The evaluation of scholarly activity in computer-assisted language learning

The current study provides guidance for both junior computer-assisted language learning (CALL) researchers as they decide on the most appropriate forms and placement of scholarly activity and also for decision makers attempting to evaluate the scholarly activity of these CALL researchers in their quest for promotion and tenure. In this study, data from 35 online surveys from established CALL researchers were examined to determine their expert opinions on the quality of CALL-specific and general applied linguistics journals. These scholars were also asked to list the criteria they used to rank these journals and comment on the types of scholarly activity most beneficial to junior CALL scholars. Results suggest that the single most important element in the scholarly dossier of a CALL researcher is a series of refereed scholarly articles in highly ranked, peer-reviewed journals. A clear qualitative hierarchy of both CALL-specific and general applied linguistics journals emerged from the data. The data also show that scholars agree that the " best" journals for CALL research are those that reflect the highest quality of relevant articles and those that make a significant contribution to the field. Markedly less important to these CALL experts in determining journal quality are those more " objective" measures of quality such as acceptance rate, impact factor, and circulation.