(Updated April 2019)
So I teased this one a little bit in the latest round up. The number one question that I get from students (aside from the classic, “Will this be on the exam?”) is: “How do I tell if this is a peer-reviewed article?” Some professors are bewildered by this question. After all, isn’t it obvious? Unfortunately, most first year students (and many second, third, and fourth year students) have never heard the term before. So in this blog post, I’m going to provide a (really) short introduction to the concept of peer-review and how to tell when an article is peer-reviewed. I’m also going to talk about a couple of publications that are commonly perceived by students to be peer-reviewed, but are actually not. The remainder of the blog post will be devoted a comprehensive list of peer-reviewed journals that publish articles on Canadian history.
While I created this post with undergraduates in mind, this is also a great resource for new graduate students or scholars who are trying to get their work published. Not only does do I list all of the relevant journals that publish articles on Canadian history, but I also include information about their websites, publication frequency and schedules, their scope, access (whether you can read them for free or not – open versus closed), the languages they accept, and available formats.
If there is one question that I have been asked over and over again as a professor, it’s “What’s on the exam?” Exams, and particularly essays in exams, have struck fear into the hearts of students for generations. While most professors will trot out the old adage about journeys and destinations, this does little to assuage the very real fears of students who want concrete answers and not philosophical musings. But with the right approach and tools, every student can succeed in writing essays in exams. So here are my eleven top tips on writing amazing exam essays.