Pu b l i s h You r Pa p e r

Contents of this page:

Submission Guidelines Peer Review Process Publishing Agreement Author Order

Submission Guidelines
Contents of this section:

About the Submission Process | Author Guidelines | Editorial Quality | The Submission Process | The Publication Process |Submission Timeline

About the Submission Process

Registration in the Learning Conference gives participants the opportunity to publish in an academic journal. Presenters have the option to submit their papers to The International Journal of the Learning anytime before the conference and up to one month after the conference. Papers submitted for publication will be fully refereed. The publication decision is based on the referees reports. To submit a paper to the journal at least one author of each paper must be registered to attend the conference (to a maximum of one paper per registered authorwhich means, for instance, that two registered authors may submit two jointly authored papers). We can only publish one paper per journal per year with you as the first-named author; we will publish a second or third article only if other authors are named first.

For those unable to attend the conference in person, a virtual registration is available. A virtual registration allows you to join the conference community in the following ways:

Your conference proposal will be listed in the Session Descriptions of the conference. Acceptance of a conference proposal for a virtual participant is based on the same criteria as that for an attending participant.

You can submit a paper to The International Journal of Learning. Your journal paper submission will be refereed by conference participants and you will in turn referee paper submissions of other conference participants.

If accepted, your paper will be published in the same volume as conference participants from the same year. You will also have online access to all papers published in the journal.

You will receive the community newsletter.

All registered participants will be given online access to all papers published in the journal from the time of registration until one year after the end date of the conference. Papers are published continuously to the journals online bookstore, as soon as the publication process is completed for each paper (and that can be any time before the conference, and continues after the conference as papers are refereed).

It is possible to attend and present at the conference without submitting or publishing a formal written paper if you choose not to do so.

Author Guidelines
General Requirements

We only accept text files or files in .doc format (such as from Microsoft Word or OpenOffice). We do not accept PDF submissions.

Papers should be approximately 2,000-5,000 words in length. They should be written as continuous expository narrative in a chapter or article style not as lists of points or a PowerPoint presentation.

Please remember that the papers are to be published in a fully refereed academic journal. This means that the style and structure of your text should be relatively formal. For instance, you should not submit a verbatim transcript of your oral presentation, such as Today I want to speak to you about .

Paper submissions must contain no more than 30% of textual material published in other places by the same author or authors, and these other places must be acknowledged and cited; in other words, the remaining 70% of the paper must be unique and original to your current submission.

Authors must ensure the accuracy of citations, quotations, diagrams, tables and maps. You may use any referencing style you choose, as long as you use it consistently and to the appropriate standards. Spelling can vary according to national usage, but should be internally consistent. Papers should be thoroughly checked and proof-read before submission, both by the author and a critical editorial friend after you have submitted your paper you are unable to make any changes to it during the refereeing process.

Papers will be assessed by referees against ten criteria or fewer if some criteria do not apply to a particular kind of paper (see the Peer Review Process). Formatting Requirements

1.

Please do not enter in Author details, Title information, Abstract or any other front matter. This information is supplied via your CGPublisher profile you may change this information by logging into http://www.cgpublisher.com and modifying your profile there.

2.

Refrain from using Heading 1 styles. Instead use Heading 2-6 styles, or simply increase the font size of your headings.

3.

Refrain from using Word Drawing objects. Instead use images imported from a drawing program. Word Drawing objects will not be rendered in the typeset version.

4. 5.

In case of symbols, please only insert symbols using standard fonts (e.g. WingDings, Arial Unicode MS). Please avoid using certain advanced Word features, such as:

a. b. c. d. e. f. Highlighting, Automatic

Background

or Drawing

font

colours objects

table Autotext

of

contents

and or

table

of

indexes Fields Bookmarks

strike-through,

embossing

and

other

complex

Word

text

formatting

g. Forms

Illustration/Electronic Artwork Guidelines

Figures and images must be clear and easy to view. We cannot improve the quality of images. Figures and tables need to be placed where they are to appear in the text. If preferred, you can also place images and tables at the end of your paper.

Please refrain from using Word Drawing objects. Instead use images imported from a drawing program. Word Drawing objects will not be rendered in the typeset version. Keyword Guidelines

Keywords are extremely important in search engine rankings. To achieve better exposure for your paper, please make sure your keywords are clear and accurate.

Resubmission Policy

If your paper has been rejected we will allow a maximum of TWO further resubmissions until TWO months prior to the anticipated publication date. Please direct enquiries to the Journal administrators at: journals@thelearner.com.

Editorial Quality
The refereeing process for publication in the journal is a rigorous measure of the quality of content. Authors are expected to revise to the standards required of the more negative of the referee reports they receive. For instance, if one referee recommends resubmit with major revisions and another resubmit with minor revisions, the author is expected to resubmit with major revisions.

Furthermore, some papers may have excellent content, but may be poorly expressed in Englishin the case, for instance, of authors whose first language is not English. When we receive a negative response from a referee to Criterion 10, Quality of Communication, we may request a complete rewrite regardless of the overall score.

The Submission Process

How and where to submit your paper for publication

Full papers can be submitted to Common Ground using our online conference and paper management system CGPublisher. To upload your paper to our system please view the instructions in the CGPublisher Guide.

If you do not know your login details you can reset them at CGPublisher. Click on the Forgotten Password button and follow the prompts. A new password will be emailed to you. Please direct publication enquiries to the journal administrators at: journals@thelearner.com.

The Publication Process

The publication process is as follows:

1. 2.

Submit a presentation proposal to the conference (in-person or virtual) before the next deadline. If your proposal is accepted by the conference advisory team, complete your registration as an in-person or virtual participant. You may submit your paper to the journal anytime between registration and one calendar month after the closing date of the conference.

3.

Once your paper is received, it is verified against template and submission requirements. Your identity and contact details are then removed and the paper is matched to two appropriate referees and sent for review. You can view the status of your paper at any time by logging into your CGPublisher account at www.CGPublisher.com.

4.

When referee reports are uploaded, you will be notified by email and provided with a link to view the reports (after the referees identities have been removed).

5. 6. 7.

You will then be asked to accept the Publishing Agreement and submit a revised final copy of your paper. Your paper will be typeset and the proofs sent to you for final approval before publication. Papers are published continuously in the online bookstore. Registered conference participants will be given online access to the journal from the time of registration until one year after the conference end date. Individual papers will also be available for purchase from the journals bookstore.

Submission Timeline
You may submit your final paper for possible publication to the journal at any time. The timeline is as follows:

For 2011 Volume of the Journal:

Current Journal Submission Deadline: Monday 7 February 2011 Conference Proposal Submission Deadline: Check the Submit Proposal page for the closing date of the next round in the call for papers. Important dates:

5 April 2011: Final date for submission of papers for double blind refereeing 3 months prior to the start of the conference (for an explanation, see the Peer Referee Process link).

5-8 July 2011: The International Conference on Learning, Mauritius. 8 August 2011: Final date for submission of papers for one way blind refereeing one month after the close of the conference (for an explanation, see the Peer Referee Process link).

The Peer Referee Process

Contents of this section:

The Process | Role of the Referee | Become An Associate Editor

The Process

Journal authors belong to a community of professional interest and concern and on this basis are asked to provide critical and constructive feedback on the work of their peers. People who submit a paper to the journal are requested to referee up to three other submitted papers from the current or subsequent volumes of the journal. Once assigned to a paper, referees are requested to complete reports within two weeks.

All editors are accredited as Associate Editors in the volume of the journal to which they contribute. The refereeing process for the journal can be either double blind (paper submitted by three months before the conference, which means the author/s needs to have a finalised, fully publishable paper well before the conference) or one way blind (paper submitted up to one month after the conference, which gives the author the chance to refine their paper in the light of their presentation). Double blind means that neither the author nor the referee are provided each others identity. One way blind means that the referee knows the identity of the author, although the referees identity remains confidential. Double blind refereeing cannot be guaranteed later than three months before the conference because it is easy to locate the title and author in the conference program.

If the outcome of the referee reports is a recommendation that the paper should not be published, we provide the opportunity for rewrite and resubmission to different referees. Papers will be assessed by referees against ten criteria or fewer if some criteria do not apply to a particular kind of paper.

A sample copy of the referee form can be downloaded here.

(270k).

Papers may have a focus on practice, research or theory, and will be assessed against the kind of focus they have.

Role of the Referee

Referees are requested to observe the following guidelines:

1.

Expertise: Papers are not always sent to a referee whose field is identical to the subject matter of that paper. You dont have to be precisely qualified in a field to be a constructive referee. In fact, an excellent paper will speak beyond its narrowly defined field. If, however, a paper is so distant from your field that you do not feel qualified to judge its merits, please return it to the publishing manager for the journal, who will locate another referee.

2.

Confidentiality: Referees receive unpublished work, which must be treated as confidential until published. They should destroy all electronic and printed copies of the draft paper and referee report once they have received confirmation that their reports have been received by the publishing manager (in case we cant open the report files

you send us). Referees must not disclose to others which papers they have refereed; nor are they to share those papers with any other person. 3. Conflict of Interest: Referees must declare any conflict of interest or any other factor which may affect their independencein cases for instance, where they have received a paper of a colleague or an intellectual opponent. In cases of conflict of interest, please notify the publishing manager of your inability to referee a particular paper. 4. Intellectual Merit: A paper must be judged on its intellectual merits alone. Personal criticism or criticism based solely on the political or social views of the referee, is not acceptable. 5. Full Explanation: Critical or negative judgments must be fully supported by detailed reference to evidence from the paper under review or other relevant sources. 6. Plagiarism and Copyright: If a referee considers that a paper may contain plagiarism or that it might breach another partys copyright, they should notify the publishing manager for the journal, providing the relevant citations to support their claim.

Become an Associate Editor

As part of the process of publishing The International Journal of Learning all submissions are sent for peer refereeing, prior to publication. Assessment, comments and guidance by the referees are an essential part of the publication process and invaluable to the authors of the submitted papers.

In recognition of the important role of referees, the international advisory board acknowledges all referees who have refereed papers as an Associate Editor in the volume of the journal they have contributed to. If you would like to referee papers submitted to The International Journal of Learning, please

email journals@thelearner.com, with your professional details, areas of expertise and contact details. If we feel you are qualified and we require refereeing for papers within your expertise, we will contact you.

Publishing Agreement
Publication in The International Journal of Learning is based on the following Publishing Agreement: COMMON GROUND PUBLISHING University Champaign, http://www.commongroundpublishing.com of Illinois Research IL, Park, 60 Hazelwood 61820, Drive, Suite 226 USA

PUBLISHING AGREEMENT
i. COMMON GROUND WILL PUBLISH THIS PAPER OR CHAPTER

This agreement is between the author(s) of the submitted work and Common Ground Publishing. Common Ground will publish this work in print and electronic formats, separately and/or in a collection of other papers/chapters. Common Ground will provide the author with an electronic copy of the work once it is published. ii. COPYRIGHT IS THE AUTHORS Copyright will be attributed to the author(s). The author(s) are granting Common Ground an exclusive international license to publish the work in all formats. Permission to republish or reproduce should be sought from Common Ground. The author may make complimentary electronic or printed copies of the work for teaching; for circulation within the organisation where they work; and post an electronic copy at their own or their organisations website. They may also include all or part of the work in any commercial or noncommercial book that they author or edit themselves. In each case, the work must be accompanied by a full citation and a notice that readers must contact Common Ground for permission to reproduce. iii. THE AUTHOR WILL REFEREE THREE SIMILAR PAPERS OR CHAPTERS Each author agrees to review or referee at least three other works on comparable themes and of similar length within twelve months of this agreement. The author(s) may reject a request to review a particular work, but they nevertheless agree either to communicate this or to return a completed review or referee report within two weeks of an email request being made by Common Ground. iv. THERE IS NO UNLAWFUL MATERIAL The author(s) assure the publisher that the material contained in the paper/chapter is not defamatory, unlawful, obscene, invasive of another persons privacy, hateful, racially or ethnically objectionable, abusive, threatening, harmful or in contempt of court, and undertake to indemnify Common Ground against any claims which may be made in situations where material is considered to be any of these things, or has any of these effects. v. THERE IS NO INFRINGEMENT OF THE COPYRIGHT OF OTHERS The author(s) assure Common Ground that the chapter/paper is based entirely on original material, that it does not infringe anybody elses copyright, and that the author(s) have the right to license copyright to Common Ground. In the case of copyright material, such as the use of quotes or images beyond what is legally considered fair use, the author(s) and/or editor(s) will undertake to arrange, and if necessary to pay for, permissions, and place all documentation supporting their claim that these permissions have been

secured in the Supporting Documents area for this work in CGPublisher online publishing software. These permissions must also be credited within the work itself. The author(s) agree to indemnify Common Ground against any claims as a result of breech of the copyright of others. vi. ROYALTIES The publisher will pay royalties at a rate of 20% of the publishers sales revenues, either direct sales revenues through the publishers own online bookstore, or indirect sales revenues to other online or physical bookstores. Below a minimum amount of $US50, royalties will be allowed to accumulate. Royalties shall be divided amongst the author(s) on the assumption that their contributions are equal. Royalties will be paid on a six monthly basis. Common Ground will also pay the author 50% of rights purchased for any other purposeincluding translation, photocopying and re-publication rights. vii. THE AUTHOR(S) AGREE TO PUBLICATION By submitting their paper for refereeing and then resubmitting the final paper for publication, the principal author (the person who has submitted the paper in its original or revised form) will accept the terms and conditions of this agreement. In the case of multiple authorship, the principal author guarantees Common Ground that they have provided the other authors with a copy of the text for their checking, and that they have all agreed to the terms of this agreement. Download a copy of the Publishing Agreement here.

Author Order
Download the Author Order form here. Journal

Journal Overview