What is the role of a peer- reviewed journal? Is it to promote scientific inquiry? Is it to serve as an historical repository of a scientific field? Is it an organ of a professional society? Is it to promote an individual scientist by expanding his or her vitae? Is it to observe the flow and direction of research or is it to help direct a research agenda?

There are over 20,000 peer-reviewed journals published each year with more than 1.5 Million papers. A peer-reviewed journal provides a venue for research that demonstrates (or refutes) the efficacy of research –
with its shifting emphasis to new and emerging processes . But, are the journals being flooded with too many papers, many incremental rewrites of previous work? Are reviewers too overworked to provide the depth of
analysis necessary to sort the wheat from the chaff, the real from the hype, especially in terms of what actually improves learning?

Where do the responsibilities lie?

This talk with address these themes in general and draw specific examples from the speaker’s nearly 20 years as co-editor of Computers & Education, an International Journal.