IFOTS - Instructions for Authors

IFOTS JOURNAL CATEGORIES AND TOPICS

IFOTS accepts theoretical, empirical research-based, or practice/policy-based articles and perspectives and reflections related to these topics within your local and international/intercultural contexts in many settings:

  • Adult Education
  • Adult Teaching and Learning
  • Career and Workforce Education
  • Cross-cultural Studies and Practices
  • Emerging Philosophy and Theories in Education
  • Intercultural Programming
  • Lifelong and Lifewide Learning
  • P-12 Educational Leadership Practices
  • Popular/Liberatory Education
  • Theory and Model Building
  • Technology-mediated Education Practices

Original Empirical Research-based and Policy-based Articles

Each article must address how the work informs the teaching and study of education in contexts such as primary to secondary (P-12) education, higher education, community, formal, informal, and nonformal settings, training in the workplace etc. We invite submissions that use historical, qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methodologies. Clear exposition of the research purpose, hypothesis or research questions, research methods, results/findings, implications or recommendations are expected in research topics.

  • Theoretical articles should clearly identify the issue, provide a rigorous analysis of the literature, and well-formulated arguments.
  • Practice-based/policy-based manuscripts are expected to outline the social context and application of theory or research to practice. These can take the form of case studies or case stories, for example.

In addition to following the general guidelines for manuscripts below, all full-length articles on formal research should include:

  • Concise and factual abstract (not to exceed 150 words)
  • Keywords (no more than 5)
  • Introduction
  • Purpose of the Practice as related to the Education Context/Setting
  • Description of the Practice/Policy
  • Relevant Literature References as necessary
  • Recommendations
  • References
  • Appendices
  • Acknowledgments of financial support, written copyright permissions, IRB approval as appropriate.
Abstracts

The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results, and major conclusions.

Keywords

Each keyword (which can be a phrase of more than one word) should describe one single concept. Do not use an abbreviation unless it is so well-established that the full term is rarely used.

Perspectives and Reflections

Reflection essays or other creative presentations on contemporary or historical issues and theories about education are welcomed for the From My Perspective: Reflections from the Field Section of the journal such as:

  • Reactions/responses to previously published full-length articles in IFOTS
  • Critical perspectives and commentaries on contemporary issues related to education in its myriad contexts and settings
  • Perspectives on the role of education within international and cross-national, cross-cultural practices and experiences

Reflection essays on issues about education related to social issues should include:

  • Identification of the social issue(s)
  • Description of how the issue is related to teaching and study, including relevant literature, if and as appropriate

Dialogue through prose and other creative presentations of viewpoints are encouraged. Examples include:

  • Interviews with educators/students in the field
  • Personal narrative/autoethnography
  • Expository essays
  • Arts-based submissions, e.g., (photographs, artwork, images)

GENERAL FORMAT GUIDELINES FOR ALL MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSIONS

Lengths of Manuscripts

All manuscript submissions must be in Microsoft Word, Times New Roman 12-pt font, double- spaced with one-inch margins and numbered pages. The text for Articles should be in single- column format. Body of article manuscripts should be 5000-7000 words, including references, tables, figures, acknowledgments, and appendices. Submissions for the Perspectives section may be in creative formats and styles, e.g., visual, lyrical, creative essays (prose or poetry) in varying lengths between 1000-3500 words if written, or one to two pages if graphics or other art media.

All manuscript submissions must be in Microsoft Word, Times New Roman 12-pt font, double- spaced with one-inch margins and numbered pages. The text for Articles should be in single- column format. Body of article manuscripts should be 5000-7000 words, including references, tables, figures, acknowledgments, and appendices. Submissions for the Perspectives section may be in creative formats and styles, e.g., visual, lyrical, creative essays (prose or poetry) in varying lengths between 1000-3500 words if written, or one to two pages if graphics or other art media.

Lengths of Manuscripts

All manuscript submissions must be in Microsoft Word, Times New Roman 12-pt font, double- spaced with one-inch margins and numbered pages. The text for Articles should be in single- column format. Body of article manuscripts should be 5000-7000 words, including references, tables, figures, acknowledgments, and appendices. Submissions for the Perspectives section may be in creative formats and styles, e.g., visual, lyrical, creative essays (prose or poetry) in varying lengths between 1000-3500 words if written, or one to two pages if graphics or other art media.

References
  • Reference List

    APA 7 th edition format is required for references of sources in the manuscript. Arrange the items on your reference list alphabetically by author, interfiling books, articles, etc. Indent the second and following lines five to seven spaces or one-half inch.

  • In-Text Citations and Quotations

    To reference a source as a citation in your text, provide the author(s) name(s) and year of publication, e.g. Cheek & Buss, 1981; Shimamura, 1989, chap. 3. To quote a specific verbatim portion from a source, indicate the author(s) name(s), page, chapter, figure, table, or equation at the appropriate point in your text. Note that the words page and chapter are abbreviated in such text quotations, e.g., Cheek & Buss, 1981, p. 332; Shimamura, 1989, chap. 3. For concise APA 7 th referencing, please consult: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_gui de/index.html.

Graphics and Tables

Do not import figures or graphics into the text file. Instead, provide the original separately and indicate the specific location in the electronic text in the manuscript. Do not embed graphically designed equations or tables but prepare these using the word processor's facility. When preparing tables, if you are using a table grid, use only one grid for each individual table and not a grid for each row (see APA 7 th ). Use tabs, not spaces to align columns.

Biographical Statement

In a separate document, please provide a brief biography about yourself, including affiliations and research or practice areas (ca.100 words). Add your preferred email address, if desired to accompany your statement.

DOUBLE-BLIND REVIEW PROCESS

To facilitate the double-blind review process for full-length article manuscripts and sub mission of reflection essays and creative perspectives submissions.

  • Remove the author's name from the main text, the in-text citations, the reference list, and any running heads, as needed
  • Replace the author's name with Author. If there are multiple authors, please use Author1, Author2, etc.
  • Remove any identifying information such as name of publication, issue of publication, etc. from the reference list
  • Remove any identifying metadata from Microsoft Word Files.
    How to Remove Metadata from Microsoft Word Files
    1. Select the File menu tab and then select Info, if necessary.
    2. Select Check for Issues and then select Inspect Document.
    3. In the Document Inspector dialog box, check the boxes to inspect for certain data and then click Inspect.
    4. In the results, select Remove All to remove any found data.

    If the author's name(s) is not removed, the manuscript will be returned without review.

COPY RIGHT/REPRINTING

Copyright and Licensing Statement

At the American Scholar Press that publishes IFOTS, we recognize the importance of both authors' rights and our commitment to disseminating knowledge effectively. Our standard practice regarding copyright is as follows:

  • Copyright Ownership: Authors retain the copyright to their original works upon publication. By submitting their manuscript, authors grant the American Scholar Press that publishes IFOTS a non-exclusive license to publish, distribute, and promote the work in all formats.
  • Reusability: Authors are free to reuse their work in future publications or to share it with others, provided that appropriate attribution to the American Scholar Press that publishes IFOTS is maintained.
  • Permissions for Third-Party Content: Authors are responsible for obtaining permissions for any third-party content included in their work. We encourage the use of original materials and proper citation of external sources.
  • Open Access Options: We support open access publishing and offer various licensing options, including Creative Commons licenses, to allow authors to retain rights while promoting broader access to their work.
  • Attribution and Acknowledgment: Authors are encouraged to include proper attribution when referencing their published works in future publications or presentations.

PRIVACY STATEMENT

The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party. With permission of the author, email addressed will be added to the biographical statement and published in the journal to facilitate further exchanges among authors and readers.