Research & Practice in Assessment

All manuscripts submitted to Research & Practice in Assessment (RPA) may be related to various higher education assessment themes (see below), and should be research-based incorporating appropriate research design (qualitative, quantitative, mixed-methods), data collection, and analyses.

Assessment Practice:  
  a) trends in practice, b) learning improvement, c) diversity, equity and inclusion, d) best practices

Assessment Measurement:  
a) instrument design, b) validity and reliability, c) advanced quantitative design, d) advanced qualitative design

Assessment Policy/Foundations:
  a) accreditation, b) social and cultural context, c) historical and philosophical context, d) political and economic context

Reviewers for Research & Practice in Assessment utilize a rubric as they provide feedback and make recommendations to the editorial board. Authors should review the rubric prior to submitting a manuscript.The RPA rubric can be downloaded here: RPA Rubric

**IMPORTANT: BLIND REVIEW PROCESS:
RPA engages in a blind review process. Identification information should be limited to the title page which is submitted separately. Do not include self references within the manuscript, electronic file, or references (i.e. “in press”). Manuscripts that contain author identifying information will be returned with a request to re-submit after identifying information is removed. **

ARTICLES
Articles for Research & Practice in Assessment should be research-based and include concrete examples of practice and results in higher education assessment. The readers of Research & Practice in Assessment are associated with myriad institutional types and have an understanding of basic student learning and assessment practices. Articles for publication will be selected based on their degree of relevance to the journal’s mission, compliance with submission criteria, quality of research methods and procedures, and logic of research findings and conclusions. Approximately forty percent of submissions are accepted for publication.

LEARNING IMPROVEMENT CORNER
The Learning Improvement Corner offers researchers and practitioners an opportunity to showcase successful learning improvement initiatives, using assessment as a tool to demonstrate the success of the initiative (e.g., by measuring baseline learning and subsequently documenting improvement). Submissions that highlight strategies to connect assessment with curricular innovations and focus on creative collaborations across campus will also be considered.

BOOK, MEDIA, or SOFTWARE REVIEWS
Reviews (book, media, or software) are significant scholarly contributions to the education literature that evaluate publications in the field. Persons submitting reviews have the responsibility to summarize authors’ works in a just and accurate manner. A quality review includes both description and analysis. The description should include a summary of the main argument or purpose and overview of its content, methodology, and theoretical perspective. The analysis of the book should consider how it contrasts to other works in the field and include a discussion of its strengths, weaknesses and implications. Judgments of the work are permitted, but personal attacks or distortions are not acceptable as the purpose of the review is to foster scholarly dialogue amongst members of the assessment community. The RPA Editor reserves the right to edit reviews received for publication and to reject or return for revision those that do not adhere to the submission guidelines.

SPECIAL FEATURES
Each issue of Research & Practice in Assessment highlights the work of a noted researcher or assessment professional in a manner that aims to extend the scholarly dialogue amongst members of the assessment community. Special Features are invited by the Board of Editors and often address the latest work of the author.

MANUSCRIPT FORMAT

Style:
Submissions should be formatted in the latest edition of APA.

Format:
Manuscripts should be submitted electronically. The standard manuscript form has 1 inch margins on all sides located in 12 point Times New Roman font.

Blind Review:
Identification information should be limited to the title page WHICH IS TO BE SUBMITTED SEPARATELY from the body of the manusscript. Do not include self references within the manuscript, electronic file, or references (i.e. “in press”).

Length: THe following represents guidelines for length, rigid word limits
Articles should be 8-16 typed, double spaced pages (2,000-6,000 words)
Reviews should be 5-8 typed, double spaced pages (1,250 – 2,000 words).
Notes in Brief should be 5-8 typed, double spaced pages (1,250 – 2,000 words).
Special Features should be 5-8 typed, double spaced pages (2,000 – 5,000 words).
Abstract: An abstract of 150 words or less should be included (except for reviews).

Copyright:
Manuscripts shall not have been registered for copyright or published elsewhere prior to publication in Research & Practice in Assessment.

Double Submission:
Manuscripts currently under review elsewhere shall not be considered for publication in Research & Practice in Assessment.

Deadlines:
Submissions are accepted at any time. RPA engages in rolling submissions and article-level publications as articles are ready for dissemination.

For more information see: rpajournal.com