Module 8: Submitting Your Manuscript

Essential Questions 

• What is required when submitting a manuscript for review to a practitioner journal? 
• What are duplicate and simultaneous submissions? 

Submitting a Manuscript

After checking, double checking, and maybe triple checking the manuscript, it is time to submit to the selected journal. Many journals request or require a cover letter of some kind associated with the manuscript. For a practitioner journal, a one-page single-spaced cover letter is sufficient. The cover letter should be addressed to the editor or editors of the journal and should include the following: 

• A brief introduction to the manuscript, including its title
• Confirmation that the work is original
• Confirmation that the work has not been published elsewhere, nor is it in the process of being published elsewhere
• A brief overview of the research and its significance to the field of education and/or to teachers or administrators
• A brief explanation of the uniqueness or novelty of the practitioner research that occurred
• A brief explanation of why the readers of that particular journal would be interested in the manuscript’s content and the practitioner research (Taylor and Francis Group, n.d.)

It is important to submit the original manuscript exactly as indicated on the manuscript’s submission guidelines. Generally, a submission will include an abstract, the manuscript, references, and appendices (as needed). If the journal requests no identifying names on the document, for peer review purposes, follow this guideline. If the journal requests keywords associated with the manuscript, select simple words that accurately describe the research study. For instance, if a practitioner conducted research on inquiry-based learning in the middle school science classroom, keywords like “inquiry-based,” “inquiry-based learning,” “science,” “middle school” might be appropriate. Ignoring any of the listed guidelines can result in immediate rejection by the editor.

Some journals use an online submission system, rather than just an email address for correspondence. Familiarizing one’s self with the submission system, even if only briefly, will ensure that required information is included and documents are properly uploaded.

Simultaneous Submissions 

When practitioners first engage in the journal submission process, excitement and nerves abound. This can result in an eager practitioner electing to submit the same manuscript to two or even three of the journals on their top three list at the same time (Das, 2013). However, this is generally frowned upon. A manuscript should be original and not under consideration at other journals when it is submitted. It is okay to withdraw a paper from consideration if simultaneous submission has occurred, but this request should be done in writing. Simultaneous submission is very rarely accepted in the field of education and only occurs when both journals agree to certain terms based on the significance of the article and its contributions to the field of education. 

Duplicate Publications

Another area of concern when submitting to journals is duplicate publications, which occurs when a researcher attempts to publish the same publication, or a similar version of it, in two different journals. Tweaking a journal and submitting and publishing in two journals is not permissible. This is generally considered an ethical breach of conduct (Das, 2013). Most journals make this clear in the submission guidelines. There are exceptions to this rule if the journal sees great interest in the topic and there is written approval for this from the journal in which the manuscript was originally published because that journal typically owns the copyright to that material. This is rare, however, in the field of education and should be avoided unless given written approval by the original publisher. 

With this in mind, if a practitioner uncovered substantial, compelling findings from a research project that can provide further insight to other teachers and administrators, it is okay to use the same data set to create a second or new manuscript if the practitioner includes all of the following: 

• A different aspect or element of the data set is analyzed 
• The manuscript reframes the manuscript completely for the different audience
• Only a few duplicate sentences from the first manuscript are included, which are cited, and almost all of the second or new manuscript is original. 

Peer-Review Process

The peer-review process can be a lengthy one, as outlined in Module 3. Peer review involves the review of a manuscript by professionals with expertise in the field of education. These reviewers are selected by the journal’s editor and have engaged in previous research and publication. An initial screening usually occurs where the editor decides if the manuscript is a good fit for the journal and should be reviewed in more depth.

Typically, peer review is “blind,” meaning the reviewers are kept anonymous. “Double blind,” then, means that the author’s name is not associated with the manuscript and the reviewers are kept anonymous (Elsevier, 2019; Wiley, 2019). In most fields, the gold standard is double blind, or complete anonymity of author and reviewers. Blind and double-blind reviews are the most used forms of review in education journals (Wiley, 2019); however, with practitioner journals that are focused on disseminating classroom- or school-based best practices, a blind procedure may not be used. An open review process, where the public can comment on the manuscript, or a collaborative review process, where a group of experts team up to collectively read, analyze, and write a report on the manuscript may occur. Awareness of these options and plenty of patience are key to the peer-review submission process.

Suggested Readings

https://www.apa.org/pubs/authors/new-author-guide.pdf 

elsevier.com/connect/7-steps-to-publishing-in-a-scientific-journal    

https://www.editage.com/insights/duplicate-publications-and-simultaneous-submissions 

https://authorservices.taylorandfrancis.com/writing-a-cover-letter/