Aims & Scope
The Journal of English Language Education's objective is to disseminate emerging research and best practices and seeks articles and commentaries concerning any aspect of educating English language learners in PK-12 classrooms in the contexts where English is the main language of instruction, as well as educational approaches, standards-based education, best practices in teaching language and content, technology-assisted instruction, assessment, accountability issues, counseling, social services, and community initiatives, among others. The journal reaches out to those who assist ELLs in their daily lives and those who prepare for such a career. The editors are particularly interested in manuscripts that focus on the following:
- Research and Theory pertaining to the education of English language learners in mainstream classrooms;
- Effective Practices impacting classroom instruction, student achievement, clinical experiences, and student or family services; and
- Commentaries describing policies, practices, issues, and challenges affecting the education of English language learners.
The Journal of English Learner Education seeks manuscript submissions of previously unpublished work on any topic related to the education of English Learners in English-speaking countries or regions where English is the primary language of schooling. In an effort to look at education holistically, some areas of interest are counseling, child-family-school connections, or social and community services, in addition to topics related to instruction and accountability. Manuscripts are being solicited in the following categories. Detailed descriptions of these categories and other pertinent information for submissions are provided below.
Category Descriptions
Articles should report original research, present an original framework that links previous research, educational theory, and teaching practices, or present promising practices involving a variety of school-based personnel or social and community services. Full-length articles in Research and Theory and Effective Practices from the Field should contain no more than 7,000 words, including any figures, drawings, and tables, as well as an abstract of no more than 150 words. See the other category descriptions for the descriptions and length.
Manuscripts are being solicited in the following categories:
RESEARCH AND THEORY ARTICLES
Description of and research on innovative approaches that address the educational needs of ELs. This may include perspectives from a variety of disciplines, focusing both on instructional and support services. For example:
EFFECTIVE PRACTICES FROM THE FIELD ARTICLES
Descriptions of successful application of effective or promising practices in instructing and providing support services to ELs. For example:
RESEARCH DIGESTS
Descriptions of research exploring any aspect of the theory and practice related to English learner education. Manuscripts in this category may include preliminary findings of a research project in progress or an in-depth discussion of one aspect of a completed larger study. These brief research reports should present key concepts and results in an accessible manner and must include qualitative or quantitative empirical evidence.
Submissions to this section should be no more than 2500 words (including references, notes, and tables). Please indicate the number of words at the end of the report. Longer articles should be submitted to the full-length articles section.
TEACHING IN ACTION BRIEFS
Descriptions of English language educators and learners sharing their reflections, perspectives, and practices that contribute to a deeper understanding of effective language teaching and learning.
Examples may include classroom practices that make a difference in teaching English learners, improve EL achievement outcomes, or reflective pieces that are evidence-based.
Submissions to this section should be no more than 2000 words (including references, notes, and tables). Please indicate the number of words at the end of the manuscript.
TEACHING TIPS
We invite English learner educators to share their tips, tools, and resources used in the classroom and within their school communities in order to enhance English learners education via pedagogical instruction and assessment.
Examples may include skill specific talking head video clips (think YouTube style instructional videos), skill specific infographics, or blog style inserts with a focus on the English learner.
Submissions to this section should be no more than 500 words (including references, notes, and tables) and video clips should be no longer than 7 minutes. Please indicate the number of words or minutes at the end of the report.
PEER-REVIEWED COMMENTARIES
Discussion of issues of concern to ELs and their families, supported by research and/or theory, including reactions to issues presented in books or articles. Submissions to this section should be no more than 3000 words (including references, notes, and tables).
INVITED BOOK REVIEWS
Reviews of recent (published within past two years) professional books, textbooks, or electronic resources published for researchers and practitioners in the field of educating school-aged English language learners.
Submission Guidelines
All submissions should conform to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) (7th edition). Authors are responsible for the accuracy of references and citations. Manuscripts, including the abstract of less than 150 words, and any figures, drawings, and tables should not exceed 7,000 words for articles, 3,000 words for commentaries, or 1,500 words for book reviews.
Submissions may be made in Microsoft Word documents or RTF documents, and should be uploaded electronically to: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/jele/. Each submission should consist of two separate files:
1. Article or commentary, including the title, and an abstract (150 words). The body should be free of identifying information.
2. Contact information containing the manuscript title, names, institutions, e-mail addresses, and if applicable, World Wide Web addresses (URLs), of all authors. Also include a brief biographical statement (maximum 50 words, in sentence format) for each author, as well as a brief statement that the work has not already been published elsewhere and is not currently under review elsewhere.
General Publication Policies
The following policies are applied to all articles, reviews, and commentaries submitted for consideration or published:
1. All submissions must conform to the requirements of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th edition). Authors are responsible for the accuracy of references and citations, which must be in the required format. Manuscripts may be rejected if they do not meet the APA requirements.
2. Manuscripts that have already been published elsewhere or are being considered for publication elsewhere are not eligible to be considered for publication in The Journal of English Learner Education. The (first) author is responsible to inform the editor of the existence of any similar work that is already published elsewhere or is under consideration for publication elsewhere.
3. Authors of accepted manuscripts will assign to The Journal of English Learner Education the permanent right to electronically distribute the article.
4. The editors of The Journal of English Learner Education reserve the right to make editorial changes in any manuscript accepted for publication for the sake of style or clarity. Authors will be consulted only if the changes are substantial.
5. The views expressed in The Journal of English Learner Education do not necessarily represent the views of the journal editors, the institutions associated with the editorial board, or the U.S. Department of Education.
6. The Journal of English Learner Education expects authors to adhere to ethical standards for research involving human subjects. All manuscripts submitted for consideration must meet the human subjects review established by your institution.
Review & Publication Process
All article manuscripts submitted to The Journal of English Learner Education go through a multi-step review process.
Initial internal review. The editors and associate editor of the journal first review each manuscript to see if it meets the basic requirements for articles published in the journal (i.e., fit with one of the three categories; that it reports on original research or presents an original framework linking previous research, educational theory, and teaching practices, or present promising practices involving a variety of school-based personnel or social and community services), that it is of sufficient quality to merit external review, and that it conforms to APA (6th edition) format. This initial step takes approximately 1–2 weeks.
External review. Submissions that meet the requirements above are then sent out for blind peer review from two experts in the field. Reviewers are typically selected from the journal’s editorial board. In cases where the article’s topic does not match current reviewers’ expertise, the editors may solicit additional reviewers that possess the necessary experience. This second review process takes approximately 6 weeks.
Editorial review. Following the external review, the editors discuss the reviewers’ findings and make publication decisions. Authors are sent copies of the external reviewers’ comments and are notified as to the decision (accept as it is, accept pending changes, revise and resubmit, or reject). Articles and commentaries that require minor changes will be reviewed by the editors when the manuscripts are resubmitted. Contributions requiring major revisions will be sent back to the initial reviewers for a second review.
Once an article or commentary has been accepted for publication, the associate editor sends an Assignment of Copyright form to the (first) author that must be signed and returned before the work can be published.
Articles and commentaries accepted for publication are typically included in the next available issue, except if the work represents a good fit with an occasional special themed issue. The editors discuss this option with the author upon the initial notification of the publication decision.
Information for Contributors
The Journal of English Learner Education seeks manuscript submissions of previously unpublished work on any topic related to the education of English Learners in English-speaking countries or regions where English is the primary language of schooling. In an effort to look at education holistically, some areas of interest are counseling, child-family-school connections, or social and community services, in addition to topics related to instruction and accountability. Manuscripts are being solicited in the following categories. Detailed descriptions of these categories and other pertinent information for submissions are provided below.
Category Descriptions
Articles should report original research, present an original framework that links previous research, educational theory, and teaching practices, or present promising practices involving a variety of school-based personnel or social and community services. Full-length articles in Research and Theory and Effective Practices from the Field should contain no more than 7,000 words, including any figures, drawings, and tables, as well as an abstract of no more than 150 words. See the other category descriptions for the descriptions and length.
