Submissions

Author Guidelines

Online Submission

Submissions to Revista Varela, as well as all communication with authors during the review and editing processes, is done online, using the Open Journal System platform on which the journal is supported.

To send articles to the Varela Journal, one of the authors must be registered as a user on the journal's website and each author must have their own ORCID code, which can be obtained at https://orcid.org or by following the link available in the column on the right of any of the pages of the site of this magazine. The registered author is in charge of maintaining communication with the editorial team through the platform.

To submit an article you must prepare:

1. A file ready to be uploaded to the platform, containing the complete article written according to the journal's standards, without including the personal data of the authors by the platform when the submission is made.
2. Complete the information requested in the letter of originality and non-existence of conflicts of interest, duly signed by the authors.
3. You must have on hand the data that must be uploaded through the platform during the process; among them are: the title of the article, the abstract and the keywords (all in Spanish and English), the bibliographic references, as well as the data of all the authors, among which the full name, the affiliation (institution where you work), the teaching, academic and scientific category, the ORCID registration number and the email address of each of the authors.

Only those people who have contributed intellectually to the development of the work should appear in the list of authors. Having helped in data collection or having participated in any technique are not, by themselves, sufficient criteria to appear as an author. In general, to sign an article the following requirements must be met:

• Having participated in the conception and execution of the work that has resulted in the article in question.
• To have participated in the drafting of the text and in its possible revisions.
• Having approved the version that is finally going to be published.

Rules for the preparation of articles

The journal accepts unpublished contributions that include theoretical essays or experiences and innovations, as well as research reports, which are structured into a Monographic section and another section dedicated to Research in Education; Collaborations related to the monographic section will be received following the dates stipulated in the calls that are announced on the magazine's website, while articles linked to the other section are open for uninterrupted reception and their contents will reflect the process of research followed, not necessarily linked to the theme of the monograph.

The structure of the articles to be submitted must contain: title, abstract and keywords (in Spanish and English), introduction, body of the article, conclusions and bibliographical references. In the case of essays, the body of the article must be divided by headings ordered with a coherent logic, which remains open to the author's considerations; in articles referring to research in education, it must contain the essential elements of the process (theoretical framework, methodology, results and discussion).

In general, in the process of preparing the article, authors must take into account the following aspects:

• The Varela Magazine accepts only original and unpublished articles, that is, it constitutes an intellectual production of the authors and has not been publicly disclosed to third parties, by any print or digital media.
• No article will be received that has been simultaneously submitted for publication before another printed or electronic journal or in any other written media or editorial body.
• Articles can be written in Spanish or English.
• The text must be prepared in Microsoft Word or any other compatible word processor.
• Times New Roman font must be used, twelve (12) points, spacing one and a half (1.5), spacing between paragraphs: before 0 and after 6, and margins of 2.5 cm on each side, on sheet letter size.
• Italics will be used when it is required to highlight a word or phrase within the text.
• The length of the body of the article should not exceed 5,000 words, nor be less than 3,750, from the introduction to the conclusions, without including the bibliographical references.
• For the work with the bibliography, the tables and the graphs must follow the norms APA 7th edition. It is recommended to follow the following links:

Original site in English: https://apastyle.apa.org/

Alternative site in Spanish: https://normas-apa.org/

APA standard 7th edition in Spanish (abstract)

• The text of the article will be preceded by a title and accompanied by an abstract and keywords prepared in Spanish and English.
• The title must not exceed fifteen (15) words. You must describe the content of the article clearly and precisely, allowing the reader to easily identify the topic. It must be suggestive to achieve the interest of the reader. Avoid excessive use of prepositions and articles.
• The abstract must be clear, precise and not exceed 180 words. It will be written in a single paragraph and must contain the problem, the methodology followed and the main results. It should not contain references, abbreviations, or equations. The abstract in English must faithfully correspond to the text in Spanish.
• Up to five keywords are allowed that must reflect the central content of the article and help its indexing. They must be extracted from a thesaurus (IRESIE Vocabulary, UNESCO Thesaurus, European Education Thesaurus, ERIC Thesaurus -Education Resources Information Center-, among others).
• The body of the article will be divided into introduction, sections or epigraphs (depending on the type of article), conclusions, bibliographical references and annexes (if necessary).
• The introduction constitutes a presentation of the problems, importance and topicality of the subject and must include the outlined objectives, briefly present the most relevant works and highlight the contributions of other authors to the subject under study, from a national and international perspective.
• The sections or epigraphs that make up the body of the article must be selected according to the type of article, but in all cases they must follow a coherent logic, maintaining the clarity, brevity, precision and unity that characterizes scientific texts.
• The conclusions must be based on what is stated and discussed in the article, as well as reflect the fulfillment of the objectives. They should indicate how the work contributes to or advances the topic, as well as suggest uses and future work.
• Figures and tables will be placed in the closest place in the text to which they are referred to and will comply with the APA 7th Edition standard.
• In order not to reveal their identity, the authors should write the text of the article in an impersonal way, even more so when it comes to self-citations, as well as use an inclusive style.
• The journal accepts contributions with no more than three authors.

Compliance with these rules is strictly enforced for the work to be published. The editors reserve the right to make style changes to the title and body of the article for a better understanding of it. Therefore, authors are recommended to write as rigorously as possible, check spelling, use short and homogeneous paragraphs, and use proper punctuation marks.

Arbitration system. Expert evaluation.

Once the article is uploaded to the platform, the contact author will receive an automatic notification of receipt by the journal. The works will be submitted to an opinion process in three stages:

• Initial review (editor and editorial team).
• Expert evaluation process.
• Opinion (editorial team).

The initial review includes adherence to the rules for the preparation of the articles, the adjustment to the declared theme and will be subjected to anti-plagiarism evaluation. The article can be rejected in this initial review, when the editor considers that it does not comply with the specificities of the journal (thematic scope, public to which it is directed or quality in the writing and writing). Articles that are not accepted in this first stage will inform the authors of the decline within a period not exceeding 30 business days from the date of submission.

Articles that pass the initial review will be submitted to the blind peer review process (anonymity between authors and reviewers). Peer review is the critical appraisal of manuscripts submitted to journals by experts who are not part of the journal's staff, and is the basis of decisions related to journal publication that determines the quality of its content.

In accordance with what has been stated, each article will be sent to two reviewers or referees external to the journal and external, also, to the institutions of origin of the authors, who are specialists in the subject or line of research on which the article is concerned. The evaluation by the experts will be carried out according to the article evaluation form used by the Varela Journal. The observations given must reflect a deep scrutiny to evaluate the accuracy of the written text, that it be an original and current contribution, that the theoretical referents are pertinent and will assess the relevance of the findings described, all based on their scientific rigor and contribute also suggestions to improve the text.

In case there are discrepancies in the evaluations or when the editor considers that the evaluation does not have the required depth, he can send the work to another expert, to obtain more elements about the quality of the article submitted to arbitration.

Taking into account the criteria of the evaluation of the experts, the editorial board will decide:

• Publish the article
• Accept with modifications
• Reject the article

The editorial team will guarantee, in all cases, that the opinions delivered to the authors contain solid arguments that support the editorial decision. Whatever the decision of the editorial team, the authors are informed in a timely manner and it is final. The maximum time to receive the result of the first evaluation is 90 days.

When the decision on the article is to accept with modifications, the author will receive a specific term, to send the new version of the work to the editor. The period between the initial acceptance of the work, fulfilling the formal requirements, and the communication of the resolution on its publication, by the editor, must in any case be less than six months. If after that period the author has not received communication, it is understood that the work has been rejected.

As part of the continuous improvement of the journal, open evaluation and continuous and anticipated publication through pre-print are expected to begin in the near future.

Desirable quality criteria

Originality, methodological consistency, topic of interest and that supposes a significant contribution, of foreseeable relevance and impact (academic and/or practical), governed by ethical criteria, respectful with all the agents and participants affected and with a clear, concise writing style and tidy.