Open-access” databases are ideal for online students from any country who do not need to pay subscription to access journal papers. The most reputable open-access journal websites are widely used by academic researchers.
While they may not carry the same amount of recognition as their more expensive counterparts, the following open-access databases provide a comparable selection of journals that are highly useful to students across disciplines.
1. Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ): Originally established and maintained by Lund University in Sweden, the DOAJ features more than 8,500 open access journals, many of which are sourced from government, commercial, non-profit, and for-profit sources. Following the landmark Budapest Open Access Initiative of 2001 (which established standards for free journal access using online platforms), DOAJ received its initial funding from the Open Access Institute; it has since adopted a business model that relies heavily on donor contributions. An average of four journal entries are added to the database each day.
One major advantage of DOAJ is the site’s extensive search engine. A basic search allows users to separate journals from individual articles, while advanced options allow users to sort entries by title, author, keywords, abstract, International Standard Serial Number (ISSN), and other more specific criteria. DOAJ is also touted for its clean interface, detailed FAQ page, and other features designed to provide a positive user experience.
Read the full article here. (from www.onlineschools.org)
A good place to start is to just look through The Directory of Open Access Publishers (DOAJ) and choose on that suits your research focus.
Open access journal about educational technology and mobile learning
International Journal of Interactive Mobile Technologies (iJIM)
The iJIM journal aims to focus on the exchange of relevant trends and research results as well as the presentation of practical experiences gained while developing and testing elements of interactive mobile technologies. The objective of the journal is to publish and discuss fundamentals, applications and experiences in the field of interactive mobile technologies in learning and teaching as well as in industrial and other applications.
Australasian Journal of Educational Technology
The Australasian Journal of Educational Technology is the journal of ascilite, the Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education. It aims to promote research and scholarship on the integration of technology in tertiary education, promote effective practice, and inform policy.
AJET has an impact factor of 1.363 (JCR 2012), and is currently ranked 33/216 in the Education category.
Research in Learning Technology – The Journal of the Association for Learning Technology
Research in Learning Technology is the journal of the Association for Learning Technology (ALT). It aims to raise the profile of research in learning technology, encouraging research that informs good practice and contributes to the development of policy. The journal publishes papers concerning the use of technology in learning and teaching in all sectors of education, as well as in industry.
Learning technology is the broad range of communication, information and related technologies that can be used to support learning, teaching, and assessment. Founded in 1993, ALT is the UK’s leading membership organisation in the learning technology field. ALT’s aims are improving practice, promoting research, and influencing policy.
The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning
The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning (www.irrodl.org) is a refereed, open access e-journal that disseminates original research, theory, and best practice in open and distance learning worldwide. IRRODL is available free-of-charge to anyone with access to the Internet.
European Journal of Open, Distance and E-Learning (EURODL)
The European Journal of Open, Distance and E-Learning – supported by EDEN – the European Distance and E-learning Network, presents scholarly work and solid information about open, distance and e-learning as well as new dimensions of technology-enhanced learning and contributes to the Open Content movement since 1995. By covering all sectors within education and training, this e-journal promotes the work of researchers and practitioners in education in an electronic peer-reviewed publication.
The European Commission launched Open Education Europa in September 2013 as part of the Opening Up Education initiative to provide a single gateway to European OER. This portal is grounded on the basis of the elearningeuropa.info portal, active since 2002 to support the transformation of education through technology. Today, with close to 38,000 registered users and an average of 55,000 monthly visits, it has become the meeting point for exploring change and innovation in education.
The main goal of the Open Education Europa portal is to offer access to all existing European Open Educational Resources in different languages in order to be able to present them to learners, teachers and researchers. Its eLearning Papers is one of the most visited online journals on Open Education which fosters stimulating research and practices in Education, Innovation and Technology.
RUSC. Universities and Knowledge Society Journal
RUSC. Universities and Knowledge Society Journal is an e-journal coedited by the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (Barcelona) and its eLearn Center, and the University of New England (Australia) and its DeHub. It’s a bilingual referred research e-journal in e-learning, university and network society.
Journal of Online Learning and Teaching (JOLT)
The MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching (JOLT) is a peer-reviewed, open-access, online publication that aims to promote scholarship in the use of the Internet and web-based multimedia resources in higher education. The first issue appeared online in July 2005 and included a number of invited papers from various disciplines. The journal is now published quarterly in March, June, September, and December.
AUSTRALASIAN JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY
The Australasian Journal of Educational Technology is the journal of ascilite, the Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education. It aims to promote research and scholarship on the integration of technology in tertiary education, promote effective practice, and inform policy.
Open Journal Systems (OJS) is a journal management and publishing system that has been developed by the Public Knowledge Project through its federally funded efforts to expand and improve access to research.
OJS assists with every stage of the refereed publishing process, from submissions through to online publication and indexing. Through its management systems, its finely grained indexing of research, and the context it provides for research, OJS seeks to improve both the scholarly and public quality of refereed research.
OJS is open source software made freely available to journals worldwide for the purpose of making open access publishing a viable option for more journals, as open access can increase a journal’s readership as well as its contribution to the public good on a global scale (see PKP Publications).
PKP is a multi-university initiative developing (free) open source software and conducting research to improve the quality and reach of scholarly publishing. – See more at: http://pkp.sfu.ca/ojs/#sthash.xZH3WP01.dpuf
Open Praxis is a peer-reviewed open access scholarly journal focusing on research and innovation in open, distance and flexible education. It is published by the International Council for Open and Distance Education – ICDE
Open Praxis welcomes contributions which demonstrate creative and innovative research, and which highlight challenges, lessons and achievements in the practice of distance and e-learning from all over the world. An article may present research or surveys of recent work, describe original work, or discuss new technology and its possibilities, implications and/or other related issues.
