peer Review". Decisions for publication, amendment, or rejection are based strictly upon their reports and structural recommendations. In certain cases, the editor may submit an article to a third reviewer before making a final decision.

Duties of Authors

Reporting Standards

Authors of reports of original research should present an accurate account of the fieldwork or theoretical work performed, as well as an objective discussion of its pedagogical significance. Underlying data should be represented accurately in the paper. A paper should contain sufficient detail and references to permit others to replicate the work. Fraudulent or knowingly inaccurate statements constitute unethical behavior and are unacceptable.

Originality and Plagiarism

The authors should ensure that they have written entirely original works, and if the authors have used the work and/or words of others, this must be appropriately cited or quoted according to the APA 7th Edition styling guidelines.

Multiple, Redundant, or Concurrent Publication

An author should not, in general, publish manuscripts describing essentially the same research in more than one journal or primary publication. Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable.

Acknowledgement of Sources

Proper acknowledgment of the work of others must always be given. Authors should cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported research.

Authorship of the Paper

Authorship should be limited to those who have made a significant contribution to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the reported research. All those who have made significant contributions should be listed as co-authors. The corresponding author must ensure that all appropriate co-authors are included in the paper, and that all co-authors have seen and approved the final version of the paper and have agreed to its submission for publication.

Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest

All authors must disclose in their manuscript any financial or other substantive conflicts of interest that might be construed to influence the results or interpretation of their manuscript. All sources of financial or institutional support for the project should be clearly disclosed.

Fundamental Errors in Published Works

When an author discovers a significant error or inaccuracy in his/her own published work, it is the author’s strict obligation to promptly notify the journal editor or publisher and cooperate with the editor to retract or correct the paper.