Submissions

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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.

  • 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).
  • The submission files are in OpenOffice, Microsoft Word, or RTF document file format.
  • Where available, URLs for the references have been provided.
  • 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.
  • The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines.
  • If my submission is either AI-generated or AI-assisted, I will declare that in the 'Comments for the Editor' section below. (To learn more, please visit the 'Information For Authors' page in this journal.
  • I will upload two documents: the main research article (with no author names or affiliations) and a title page (which includes the paper title, names of authors, affiliations, and authors' bios).
  • Submissions must include 2 copies: one without the authors' names and one with the authors' names, along with a file containing a biography of the author(s).
  • All manuscripts go through a two-step review process: (1) internal review by the editors to see if each manuscript is of sufficient quality to merit external review; and then (2) external review by the editorial board members and/or reviewers to make a recommendation (accept as is, accept pending changes, revise and resubmit, or reject).
  • The editors of RSELTL reserve the right to make editorial changes to manuscripts accepted for publication for the sake of style or clarity.
  • All submissions should conform to APA (American Psychological Association, 7th Edition) guidelines. For example, check the 7th ed. Reference Quick Guide or consult Purdue OWL APA General Guidelines.

Author Guidelines

Authors are encouraged to adhere to the specified guidelines for bibliographic and formatting standards when submitting their manuscripts to Research Studies in English Language Teaching and Learning (RSELTL). For in-text citations and reference lists, submissions must follow the APA (American Psychological Association) 7th edition style. Authors should conclude their documents with a references page, organizing all sources in alphabetical order by the author's last name. For comprehensive guidance on APA 7th edition style guidelines, authors are recommended to consult the official APA Publication Manual.

Incorporating these instructions within your submission guidelines ensures authors are well informed of the required citation and formatting standards, enabling them to prepare their submissions to meet the journal's expectations effectively.

Here are the updated guidelines for bibliographic and formatting standards in accordance with APA 7th edition style, including examples for common citation formats to be utilized in submissions:

  • In-text citations should include the author's surname and the year of publication, enclosed within parentheses; for instance, (Smith, 2019).

  • For direct quotations, include the page number in the in-text citation, e.g., (Smith, 2019, p. 42).

  • The reference list should be provided at the end of your document, with all sources listed in alphabetical order by the author's surname.

  • The format for a book reference entry is now:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.

Example: Smith, J. K. (2019). The art of writing: A guide for students. Penguin Publishers.

  • The format for a journal article reference entry is:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume(issue), page range.

Example: Jones, M. C. (2018). The impact of social media on mental health. Journal of Psychology, 45(2), 102-115.

  • The format for a website reference entry is:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of webpage. Site Name. URL

Example: National Institute of Mental Health. (2020, January 5). Understanding mental health disorders. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/mental-health-disorders/index.shtml

  • For works with multiple authors, list up to 20 authors in the reference entry. For works with more than 20 authors, list the first 19 authors, then insert an ellipsis (...), and add the final author's name.

Example: Smith, J. K., Johnson, L. M., Williams, S. M., Brown, R. A., Jones, M. C., ... Wilson, P. G. (2021). The effects of exercise on mental health. Journal of Health and Wellness, 12(3), 45-57.

These revised guidelines offer a concise overview of APA 7th edition style for bibliographic and formatting standards. For detailed instructions and additional examples, authors should refer to the APA Publication Manual, 7th edition.

Copyright Notice

  • Overview
    Research Studies in English Language Teaching and Learning (RSELTL) is committed to the open access model, which ensures that scholarly work is freely accessible to a global audience. Our copyright policy is designed to balance the rights of authors and the needs of the academic community, promoting the widest possible dissemination of research while ensuring the protection of intellectual property. By retaining copyright, authors maintain control over their work, while the journal facilitates open access under a Creative Commons licence to encourage knowledge sharing and reuse.

  • Copyright Retention
    At RSELTL, we recognise that authors should maintain full ownership of their research. Authors retain complete copyright over their work, allowing them to control how it is used, shared, and distributed. When a manuscript is accepted for publication, authors grant the journal a non-exclusive licence to publish, distribute, and promote their research. This means that while RSELTL has the right to make the research publicly available, the copyright remains with the author, ensuring their continued ability to use, share, and republish the work in any venue of their choice.

    The non-exclusive licence granted to RSELTL does not prevent authors from posting their work in institutional repositories, personal websites, or any other platforms after publication. Authors can also distribute their work in educational, non-commercial, or academic settings without any restrictions. This policy ensures that research remains widely accessible while protecting the author's right to use and control their work after publication.

  • Licensing Terms
    To ensure that research published in RSELTL is freely accessible and can be reused by others, all articles are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence. This licence allows anyone to copy, distribute, adapt, and build upon the published work, even for commercial purposes, provided that proper credit is given to the author and the journal. The CC BY licence ensures that the research can be utilised in a variety of contexts, fostering academic collaboration, innovation, and public access to knowledge.

    Under the terms of the CC BY licence, users are required to provide appropriate attribution to the original author(s) and the journal when reusing or adapting the content. Attribution should include the article title, author name, journal name, and a link to the original publication. This approach supports the principles of open access by removing barriers to sharing and reuse while ensuring that authors receive proper recognition for their work.

    For detailed information about this license, please visit Licensing Terms page.

 

  • Commercial Rights
    RSELTL does not claim any commercial rights over the content published in the journal. The primary focus of the journal is to promote academic research and facilitate its free dissemination to educators, researchers, and the public. Any use of the work for commercial purposes, such as for-profit reproduction, distribution, or adaptation, would require a separate agreement between the author and any commercial entity interested in the content. This ensures that the work remains freely accessible for non-commercial academic and educational purposes, in line with the principles of open access.

    Authors are encouraged to negotiate separate commercial agreements if they wish to monetise their work. However, such agreements must not conflict with the open access nature of the original publication, and appropriate credit must still be given to RSELTL and the author under the terms of the CC BY licence.

  • Author Rights
    In keeping with the principles of open access, RSELTL supports authors in exercising their rights over their published work. Authors are encouraged to share their published articles widely, whether through academic networks, personal websites, or social media platforms. The journal also encourages the reuse of research in educational and non-commercial settings, as long as proper attribution is provided. This policy empowers authors to reach a broader audience, enhance the impact of their research, and contribute to the advancement of knowledge without restrictions on access or reuse.