Author Guidelines
1. ARTICLE TYPE AND SCOPE
ELTIES Journal accepts original research articles only. Submissions must report an original empirical study that makes a clear and credible contribution to English language teaching, English language education, applied linguistics, language learning, language assessment, curriculum and materials development, teacher education, or another area within the journal’s stated scope.
The journal does not accept standalone review articles, systematic or scoping reviews, research notes, book reviews, editorials, essays, opinion papers, or purely conceptual, theoretical, or methodological articles that do not report original empirical research. Literature reviews and theoretical or conceptual frameworks may be included within an original research article when they support the study’s rationale and analysis.
Eligible studies may use qualitative, quantitative, or mixed-methods approaches. Classroom-based research, action research, design-based research, experimental studies, surveys, case studies, corpus-based investigations, and other empirical designs may be considered when the design is appropriate to the research questions and the procedures and evidence are reported transparently.
2. GENERAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Manuscripts must be original, unpublished, and not under consideration by another journal. Authors must disclose any prior presentation of the work at a conference, seminar, workshop, or other academic event and explain any substantial overlap with related publications.
Manuscripts must be written in English using clear and appropriate academic language. Authors are responsible for the accuracy, clarity, and proofreading of the manuscript.
Submit manuscripts in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) and follow the latest ELTIES Journal template, if one is provided.
Manuscripts should normally contain 5,000–8,000 words, including references, tables, and figure captions. Authors should avoid unnecessary repetition and excessive background information.
ELTIES Journal applies double-blind peer review. The main manuscript must not include author names, affiliations, acknowledgements, or other details that identify the authors. Provide author information on a separate title page and/or in the appropriate OJS metadata fields.
Plagiarism, redundant or duplicate publication, fabrication or falsification of data, fabricated references, citation manipulation, and other forms of research misconduct are unacceptable. All authors must have made substantial scholarly contributions, approved the submitted manuscript, and agreed to its submission.
3. TITLE PAGE AND ORCID
Submit a separate title page containing: (1) the article title; (2) full names of all authors; (3) institutional affiliations and country; (4) ORCID iDs, where available; (5) the corresponding author’s name; and (6) the corresponding author’s email address. Do not include academic titles or honorifics with author names.
Authors are encouraged to provide ORCID iDs and ensure that author names, affiliations, and metadata are accurate and consistent.
4. MANUSCRIPT FORMATTING
Unless the current ELTIES Journal template states otherwise, use A4 page size, Cambria 11-point font, single line spacing, a one-column layout, 3 cm top and bottom margins, and 2.5 cm left and right margins.
Number tables and figures consecutively. Provide each with a clear title or caption and refer to it in the manuscript. Place tables and figures near their first mention unless the template specifies otherwise. Ensure that visual materials are legible and that sources and permissions are acknowledged where required.
5. REQUIRED ARTICLE STRUCTURE: IMRAD
ELTIES Journal recommends an IMRAD-based structure for original research articles. The main sections should normally be: 1. Introduction; 2. Methods; 3. Results; 4. Discussion; and 5. Conclusion. Authors may use relevant subsections within these sections, provided that the research process and argument remain clear.
The full manuscript should normally include the following elements in order: Title; Abstract; Keywords; 1. Introduction; 2. Methods; 3. Results; 4. Discussion; 5. Conclusion; Declarations, where applicable; References; and Appendices, where applicable.
The literature review and theoretical or conceptual framework should normally be integrated into the Introduction. Results and Discussion should normally be presented separately so readers can distinguish the evidence from its interpretation. Any variation from this structure should be justified by the study design and should preserve clear reporting of methods, findings, and interpretation.
6. TITLE, ABSTRACT, AND KEYWORDS
The title should be concise, informative, specific, and generally no longer than 15–20 words. It should identify the central issue, phenomenon, population, context, or analytical focus of the study.
The abstract should normally contain 200–300 words and summarize the research problem or rationale, purpose or research questions, design and participants/data sources, data collection and analysis procedures, principal findings, and contribution or implications. It must report actual findings rather than only the intended aims. Avoid citations, lengthy quotations, and unexplained abbreviations.
Provide up to five keywords that represent the study’s main concepts, participants, context, or methods. Avoid overly general terms and unnecessary abbreviations.
7. SECTION 1 — INTRODUCTION
The Introduction should establish the importance of the research problem and build a clear rationale for the study. It should: (a) introduce the problem and its context; (b) critically synthesize relevant previous research; (c) identify what is known and what remains unclear, contested, or under-investigated; (d) explain why the gap matters; (e) state the research purpose and/or questions; and (f) explain the study’s original contribution.
The literature review should be analytical rather than a list of study summaries. Explain relevant patterns, debates, contradictions, theoretical perspectives, and unresolved issues. A geographical or institutional gap alone is generally insufficient without a clear scholarly or practical rationale.
Where a theoretical or conceptual framework is used, explain how it informs the research questions, methods, analysis, or interpretation. The framework should serve an analytical purpose rather than function only as background information.
8. SECTION 2 — METHODS
Explain how the study was conducted and why the selected procedures were appropriate. Include, as relevant: research approach and design; setting and context; participants or data sources; sampling and recruitment; instruments, materials, or data sources; data collection procedures; data analysis procedures; validity and reliability or trustworthiness; ethical procedures; and methodological limitations.
Qualitative studies should describe the approach, context, participants, recruitment, data sources, data collection, researcher positioning where relevant, coding and analysis, interpretation, and strategies for establishing credibility or trustworthiness.
Quantitative studies should describe the design, population and sample, variables, instruments or measures, data collection, statistical analyses, and relevant assumptions or tests.
Mixed-methods studies should explain the rationale for combining quantitative and qualitative approaches, the design and sequence of the components, and how the findings were integrated. Other empirical designs should provide enough detail for readers to evaluate the transparency, appropriateness, and rigor of the research.
9. SECTION 3 — RESULTS
Present findings clearly and logically in relation to the research questions or objectives. Use tables, figures, examples, statistical results, or participant quotations where appropriate. Provide sufficient evidence for readers to understand the findings and avoid unnecessary duplication between text and visuals.
Distinguish the presentation of results from their interpretation. Report relevant unexpected, negative, or contradictory findings rather than omitting them because they do not support initial expectations. Do not fabricate, selectively misrepresent, or overstate the evidence.
10. SECTION 4 — DISCUSSION
Interpret the principal findings and explain why they matter. Relate the findings to relevant previous research and, where appropriate, to the theoretical or conceptual framework. Explain how the findings confirm, challenge, extend, or refine existing knowledge.
The Discussion should go beyond repeating the Results section. Explain the theoretical, methodological, pedagogical, curricular, assessment-related, or professional implications supported by the evidence. Avoid claims that exceed the data, sample, design, or scope of the study.
11. SECTION 5 — CONCLUSION
The Conclusion should answer the research purpose or questions and summarize the principal findings and original contribution. It should not introduce new data or unsupported claims or merely repeat the Results section.
Include practical or theoretical implications, limitations, and focused recommendations for future research where appropriate. Ensure that recommendations follow from the findings and are proportionate to the study’s design and scope.
12. DECLARATIONS AND RESEARCH TRANSPARENCY
Acknowledgements: Where applicable, acknowledge individuals, institutions, research assistants, or support that does not qualify for authorship. To preserve double-blind review, omit identifying acknowledgements from the anonymized manuscript during initial review and add them at the appropriate stage.
Funding: Disclose financial support, including the funder’s full name and grant or project number where applicable. If no specific funding was received, authors may state: “This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.” Use a statement that accurately reflects the study.
Competing interests: Disclose interests that could influence, or reasonably be perceived to influence, the research or publication process. If none exist, state: “The authors declare that they have no competing interests.”
Data availability: State whether supporting data are publicly available, available from the corresponding author on reasonable request, restricted for confidentiality or ethical/legal reasons, or not applicable. Do not promise access that cannot be provided or disclose confidential or identifiable participant information.
Ethics and informed consent: Research involving human participants, personal data, or ethically sensitive material must comply with applicable institutional and national requirements. Where applicable, state the ethics committee or review board, approval number, informed-consent procedures, and protections for confidentiality and anonymity. If formal approval was not required, explain why where appropriate. Do not claim approval or consent unless it was actually obtained.
Author contributions: Describe individual contributions clearly. ELTIES Journal encourages the CRediT Contributor Roles Taxonomy, including roles such as Conceptualization, Methodology, Formal Analysis, Investigation, Data Curation, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review & Editing, Visualization, Supervision, Project Administration, and Funding Acquisition. Only individuals who made substantial scholarly contributions should be listed as authors.
13. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND AI-ASSISTED TOOLS
Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, originality, integrity, and final content of their manuscripts. AI tools must not be listed as authors and must not be used to fabricate or manipulate data, findings, references, quotations, evidence, or research procedures.
Authors should disclose substantive use of generative AI or AI-assisted tools in research or manuscript preparation in accordance with the journal’s current policy and submission-system requirements. Identify the tool and its purpose. Authors must verify AI-assisted content, especially references, factual claims, quotations, statistics, interpretations, and methodological descriptions. Follow any specific journal requirements for routine spelling or grammar assistance.
14. TABLES, FIGURES, AND APPENDICES
Use tables, figures, diagrams, and supplementary materials only when they meaningfully support the research report. Number each item consecutively, provide a clear title or caption, refer to it in the text, and ensure readability. Cite sources and obtain permissions where required.
Appendices may include research instruments, interview protocols, questionnaires, coding frameworks, or supplementary tables that help readers evaluate the study. Label multiple appendices Appendix A, Appendix B, and so forth, with descriptive titles. Do not include confidential or identifiable participant information.
15. REFERENCES AND CITATIONS
Use APA 7th edition unless the current ELTIES Journal template specifies otherwise. Every source cited in the text must appear in the reference list, and every reference-list entry must be cited in the manuscript.
Check author names, publication years, titles, journal names, volume, issue, page range or article number, and DOI information. Present DOIs as full URLs (e.g., https://doi.org/xxxxx) where available. Reference-management software such as Zotero, Mendeley, or EndNote may be used.
Avoid excessive self-citation, irrelevant citations, citation manipulation, and unverifiable references. Use recent and relevant scholarship while retaining foundational sources when necessary. Relevance and quality are more important than simply increasing the number of references.
16. INTERNATIONAL RELEVANCE AND CONTRIBUTION
ELTIES Journal welcomes rigorous research from different educational systems, countries, and cultural contexts, provided that it fits the journal’s scope. A study need not involve multiple countries, but authors should explain how the findings contribute to broader theoretical, methodological, pedagogical, institutional, or policy discussions.
Claims of novelty should be specific and supported by relevant scholarship. Being the first study in a particular institution or country is not, by itself, sufficient to establish significance.
17. SUBMISSION AND PEER REVIEW
Submit manuscripts through the official ELTIES Journal submission system and complete all required metadata and declarations. Ensure that the anonymized manuscript contains no identifying information and upload any required title page or supplementary files separately.
Initial editorial screening may assess scope, compliance with the research-article-only policy, originality, significance, clarity of the research problem and gap, methodological quality, adequacy of evidence, ethical compliance, research integrity, presentation, and potential contribution.
Manuscripts that meet initial requirements may be sent for double-blind peer review, normally by at least two reviewers, subject to editorial discretion and the journal’s procedures. The editor may reject a submission without external review if it falls outside the journal’s scope, is not an original research article, has serious methodological or ethical problems, lacks a clear contribution, or fails to meet basic submission requirements.
Revised manuscripts may be returned to the original reviewers. The final decision rests with the editor, taking account of reviewer comments, the quality of the revision, and the manuscript’s suitability for ELTIES Journal.
18. FINAL SUBMISSION CHECKLIST
Before submission, authors should confirm that: (1) the manuscript reports an original empirical research study; (2) it is not published or under review elsewhere; (3) it fits the journal’s scope; (4) the title, abstract, and keywords are accurate; (5) the manuscript follows the IMRAD-based structure; (6) methods, data, analysis, and findings are reported transparently; (7) applicable ethics approval and informed consent are described accurately; (8) the manuscript is anonymized for double-blind review; (9) funding, competing interests, data availability, author contributions, and AI-use disclosures are included where applicable; (10) citations and references follow APA 7th edition; and (11) all authors have approved the submission.
