Author Guidelines

The editors of the Journal of Research in English Language Teaching and Linguistics (JRELL) welcome authors to submit articles written in English in accordance with the following guidelines:

  1. Articles have not been published or accepted for publication, or are being considered for publication elsewhere.
  2. In addition to the manuscript, a written statement should be attached which clarifies the originality and free of plagiarism.
  3. Types of articles suitable for publication include research reports and conceptual ideas.
  4. Each article should be normally approximately between 4,000 and 8,000 words long.
  5. Every section heading is in bold type and in upper case for the first letter, for example, Introduction, and every subheading is in bold type, in italics and in upper case for the first letter of each content word and in lower case for the first letter of each function word, except for the first letter of the function word which begins a subheading, for example, Data Analysis and Engaging Activities and Tasks.
  6. The editors appreciate if authors excerpt information from subsequent published articles in JRELL.
  7. Articles should be uploaded onto the JRELL website in soft-files using Microsoft Word application, single-spaced on A4-sized paper, using 12 size Times New Roman font.
  8. Authors will be sent notifications of the receipt of manuscripts and editorial decisions (whether the articles are accepted or not) by e-mail. 

 

Article format

  1. Title (15-20 words) in bold type and in capital each word (except for function words; Use lower case for function words, for example, prepositions and conjunctions), and in 12-point size of Times New Roman font.
  2. Author's name (without academic degree)
  3. Affiliation
  4. E-mail address
  5. Abstract in English (200-300 words) which includes research problems, methods, and results. This should be in 10-point size of Times New Roman font.
  6. Keywords in English (3-5 words).
  7. Introduction (without subsection), which includes the background and objectives. The introduction section ends with an emphasis on items to be discussed.
  8. Literature review
  9. Method
  10. Results (with sections)
  11. Discussion (with sections) which includes data analysis, verification of hypothesis, findings, and the interpretation.
  12. Conclusion (without sections) which includes the concluding remarks, research implications, and suggestions.
  13. Reference list should appear at the end of the article and includes only literatures actually cited in the manuscripts. Reference list should contain at least 60% new primary literatures and at most 40% new secondary literatures. References are ordered alphabetically and chronologically. When writing a reference list, please use the APA style (the seventh edition).

 

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.

  1. The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
  2. The submission file is in Microsoft Word or .rtf (not .pdf) format.
  3. Where available, URLs for the references have been provided.
  4. The text is single-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
  5. The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal.
  6. If submitting to a peer-reviewed section of the journal, the instructions in Ensuring a Blind Review have been followed.

 

Documentation

Manuscripts must conform to the APA 7th edition standard for referencing and style. Authors are expected to consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed., 2020).

  • Follow the author-date method of citation in the text.
  • Provide page numbers for all direct quotes.
  • Prepare an unnumbered reference list in alphabetical order by author. For multiple articles by the same author(s), list the most recent first.
  • Ensure all references cited in the text also appear in the reference section.

 

Below are some examples of basic reference list formats:

Citing an Article in a Periodical

  • Format: Surname, A. A. (Year). Article title. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number), inclusive page numbers. DOI or link if available.
  • Example: Grow, G. O. (1994). In defense of the staged self-directed learning model. Adult Education Quarterly, 44(2), 109–115. https://doi.org/10.1177/074171369404400206

Citing a Book

  • Format: Surname, A. A. (Year). Title of book. Publisher. DOI or link if available.
  • Example: Rogers, E. (1962). Diffusion of innovations. Free Press.

Citing an Edited Book

  • Format: Surname, A. A. (Year). Title of chapter. In Editor First Initial, Editor Last Name (Ed.), Title of book (pp. xx–xx). Publisher. DOI or link if available.
  • Example: Ally, M. (2008). Foundations of educational theory for online learning. In T. Anderson (Ed.), The theory and practice of online learning (pp. 15–44). AU Press. https://www.aupress.ca/books/120146-the-theory-and-practice-of-online-learning/

Refer to the  APA 7th edition website for more reference types, including conference proceedings, blog posts, reports, and dissertations.

Style

Refer to the APA 7th edition for guidance on expression (grammar, reducing bias, etc.) and style (punctuation, capitalization, headings, etc.). Adherence to APA 7th edition style is mandatory.

Language

JRELL accepts articles in English only. Submissions in International, British, or American English spelling are acceptable but must be consistent throughout. Please use spell check before submission.

Abbreviations

To abbreviate the name of an organization or agency, use capitals without periods (e.g., YWCA). For the first occurrence of an abbreviation, provide the full name followed by the abbreviation in parentheses. Once introduced, the abbreviation may be used throughout the paper (not the abstract).

 

Originality

Manuscripts submitted to JRELL must be original material that has not been published or submitted for review elsewhere.

  1. Every article must maintain a high quality of scholarship, be original and unpublished, and contribute to the field of open and distributed education scholarship. It must not plagiarize the work of others. Articles previously published or currently under review by another peer-reviewed commercial or scholarly publisher are not eligible for publication in JRELL. Using large portions of an author’s previously published works is not permitted.
  2. Articles distributed as conference proceedings or self-published in blogs or institutional repositories should be substantially revised before submission. If your article is derived from a thesis or dissertation, please provide the name of the institution to which it was submitted, the date of submission, the author(s), and the supervisor. The editor may ask to review in detail the publication/distribution history of any work to make this determination.
  3. Articles that appeared in conference proceedings or were self-published should acknowledge this distribution history in an endnote. Authors submitting articles that were previously distributed should also include a note to the editor detailing the rationale for review and publication by JRELL.