The publication ethics of Spectrum: Journal of Science Education apply to all parties involved in the scholarly publication process, including authors, editors, reviewers, and the publisher.

The journal seeks to ensure that all published articles are produced through a transparent, independent, objective, and responsible editorial process. Decisions concerning manuscripts are based on academic quality, methodological rigor, originality, relevance to the journal's scope, and scholarly contribution.

• Review manuscripts objectively, critically, and constructively;
• Maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts and peer-review information;
• Evaluate manuscripts only when they possess appropriate expertise;
• Disclose potential conflicts of interest before accepting a review assignment;
• Avoid personal criticism and provide professional, evidence-based comments;
• Identify relevant published work that may have been overlooked by the authors;
• Report suspected plagiarism, duplicate publication, fabricated data, or other ethical concerns to the Editorial Team;
• Do not use unpublished information obtained through peer review for personal research or advantage.

Authors are responsible for ensuring that:

• The submitted manuscript is original and represents the authors' own scholarly work;
• Data, results, figures, and interpretations are presented accurately and honestly;
• All sources are properly acknowledged and cited;
• The manuscript has not been published previously and is not under simultaneous consideration elsewhere;
• All individuals listed as authors have made meaningful scholarly contributions;
• All co-authors have approved the final manuscript and its submission;
• Potential conflicts of interest and relevant funding sources are disclosed;
• Ethical approval and informed consent are obtained where required;
• Any substantive use of artificial intelligence tools is disclosed according to the journal's policy;
• Errors discovered after publication are promptly reported to the Editorial Team.

Authors must ensure that submitted manuscripts are original. Plagiarism includes copying text, ideas, data, images, figures, tables, or other intellectual content without appropriate acknowledgment. Improper paraphrasing and unattributed reuse of previously published material are also considered unacceptable. Spectrum may use recognized similarity-detection software during the editorial screening process.

Fabrication of research data, falsification of results, manipulation of images or datasets, selective reporting intended to mislead readers, or deliberate misrepresentation of research findings constitutes serious research misconduct. Authors must accurately report the methods, data, analyses, and results of their research.

Authors must not submit substantially the same manuscript to more than one journal simultaneously. Manuscripts that have already been formally published should not be submitted as new original articles. If a manuscript substantially extends previously published work, the earlier publication must be properly cited and the new contribution must be clearly explained.

Authorship should be limited to individuals who have made substantial intellectual contributions to the conception, design, execution, analysis, interpretation, or preparation of the research.

Guest authorship, honorary authorship, and exclusion of legitimate contributors are inappropriate. Contributors who do not meet authorship criteria may be acknowledged separately with their permission.

Authors, reviewers, and editors should disclose financial, institutional, professional, academic, or personal relationships that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the research, peer-review process, or editorial decision. Disclosure of a conflict does not automatically prevent publication; however, transparency is essential for maintaining trust in scholarly communication.

Research involving human participants, including students, teachers, educators, or other individuals, must comply with appropriate ethical principles.

Where applicable, authors should obtain ethical approval, informed consent, permission from relevant institutions, and appropriate protection of participant privacy and confidentiality. Particular care should be taken when research involves children, minors, or vulnerable groups.

Authors should retain research data and supporting documentation for an appropriate period after publication. When necessary for verification or investigation, the Editorial Team may request clarification, supporting documentation, or relevant research data, subject to ethical, legal, confidentiality, and privacy restrictions.

Citations should be academically relevant and genuinely related to the manuscript. Authors should avoid excessive self-citation, irrelevant citation, citation manipulation, or adding references solely to increase citation counts of particular authors, journals, institutions, or publications. Editors and reviewers must not pressure authors to add unnecessary citations.

Artificial intelligence tools may be used responsibly to assist manuscript preparation, but they must not replace human scholarly responsibility. AI systems cannot be listed as authors or co-authors.

Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, citations, interpretations, and integrity of their manuscripts. Substantive use of generative AI should be transparently disclosed in accordance with the journal's AI Tools Usage Policy.

Submitted manuscripts are confidential documents. Editors and reviewers must not share manuscript content with unauthorized persons or upload confidential manuscripts to external systems, including generative AI platforms, where confidentiality, data security, or intellectual property protection cannot be assured.

Allegations of research or publication misconduct will be evaluated carefully and fairly. The Editorial Team may request clarification, original data, supporting documentation, or responses from relevant parties.

Depending on the nature and severity of the issue, editorial action may include rejection, temporary suspension of the editorial process, correction, expression of concern, retraction, or other appropriate action.

Spectrum is committed to maintaining the integrity of the scholarly record. Published articles may be corrected when errors do not invalidate the principal findings. Retraction may be considered when findings are seriously unreliable because of misconduct, major error, plagiarism, duplicate publication, or other significant ethical problems. Withdrawal of manuscripts before publication is handled according to the journal's Retraction, Correction and Withdrawal Policy.

Authors and other parties may raise legitimate concerns regarding editorial procedures, ethical issues, reviewer conduct, or publication decisions. Complaints and appeals should be submitted through the journal's official communication channels and should include sufficient information for the Editorial Team to evaluate the matter fairly.

PT. Gammabeta Edu and Tech, as the publisher of Spectrum: Journal of Science Education, supports editorial independence and is committed to maintaining ethical, transparent, and responsible scholarly publishing practices. The publisher should support appropriate editorial actions when credible ethical concerns arise and should not interfere improperly with independent academic editorial decisions.