The title of professors and associate professors are given to those who don’t deserve it, and the Ministry of education is proud of non-existent results. These are the conclusions of PhD Dr. Daniyar Sapargaliyev and rector of Almaty Management University Asylbek Kozhakhmetov, after the research.
A non-existent publication
The Ministry of education and science officially states: 2000 publications in international scientific journals made Kazakh scientists in 2014. In fact, according to the world scientometric database Scopus publications was 1942. 1606 of them were in journals, 336- conference papers, book chapters, books, patents, etc. It is worth noting that article in a scientific journal is a primary literature and top of the achievements of the work of scientists. Another is not taken into account in the scientific community.
Turns out, the Ministry of education so slightly rounded and attributed. But that’s not all.
The title of Professor was given impaired
Only 7 of 30 scientists who last year took a honorary title of “professor” meets the requirements. Daniyar Sapargalieva and Asylbek Kozhakhmetova managed to figure it out by comparing the orders of awarding the title and scientometric databases Scopus and Web of science.
– We analyzed data from the website of the Committee for control in the sphere of education and science and data bases, – commented Daniyar Sapargaliyev, PhD in the specialty “Pedagogy and psychology”. Is it that the majority of professors and associate professors are published in counterfeit editions. We can’t find the names of these scientists on the Internet.
– Of the 30 people who were awarded the title of Professor, we found evidence supporting the article of only 7 of them,- said Sapargaliyev. – Only two of 19 Associate professors meets the requirements. The majority did not meet even the rules of the Ministry of education. This suggests that in the awarding of academic degrees was probably accounted for publication in non-peer-reviewed publications. Our scientists often say: “I am known and famous”, but they are not in Google Scholar, not in the database Web of science or Scopus database. But if you are not there, then you’re not in a scientific field. You cannot be considered as a famous scientist.
The fact is that in 2011 Kazakhstan took the course of entering the global scientific arena. By the way, until this moment the Republic was represented by a dozen prominent scientists. The progress was going, but apparently not as fast as wanted the officials, and therefore issued a decree: “To obtain the rank of “Professor” must publish at least 3 articles in journals with non –zero impact factor. To obtain the rank of “associate Professor” you must publish at least 2 articles in journals with non-zero impact factor”.
Victims of one day- predators
Kazakh scientists are often caught on the vanity and cheat. That is why their articles are published in “predatory” or counterfeit editions. This short-lived magazine without an impact factor, and they are not well respected among scientists, but they manage to convince their victims that the publication on the pages of such publications will have scientific weight.
Kazakh scientists were faced with the fact that the Ministry of education said: “That you used to fly to Moscow and St. Petersburg, and there were not already counted”,- continues to reveal the secrets of increasing the number of awarding degrees Daniyar Sapargaliyev. -“We need you spoke at the international level.” Accordingly, one begins seek this level and stumbles upon a “predatory” publishers. There are they gratify pride and vanity of scientists, calling them “brilliant scientists”, publishes their work, but for the money. See, good magazine with the name and reputation publishes only the good work, and get to the pages of such publications is difficult. They don’t need money, they need ideas. Have to run for editor. With “predators”, simpler, they find you by themselves, give a beautiful certificate, in every way you praise, but take the money. But our countrymen, usually, are ready.
It happens the other way. In the database Web of Science indexed more than 11,000 journals in the Scopus database is about 20 000. In these databases, there is a statistical error, which in their lists are “predatory” edition, but their number is relatively small, about 10 “predators” in 2000 really scientific publications. It is only strange that the Kazakh authors somehow from 20,000 journals find “predatory”, and are published in them. Moreover, according to statistics, Kazakhstan occupies a leading position in the world by number of articles published in non-peer-reviewed publications. Because serious journals aren’t taken.
A disgrace to the country
Almost half of the articles of our scientists published in the trash editions”,- said Daniyar Sapargaliyev. – And it’s a disgrace for the country, because then this data consists of country statistics – institutional and author. But the fact that all of this is good – the Ministry is good, growth is uneven. Scientists also well – received the title, degree received. It’s bad only for Kazakhstan. Because quantitative indicators did a good reputation all within the Republic, but, in fact, now is the devaluation of the national science. And this happens in the last 2-3 years. At this pace we’ll soon be seen as one of the third countries of the world where science is in its infancy. In the world it’s called “Iran’s disease”. And it’s not science. It’s probably cheating the state, the deception of the world. Me as a young researcher, this situation hurts on a personal level. I don’t want said about me: “Here, came a young researcher from the country where all are published in the fake logs”. Don’t need to get involved quantitative indicators, you need to look for quality achievements. And we destroy them with own hands. The Ministry of education and science should ensure that scientists were published, and tried to do it in a good peer-reviewed journals.
If you put aside the rules of politeness, it seems obvious: all – echoes of corruption. If the title of the scientist to achieve the impossible, but really want or need for your career, then you can buy it. To be published in “predatory” journal of money, to get the right number of publications in Kazakhstan and already in own way to solve all the other issues with the thesis, protection etc. And all these games with scientific discoveries, serious research let the poor play that have no money to buy the title.
Article was taken from the website 365info.kz