Submissions

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Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.
  • The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
  • The submission file is in OpenOffice, Microsoft Word, RTF, or WordPerfect document file format.
  • Where available, DOI's for the references have been provided.
  • The text is double-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
  • The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal.
  • Please submit a fully blinded manuscript, without any details about the authors.
  • Please adhere to the most current APA guidelines.
  • Please ensure your submission is not more than 25 pages, including tables, figures, and references. Authors are encouraged to discuss manuscripts of longer length with the editor.

Author Guidelines

Types of Submissions & Guidelines

General Guidelines for all submissions (please see below for guidelines specific to submission type):

  1. Submissions must be prepared in accordance with the American Psychological Association (APA; 7th edition) guidelines, including 12-point, Times New Roman font, double-spacing, and 1-inch margins.
  2. Manuscript titles can be a maximum of 12-words in length.
  3. A brief abstract stating the principal points should be included with the submission. The abstract should be no longer than 150 words.
  4. Figures and tables must be properly referenced in the text of the article, and numbered chronologically. Please add them in the same file as the article.
  5. Footnotes should be AVOIDED.
  6. Submissions must be accompanied by a separate "title page" and "main document"  to ensure that the manuscript is ready for a masked review. The title page should include the authors’ full names, credentials, affiliations (if any), and e-mail addresses. The main document should be blinded for masked review by removing all identifying information of the authors.
  7. Authors are also required to submit a cover letter with both initial submissions and revisions that provides a brief overview of the submission and the contact information for the corresponding author. 
  8. Articles should be no more than 25 pages including tables, figures, and references. Authors are encouraged to discuss options regarding manuscripts of longer length with the editor.  (e.g., robust qualitative research).
  9. If invited to revise and resubmit a manuscript, a revision table is requested to be submitted along with the revised manuscript.  Please de-identify both files by removing all author names and professional affiliations.
  10. Journal submissions for review and publication should be submitted online. Submission of a manuscript is a representation that the paper has not been previously submitted in any publication elsewhere or published in any open literature. It also represents that the author/s have not assigned or transferred copyright for the material.

Dialog from the Field: Conceptual Manuscript or Program/Practice Description:

  1. A dialog from the field describes innovative practices or programs, reports the practical experience of early childhood educators, faculty, and other professionals, details robust literature review, presents theoretical or conceptual frameworks, or comments on current issues in the fields of early childhood education, early intervention/early childhood special education, child and family studies, or developmental psychology.
  2. Authors are expected to connect their commentary and reports to research and evidence-based-practice in the field and provide critical review of the topics they address.

Research Article

  1. The journal article submission should demonstrate report of original research and clear analyses and implications for practice and research composed in formal, academic language using direct objective and active syntax. Methodology should reflect current best practice and methodological guidance.
  2. The brief abstract should state the principal points, methodology, overview of findings and recommendations should be included in your submission.

NOTE: Authors will also be asked to submit a Research-to-Practice (RTP) Summary to accompany an accepted research article. These are  NOT initial submissions.  These supplemental summaries are required for all accepted research articles.  Authors will be asked to submit this as part of final review processes.)

  1. RTP provides practitioners with a summary of the literature review and findings from the research article in a way that is accessible for early childhood practitioners and/or faculty, and provide them with specific tips and suggestions for practice that stem from the study.
  2. Title and running head should be different from that of the Research Article.
  3. A brief abstract stating the principal points should be included in your submission. The abstract should be no longer than 150 words.
  4. Research-to-Practice Summaries are typically 5 to 6 pages when single-spaced (about 1000-2000 words).

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