Instructions for authors

Varela Journal is an electronic publication with international coverage that disseminates contributions in multiple areas of theory, practice, and research in education. These contributions are aimed at teaching staff at educational institutions, scientists and academics in the field of education, students in initial teacher training, social actors, and the public specializing in general educational issues. The journal is published quarterly, covering the periods January-April, May-August, and September-December, with articles appearing continuously during each period.

The journal only accepts original, unpublished articles that constitute the authors' own intellectual work and have not been disclosed to third parties in any public form, whether in print or digital media. No article will be accepted that has been simultaneously submitted for publication to another print or electronic journal or any other written medium or publishing body.

The list of authors should include only those individuals who have contributed intellectually to the development of the work. Having assisted in data collection or participated in some technical aspect is not, in itself, sufficient criteria for inclusion as an author. The journal accepts contributions with no more than three authors. In general, the following requirements must be met in order to sign an article:

The author must have made a significant contribution to the conception or design of the article or to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of the data.
The author must have participated in the writing of the research work or in the critical review of its intellectual content.
The author must have been involved in the approval of the final version to be published.
You must be able to respond to all aspects of the article to ensure that issues related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are adequately investigated and resolved.

Contributions may be written in Spanish or English and are structured into a MONOGRAPHIC section and another section dedicated to EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH. Contributions related to the monographic section will be received according to the dates stipulated in the calls for papers announced on the journal's website and disseminated through academic and social networks, while articles linked to the other section are accepted on an ongoing basis and their content will reflect the research process followed, not necessarily linked to the theme of the monograph.

The content of contributions related to the theme of the monograph may be related to theoretical studies, reflections, experiences, innovations, and research on educational practice, from a current, analytical, interpretive, or critical perspective, supported by relevant, pertinent, and up-to-date sources. In the case of contributions to the other section, their content must necessarily correspond to the research process followed, and therefore must include elements related to the theoretical framework, methodology, main findings, and discussion, among other aspects. Contributions received for both sections will undergo a rigorous arbitration process, which begins with an assessment by the editor and the editorial board, who decide whether to proceed with expert evaluation following the blind peer review model.

Furthermore, as part of the continuous improvement of its content and to enhance its positioning in databases of international impact, the journal offers contributors and readers the option of professional development through postgraduate courses and training, as well as internships for foreign contributors related to authorship and peer review, with the aim of improving the quality standards of the articles published. In addition, for the same purpose, for several years now, the journal has been managing the RAPRE network (Support Network for Publications in Educational Journals), which constitutes a permanent channel of communication between the journal and its contributors and the scientific community, with the aim of increasing its audience at the national and international level and improving the preparation of participants in topics related to scientific research and its publication in journal articles.

The journal also focuses on continuous technological updates, which have led to substantial improvements in the functioning of the website, article editing formats, and added services, interoperability protocols, and the use of the XML-JATS format, which increases the visibility and discoverability of its content worldwide through interoperability with search engines, library platforms, aggregators, repositories, and directories. Furthermore, with a view to increasing the visibility and impact of the journal, posters and infographics are systematically produced for calls for papers, published issues, and graphic summaries of new articles, which are disseminated on academic and social networks by the journal's staff and the authors themselves.

About the format and structure of contributions.

All contributions must be sent to the journal in digital format from the website and be written in Microsoft Word or any other compatible word processor. The structure of articles submitted for both sections must contain: title, abstract, and keywords (in Spanish and English), introduction, body of the article, conclusions, and bibliographic references. Likewise, writing, grammar, and spelling rules must be used appropriately, and the text must be written taking into account that it meets appropriate aesthetic standards and that the arguments are supported by citations from sources with an appropriate level of relevance and diversity, giving priority to journals with international impact.

In the case of contributions related to the theme of the MONOGRAPH, the body of the article may be structured into sections, organized in a coherent manner, following the logic from the general to the specific. It is possible to incorporate subsections, although care must be taken to ensure that the ideas to be conveyed are not overly dispersed. It is important to achieve an adequate balance between the sections and to ensure that the titles correspond to the content. It is also recommended to use different connectors or linking words, both within paragraphs and between paragraphs and sections, to achieve coherence and continuity in the discourse.

With regard to contributions to the EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH section, the body of the article should be structured according to the following sections: theoretical framework, methodology, results, and discussion. This is an essential requirement for the manuscript to be accepted for evaluation. The section dedicated to the theoretical framework must include the background, conceptual references, and gaps or lacunae that exist in the theory underpinning the work, approached from a critical perspective. The section dedicated to methodology must explain the research design and the methods and procedures used, allowing the reader to understand the methodological path followed during the research process.

In the section related to results and discussion, it is necessary to present the findings according to the selected variables or categories of analysis, as well as to use tables and graphs, when appropriate, to illustrate and synthesize the data processing by applying descriptive and inferential statistics, including any necessary comments. Furthermore, it is a requirement that the methodological procedures and conceptual guidelines be revisited in order to analyze the results, compare them with previous research, and assess the contributions or findings obtained in the research.

In general, for both types of contributions, authors must take into account the following requirements:

The font Times New Roman, twelve (12) points, one and a half (1.5) line spacing, spacing between paragraphs: 0 before and 6 after, and margins of 2.5 cm on each side, on letter-size paper, must be used.
Italics should be used when a word or phrase within the text needs to be highlighted. Underlining will not be accepted.
The length of the article should not exceed 5,000 words, nor be less than 3,750 words, from the introduction to the conclusions, not including bibliographical references.
The text of the article should be preceded by a title and accompanied by an abstract and keywords in Spanish and English.
The title should not exceed fifteen (15) words. It should describe the content of the article clearly and accurately, allowing the reader to easily identify the topic. It should be suggestive in order to capture the reader's interest and avoid excessive use of prepositions and articles.
The abstract must be clear, precise, and no longer than 180 words. It should be written in a single paragraph and accurately describe the objective of the work, the main results or findings obtained, and their importance or value. In the case of articles submitted for the EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH section, abstracts must include information on the objective and scope of the research, the methods used, the main results or findings obtained, the limitations of the study, and the fundamental conclusions of the work. In general, the abstract should not contain references, abbreviations, or equations. The abstract in English must correspond faithfully to the text in Spanish.
Up to five keywords are allowed, which should reflect the central content of the article and aid in its indexing. They should be extracted from a thesaurus (IRESIE Vocabulary, UNESCO Thesaurus, European Thesaurus of Education, ERIC Thesaurus -Education Resources Information Center-, among others).
The introduction presents the problem, importance, and relevance of the topic and should include the objectives set out, briefly describe the most relevant works, and highlight the contributions of other authors to the topic under study, from a national and international perspective.
The sections or headings that make up the body of the article should be selected according to the type of article, but in all cases there should be correspondence between the titles and the contents of the sections, as well as a coherent logic, maintaining the clarity, brevity, precision, and unity that characterize scientific texts.
The conclusions must be based on what has been presented 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 future uses and work.
Tables and figures (photos, diagrams, charts, maps, and graphs) should be used when relevant to illustrate the results, avoiding redundancy with the textual information. They should be numbered and cited in the text and placed in the text closest to where they are referenced, in accordance with the provisions of APA 7th Edition.
Citations and references must strictly follow the APA 7th Edition style, so that it is consistent throughout the work and ensures the necessary homogeneity. References should be in the approximate range of 10 to 30, with a greater emphasis on those from the last five years. To download the APA 7th Edition style guide, we recommend following these links:
Original site in English: https://apastyle.apa.org/
Alternative site in Spanish: https://normas-apa.org/
APA 7th Edition style guide in Spanish (summary)

Compliance with these requirements is strictly enforced in order for the work to be published. The editors reserve the right to make stylistic changes to the title and body of the article for better comprehension. Therefore, authors are advised to write with the utmost rigor, check spelling, use short and consistent paragraphs, and use punctuation marks appropriately.

Exploitation rights, licenses, and fees for submission and/or processing of articles.

Varela Journal is a non-profit publication and therefore does not pay or charge for the contributions it receives. This means that authors do not have to pay any costs (Article Processing Charge –APC–) for: reception, number of pages, color, translation, revision, or other actions required to complete the publication process; these expenses are covered in full by the institution that manages the journal (UCLV). Those who access Varela Journal may read, download, copy, distribute, print, translate, search, or link to the full texts of articles published in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0, which allows third parties to share the work provided that its authorship is indicated and it is not used for commercial purposes. Authors retain their copyright and guarantee the journal the right of first publication of their work.

On ethical issues in the publication of the journal.

Varela Journal is committed to ensuring ethical practices in publication and preventing fraudulent practices by all parties involved, as outlined in its CODE OF ETHICS, which adheres to the international standards developed by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) (https://publicationethics.org/core-practices applicable to all those involved in the publication of academic literature: editors and their journals, publishers, and institutions. It also uses the resources provided by the Publication Ethics Resource Pack (https://www.elsevier.com/editors/perk).

The aforementioned code specifies the steps to be followed for the detection and treatment of ethical breaches that are most frequently committed in scientific journal publications (plagiarism, self-plagiarism, double publication, fabrication and/or falsification of data, authorship issues, conflicts of interest, among others). In particular, the editorial board verifies issues of plagiarism and anti-plagiarism by using specialized software on submitted manuscripts to assess whether they contain textual information from previous articles by the authors themselves (self-plagiarism) or by others (plagiarism), which may be grounds for rejection and immediate removal from the editorial process.

Information about the submission process.

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

To submit articles to the 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 right-hand column of any page on the journal's website. The registered author is responsible for uploading the data to the journal and maintaining communication with the editorial team through the platform.

To submit an article, authors must prepare:

A file ready to be uploaded to the platform, containing the complete article written according to the journal's guidelines, without including the authors' personal data on the platform when submitting.
Complete the information requested in the letter of originality and ethical standards, duly signed by the authors.
Have the data you need to upload to the platform during the process at hand; including: the title of the article, the abstract, and keywords (all in Spanish and English), bibliographic references, as well as the details of all authors, including their full name, affiliation (institution where they work), teaching, academic, and scientific category, ORCID registration number, and email address.

To begin the submission process, the registered author must review the requirements established by the journal that appear on the checklist and, if they are met, check the corresponding box. This is a mandatory step in order to begin entering data and uploading documents.

Description of the review process.

Once the article is uploaded to the platform, the contact author will receive automatic notification of receipt by the journal. Papers will undergo a three-stage review process:

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

The initial review covers compliance with the rules for preparing articles, adherence to the stated theme, and will be subject to anti-plagiarism evaluation. The article may be rejected in this initial review if the editor considers that it does not meet the specific requirements of the journal (thematic scope, target audience, or quality of writing). Authors of articles that are not accepted at this first stage will be informed of the rejection within 30 business days of the date of submission.

Articles that pass the initial review will undergo a double-blind peer review process (anonymity between authors and reviewers). Peer review is the critical assessment of manuscripts submitted to journals by experts who are not part of the journal's staff, and it is the basis for decisions related to publication in journals that determine the quality of their content.

In accordance with the above, each article will be sent to two reviewers or referees who are external to the journal and also external to the authors' institutions, and who are specialists in the subject or line of research covered by the article. The referees' evaluation will be carried out using the article evaluation form used by Varela Journal. The comments provided should reflect a thorough review to assess the accuracy of the written text, which should correspond to an original and current contribution, with relevant theoretical references and relevance in the findings described, all based on its scientific rigor, and also provide suggestions for improving the text.

In the event of discrepancies in the evaluations or when the editor considers that the evaluation does not have the required depth, the work may be sent to another expert to obtain further information about the quality of the article submitted for arbitration.

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

To publish the article
To accept with modifications
To reject the article

The editorial team will ensure, in all cases, that the decisions communicated to authors contain solid arguments supporting the editorial decision. Whatever the editorial team's decision, authors will be informed in a timely manner and the decision is final. The maximum time for receiving the result of the first evaluation is 90 days. When the decision on the article is to accept with modifications, the author will be given a specific deadline to send the new version of the work to the editor. The period between the initial acceptance of the work, complying with the formal requirements, and the communication of the decision on its publication by the editor must in all cases be less than six months.

Journal contact details.

Contact

Carretera a Camajuani km 5.5. Santa Clara, Villa Clara, Cuba. PC 54830

Main contact

Dr. C. Esperanza Asencio Cabot

Marta Abreu Central University of Las Villas

Phone +53-42-209936

nibarra@uclv.cu

Support contact

M. Sc. Noelvys Marín Mora

Phone +53-42-201077

nmarin@uclv.cu