Policy Futures in Education

Top Research Topics at Policy Futures in Education?

Policy Futures in Education is mainly concerned with subjects like Social science, Higher education, Politics, Public relations and Public administration. Some problems in Social science that were presented in it overlapped with concepts under Context (language use), Social change, Ideology, Epistemology and Philosophy of education. Philosophy of education study tackled is connected to the field of Education theory.

The featured Higher education research is covered under the field of Economic growth. Policy Futures in Education connects the study in Economic growth with the closely related area of Globalization. The majority of Politics studies in Policy Futures in Education are focused on the subject of Democracy.

In the journal, Neoliberalism, Accountability and Education policy are investigated in conjunction with one another to address concerns in Public administration research. The Neoliberalism study tackled is a key component of adjacent topics in the area of Political economy.

• Social science (23.33%)
• Higher education (15.61%)
• Politics (13.61%)

What are the most cited papers published in the journal?

• Internationalization of Higher Education: Towards a Conceptual Framework (333 citations)
• Competition and markets in higher education: a 'glonacal' analysis (256 citations)
• Economic Fundamentals of the Knowledge Society (228 citations)

Research areas of the most cited articles at Policy Futures in Education:

The journal publications tackle a plethora of topics, such as Social science, Higher education, Public administration, Economic growth and Context (language use). While the journal papers mainly focused on Higher education studies, they also tackled the scientific discipline of interrelated fields such as

• Public relations together with Context effect and Knowledge economy,
• Political economy, which have a strong connection to Social system.. Accountability, Capitalism, Politics, Power (social and political) and Education policy are some topics wherein Public administration research discussed in the most cited publications has an impact.

What topics the last edition of the journal is best known for?

• Law
• World War II
• Education

The previous edition focused in particular on these issues:

The aim of Policy Futures in Education is to expand the discussion of research in Pedagogy, Higher education, Public relations, Environmental ethics and Education policy. While the journal focused on Higher education, it was also able to explore topics like Context (language use), Internationalization and Development economics. It dives deep in exploring the relationship between the study of Public relations and Public policy.

The studies in Environmental ethics featured incorporate elements of Environmental education and Politics. Topics in Education policy were tackled in line with various other fields like Equity (finance) and Public administration. The research on Early childhood education featured in Policy Futures in Education combines topics in other fields like Aotearoa, Glocalization, Globalization and Cultural diversity.

The most cited articles from the last journal are:

• Future Studies: Reimagining our Educational Futures in the Post-Covid-19 world (5 citations)
• Early Childhood Curriculum Policies and Practices in Singapore: The Case of Glocalisation. (3 citations)
• Critical intellectuals in postdigital times (3 citations)

Papers citation over time

A key indicator for each journal is its effectiveness in reaching other researchers with the papers published at that venue.

The chart below presents the interquartile range (first quartile 25%, median 50% and third quartile 75%) of the number of citations of articles over time.

Top authors and change over time

The top authors publishing in Policy Futures in Education (based on the number of publications) are:

• Michael A. Peters (50 papers) absent at the last edition,
• Henry A. Giroux (29 papers) absent at the last edition,
• Peter McLaren (11 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition,
• Ilan Gur-Ze’ev (10 papers) absent at the last edition,
• Marek Tesar (10 papers) published 1 paper at the last edition the same number as at the previous edition.

The overall trend for top authors publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top authors.

Top affiliations and change over time

Only papers with recognized affiliations are considered

The top affiliations publishing in Policy Futures in Education (based on the number of publications) are:

• University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign (51 papers) absent at the last edition,
• University of Waikato (42 papers) published 3 papers at the last edition, 2 more than at the previous edition,
• University of Auckland (36 papers) published 4 papers at the last edition, 2 less than at the previous edition,
• McMaster University (29 papers) absent at the last edition,
• University of Glasgow (25 papers) absent at the last edition.

The overall trend for top affiliations publishing in this journal is outlined below. The chart shows the number of publications at each edition of the journal for top affiliations.

Publication chance based on affiliation

The publication chance index shows the ratio of articles published by the best research institutions in the journal edition to all articles published within that journal. The best research institutions were selected based on the largest number of articles published during all editions of the journal.

The chart below presents the percentage ratio of articles from top institutions (based on their ranking of total papers).Top affiliations were grouped by their rank into the following tiers: top 1-10, top 11-20, top 21-50, and top 51+. Only articles with a recognized affiliation are considered.

During the most recent 2021 edition, 11.71% of publications had an unrecognized affiliation. Out of the publications with recognized affiliations, 9.18% were posted by at least one author from the top 10 institutions publishing in the journal. Another 12.24% included authors affiliated with research institutions from the top 11-20 affiliations. Institutions from the 21-50 range included 19.39% of all publications and 59.18% were from other institutions.

Returning Authors Index

A very common phenomenon observed among researchers publishing scientific articles is the intentional selection of journals they have already attended in the past. In particular, it is worth analyzing the case when the authors participate in the same journal from year to year.

The Returning Authors Index presented below illustrates the ratio of authors who participated in both a given as well as the previous edition of the journal in relation to all participants in a given year.

Returning Institution Index

The graph below shows the Returning Institution Index, illustrating the ratio of institutions that participated in both a given and the previous edition of the conference in relation to all affiliations present in a given year.

The experience to innovation index

Our experience to innovation index was created to show a cross-section of the experience level of authors publishing in a journal. The index includes the authors publishing at the last edition of a journal, grouped by total number of publications throughout their academic career (P) and the total number of citations of these publications ever received (C).

The group intervals were selected empirically to best show the diversity of the authors' experiences, their labels were selected as a convenience, not as judgment. The authors were divided into the following groups:

• Novice - P < 5 or C < 25 (the number of publications less than 5 or the number of citations less than 25),
• Competent - P < 10 or C < 100 (the number of publications less than 10 or the number of citations less than 100),
• Experienced - P < 25 or C < 625 (the number of publications less than 25 or the number of citations less than 625),
• Master - P < 50 or C < 2500 (the number of publications less than 50 or the number of citations less than 2500),
• Star - P ≥ 50 and C ≥ 2500 (both the number of publications greater than 50 and the number of citations greater than 2500).

The chart below illustrates experience levels of first authors in cases of publications with multiple authors.

Professional Opportunities for Researchers in Policy Futures in Education

The opportunities for researchers who focus on Policy Futures in Education are unique and diverse. For example, many researchers with a strong background in this area may choose to work in academia, but others may find rewarding positions in governmental and non-governmental organizations, where they can apply their knowledge and research skills to inform policy development and public administration practices. Another exciting career pathway is to become a mental health counselor. This profession involves understanding and applying social science, politics, and public administration, which are key research topics in Policy Futures in Education. A solid foundation of these subjects can greatly contribute to understanding and addressing mental health issues in the context of public policy and administration. In fact, we have a comprehensive guide on How to become a mental health counselor in Hawaii that provides detailed insights on the requirements, education, and licensing process. This resource can be particularly useful for those researchers who are considering making a transition into counseling roles. Finally, it is worth mentioning that researchers specialized in Policy Futures in Education can also work as consultants for higher education institutions, supporting them in matters related to academic freedom, globalization, social change, and the politics of education. This consultancy work can significantly contribute to shaping the future of higher education.