ISSN 0120-5927
printed version

INSTRUCTIONS TO AUTHORS

• Scope and policy
• Form and preparation of manuscripts
• Publication ethics and publication malpractice statement
• Sending of manuscripts

HOW is a biannual publication led by ASOCOPI, the Colombian Association of Teachers of English. It is a journal by and for teachers of English who wish to share outcomes of educational and research experiences intended to add understanding to English language teaching practices. Therefore, the journal falls within the field of education and, specifically, the teaching and learning of English as a second or foreign language.

Authors can submit manuscripts to one of the four sections of the journal as follows:

Research Reports: In-progress and final reports of studies carried out by teacher-researchers or student-teachers studying in BA programs. The abstract of the paper should explicitly indicate this and the structure of the article should include the main components of a research report: introduction, method, results, conclusions, references, among others.

Reports on Pedagogical Experiences: These tell the reader about teaching practices that have been systematized by the authors as a result of an analytical process. Reports on pedagogical experiences are expected to include a solid justification, the description of the processes followed in a given educational setting, samples of such processes, results of the experiences and conclusions. The authors are also expected to support their manuscript with theoretical and/or research studies and to present analytical perspectives.

Reflections and Revision of Themes: Specific subjects or topics can be examined in depth in two types of articles: reflections and revisions of themes. An article of reflection presents the results of a research project from the author’s analytical, interpretative or critical perspective. It is about a specific topic and draws on the close examination of a variety of sources as well as clearly shows the author’s informed points of view. An article of revision is the result of a research project in which one analyses, systematizes and integrates the outcomes of published or non-published research projects about a specific topic. Authors gather the advances and developmental tendencies in the field and support them with a rich and varied selection of references.

Book Reviews: They gather summarized academic opinions of no more than 1500 words on current publications in the topic of English language teaching, learning, or acquisition. The focus is mainly on research books or on textbooks designed for language teaching. Due to its informative nature, book reviews are not required to include the usual components of research or reflection articles (abstract, key words, introduction, etc.).

In general, it is advisable that manuscripts contain clear pedagogic implications stated in no less than three pages. Additionally, there should be a section at the end indicating suggestions and ideas for further research in the field.

All submissions follow a double blind review process, that is, the identity of authors is never revealed to reviewers throughout the review process and vice versa. On the whole, the evaluation process lasts four months approximately. First, each manuscript is sent to two reviewers who can accept, reject, or suggest that the manuscript be revised and resubmitted. In case the evaluations of the two reviewers are at variance, the following is a summary of the steps that will be taken:

Evaluation 1: Accept
Evaluation 2: Revise and resubmit
Recommendation: Revise and resubmit

Evaluation 1: Reject
Evaluation 2: Revise and resubmit
Recommendation: Reject

Evaluation 1: Accept
Evaluation 2: Reject
Recommendation: Send to a third reviewer. The two concepts (out of the three) that are similar at the end of the evaluation process will be used to decide on whether to accept or reject the manuscript.

If an article requires major changes it will be returned to the author with the recommendation: revise and resubmit. The author will be given three weeks to revise the manuscript; failure to comply with this deadline will result in the manuscript being considered as a new submission. Once the revised version is received it will be sent to the two original reviewers (or the third one, if applicable) for their final evaluation. The editing process will start once the article is accepted after having been read by members of the editorial committee and the advisory board. Authors should be ready to revise it if necessary and the edited version will be sent to the author for approval. Authors will be given deadlines to revise the manuscript throughout the process of edition as well; final acceptance and date of publication of the manuscript depend on the timely response to such deadlines.

The submission of manuscripts is exclusively done online through the journal web site: http://www.howjournalcolombia.org/index.php/how/ (do not send submissions by e-mail). To upload their submissions, authors first have to register as users by clicking on the option "register" at the top menu and filling in the user registration form, selecting the option "Register as: Author" at the end. Once registered with the site, authors will be able to upload their submission (manuscript and complementary files). It is important to follow each of the five submission steps to avoid rejection of the manuscript after the initial screening. Important note: HOW receives submissions signed by a maximum of three authors.

Papers must not exceed 7000 words, including the abstract, key words, footnotes, references, and annexes. Please indicate at the beginning of the manuscript your total number of words. The manuscript should be saved as a Word document, double-spaced, Times Roman 12, and with all margins at least three centimeters. Do not write your name or biodata in the article. Manuscripts should contain an abstract of no more than 110 words and a list of key words in alphabetical order (no more than five). The abstract and the key words should be both in Spanish and English.

Translate into English all pieces of information that are in other languages like excerpts, appendices, and/or quotes. Place a footnote clarifying that the translation is made for publication purposes. The original language can be kept as long as this is necessary due to the nature of the study; however, the corresponding English translation must additionally be provided.

Footnotes must be used sparingly. If necessary, they must be included on the same page, not at the end of the document. All graphics in the article should be elaborated in black and white. Please avoid the use of color. Include downsized versions of each figure or table in the manuscript, following the Word format. The figures or pictures used in the manuscript should also be sent in complementary high-resolution graphic files; JPG is preferred. Tables should be created in Microsoft Word. Appendices, figures, and tables should include a title.

Following the American Psychological Association (APA) style, Sixth Edition (see samples of references on the journal website: http://howjournalcolombia.org/index.php/how/about/submissions#authorGuidelines.), authors must include citations inside the text as well as the complete bibliographic information for each citation in the list of references.

When a manuscript includes samples from participants, authors must send, as a supplementary file, the consent form used to ask subjects for their permission to replicate the information. In case the subjects are underage, the consent form should be signed by their legal guardians.

Please send the article and the consent form (if applicable) together with a letter to the editor specifying the following: Title of the article in English and Spanish (titles should not be longer than 12 words), author(s) name(s) (use the name with which you want to be identified when your work is referenced; a maximum of three authors per manuscript), institution, address, a short biographical statement of no more than 40 words per author, and the date or period of time when the document was written. Additionally, you should include a statement indicating that your article has not been submitted to another publication and that it has not already been published elsewhere. The letter to the editor should also be the place to mention acknowledgments (if authors wish to do so) in a paragraph of no more than 100 words (please, do not write acknowledgments in the manuscript).

Note: Upon publication, authors will receive a PDF copy of their articles and will be invited to consult the complete contents on the journal website. ASOCOPI does not send printed versions of the journal unless the authors are active members of the Association. Authors interested in acquiring the printed version should contact the Editor.

Ethical considerations: It should be noted that plagiarism is a crime under Colombian law. Plagiarism basically consists of incorporating ideas (verbatim or by paraphrasing) from other works without properly acknowledging the source. Similarly, self-plagiarism occurs when an author fails to give proper attribution to his or her own previously published work. All manuscripts recommended for publication in the HOW journal are screened for plagiarism using a plagiarism checker. If minor problems are identified (i.e., a small portion of no more than a couple of sentences has been copied, improper or unclear citation, lack of quotation marks) the author is contacted and asked to correct them. However, when the copied or misattributed part exceeds one paragraph the manuscript will be rejected and the author notified.

HOW will reject papers which evidence plagiarism or self-plagiarism and its decision will be final. Manuscripts submitted by authors whose work has been rejected due to plagiarism will not be considered for evaluation purposes in the future. The same will apply to authors who simultaneously submit their manuscripts to other journals (parallel submission).

The purpose of this declaration is to clarify the expected duties and ethical behavior for all the parties involved in the process of submission, evaluation, and selection of manuscripts sent to the HOW journal.

Duties Expected of the Editor

• The Editor is responsible for maintaining the quality of the contents of the journal and, as such, has the final say on whether to accept or reject a manuscript.
• The Editor ensures that all submissions comply with the editorial policies and the guidelines for authors found on the journal website and in the print version.
• The Editor guarantees that all authors are treated fairly and their manuscripts evaluated without regard to the authors’ race, gender, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, political philosophy, ethnic origin, institutional affiliation, or citizenship.
• The Editor is expected to be in constant communication with authors and reviewers about the status of a manuscript or about any other issue that may arise along the process of submission, evaluation, and selection of manuscripts and which requires the attention of some or all of the parties involved.
• Initially, the Editor assigns two reviewers for each manuscript taking into account the reviewers’ areas of interest. The Editor must also ensure the double-blind nature of the review process. When the two concepts from the evaluators are at odds, the Editor must select a third reviewer. In the end, the Editor must consider all the factors present along the evaluation of a manuscript to reach a final decision.
• The Editor treats with confidentiality all the information gathered throughout the submission, evaluation, and selection of a manuscript, disclosing only what is necessary for the purposes of evaluation and edition and to the incumbent parties.
• The Editor refers to the policies of the journal, the guidelines for authors, or the present declaration to decide on cases of unethical behavior (plagiarism, self-plagiarism, parallel submission). However, when another issue of a legal nature not contemplated in the abovementioned documents arises, the Editor will resort to the Editorial Committee to define the course of action.

Duties Expected of the Author

• The Author submits manuscripts that follow standards of academic writing and that are based on original research. The manuscript should advance the knowledge in the field by presenting data that are easily replicated and relevant to interested readers. Falsification and manipulation of data are unethical and unacceptable behaviors.
• The Author should consult and comply with the guidelines for authors and the editorial policies of the journal prior to the submission of a manuscript.
• The Author must be aware that practices like parallel submission (sending the same manuscript simultaneously to other journals), plagiarism, and self-plagiarism are unacceptable. All manuscripts with evidence of any of those practices will be immediately rejected and no future submissions from the same author will be considered for evaluation.
• The Author properly cites all works used in the composition of the manuscript. A list of all the references cited is included at the end of the manuscript (following the APA style, 6^th ed., as stated in the guidelines for authors).
• The authorship of a manuscript is only granted to the people who made significant contributions either during the development of the study or during the composition of the manuscript. The inclusion of “guest authors” (people who did not actually collaborate at any point but who, for some reason, are listed as authors) or the omission of “ghost authors” (authors who made significant contribution but who are not listed as authors) are unethical and unacceptable practices. People who made minor contributions can be labelled as collaborators and their help mentioned in an acknowledgement note at the end of the manuscript.
• The maximum number of authors per submission to the HOW journal is three. In this case, the corresponding author makes sure that the co-authors agree with the version of the manuscript submitted for evaluation or with that which results after a process of revision and resubmission.
• The Author sends the consent form used to obtain authorization from participants (if these are present) in order to reproduce the information gathered from them. For underage participants, the consent form must be signed by their legal guardians.
• The Author ensures the anonymity of the participants involved in a given study either by giving them pseudonyms or by using codes to identify them.
• The Author must obtain permission to replicate all copyrighted material used within the manuscript. This permission should be sent together with the manuscript.
• The Author discloses any potential conflict of interest that may originate along the process of evaluation. The Author is also required to give information about the funding sources of the study described in the manuscript.
• The Author maintains a respectful and professional tone in the communication with the Editor and in the comments addressed to the Reviewers. The Author is entitled to object to any evaluation if it is considered poorly carried out.
• The Author promptly informs the Editor of any error that may be found in an article after its publication. The Author and the Editor will work together to try and fix the error in the best way possible. An erratum may be issued and, in extreme cases, the article may be retracted altogether.
• If the work described in the manuscript involves animal subjects, psychological procedures, or any hazardous element (e.g., chemicals), the Author provides the necessary information to verify that the international ethical standards for these cases were properly followed.

Duties Expected of the Reviewer

• Based on their expertise, reviewers assist the Editor in the evaluation and selection of manuscripts.
• Reviewers respond promptly to the Editor’s evaluation requests, whether to accept them or decline them.
• Reviewers comply with the deadline established by the Editor to complete the review. The corresponding evaluation form must be adequately filled in and reviewers are also entitled to write comments to the authors directly on the manuscript. Reviewers perform their evaluations in a respectful and objective manner, trying to give the necessary arguments to support their comments or suggestions.
• As part of the evaluation process, reviewers treat the information used or produced with confidentiality.
• Reviewers also disclose any potential conflict of interest as well as any other major problem that they may detect during evaluation (falsification of data, plagiarism, parallel submission, etc.).

Manuscripts and supplementary files should be uploaded to the journal website: www.howjournalcolombia.org.

To contact the Editor, please send your communications to:

ASOCOPI
Cra. 27 A No 53 - 06, Of. 405. Bogotá, Colombia
Phone/Fax: 57(1) 2 11 50 18

Or write an e-mail to: how_journal@yahoo.com