Artificial Intelligence Policy

Policy on the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

ZAHRA: Research and Thought Elementary School of Islam Journal

1. Introduction

ZAHRA: Research and Thought Elementary School of Islam Journal recognises the growing role of artificial intelligence (AI) in supporting academic research and scholarly writing, particularly in the field of Islamic elementary education. The journal acknowledges that AI technologies can assist authors in improving efficiency during the research and manuscript preparation process, including idea development, data processing, language refinement, and manuscript structuring.

Large Language Models (LLMs) and generative AI offer opportunities to accelerate research productivity and scholarly dissemination. However, these technologies cannot replace human intellectual contribution, critical reasoning, and academic responsibility. Therefore, this policy has been established to guide authors, reviewers, and editors in making ethical and responsible decisions regarding the use of AI in academic publishing.

2. Permitted Use of AI Tools

Authors are permitted to use AI-based tools to support manuscript preparation in the following areas:

Language editing and proofreading
AI tools may be used to improve grammar, spelling, clarity, and the quality of academic language.

Reference management
AI-assisted software may be used to organise citations, format references, and generate bibliographies.

Plagiarism detection
AI-based plagiarism detection tools may be used to ensure originality and compliance with academic integrity standards.

Data analysis support
AI algorithms may assist in analysing quantitative or qualitative data and presenting findings more clearly, provided that the interpretation and scholarly arguments remain the responsibility of the authors.

3. Prohibited Use of AI Tools

Despite their usefulness, AI tools must not be used in the following ways:

Primary content generation
AI tools must not be used to generate the main scholarly content of the manuscript, including the introduction, literature review, theoretical framework, methodology, results, discussion, or conclusions. All intellectual contributions must originate from the authors.

Unethical practices
AI tools must not be used to fabricate, manipulate, or falsify research data, generate misleading results, or engage in any form of academic misconduct.

4. Recommendations for Responsible AI Use

Authors who choose to use AI tools are strongly encouraged to:

Verify AI-assisted outputs
Authors must carefully review, validate, and take full responsibility for any AI-assisted suggestions or outputs.

Ensure transparency
Authors are required to clearly disclose the use of AI tools during the manuscript preparation process.

Provide acknowledgment
Any AI tools used (e.g., for language editing, plagiarism checking, or data analysis) must be explicitly acknowledged in the manuscript, preferably in the acknowledgment section.

5. Ethical Considerations

All authors must adhere to established ethical standards and principles of academic integrity. Any misuse of AI that results in plagiarism, copyright infringement, data fabrication, or other unethical practices will be considered a serious violation of publication ethics and may lead to manuscript rejection or article retraction.

6. Editorial and Peer Review Process

All manuscripts submitted to ZAHRA: Research and Thought Elementary School of Islam Journal, whether AI-assisted or not, will undergo a rigorous peer-review process. The evaluation focuses on originality, scholarly contribution, methodological rigor, ethical compliance, and relevance to the field of Islamic elementary education.

7. Policy Review and Updates

This AI usage policy may be reviewed and updated periodically to reflect technological advancements, evolving ethical standards, and best practices in scholarly publishing.