Information for Authors & Readers
Submission of Articles
Protocol for Submission and Review of Articles
Author's Guidelines for the Submission of Multimedia Elements
Copyright Policy by IMEJ for the Protection of Authors
Agreement of Originality: Author's Responsibilities
Disclaimer

Information for Authors and Readers

IMEJ, the Interactive Multimedia Electronic Journal of Computer-Enhanced Learning, is an on-line peer-reviewed journal devoted to the presentation of creative and practices for teaching with technology and to the exploration of theoretical and pedagogical issues that arise from these innovations. Through our use of multimedia interactivity, readers will be able to use experimental software, take sample tests, manipulate graphs and three-dimensional images, search text, and communicate with authors. A new journal, IMEJ was created at Wake Forest University in 1998; its editorial broad includes scholars from many disciplines and a multimedia production team comprised of experts in the field of computer technology. For more information, see http://imej.wfu.edu/.

Submission of Articles

We invite authors to submit articles that demonstrate how computer technology has been used in real-life classroom situations. Since our primary objective is to create a forum for interdisciplinary discussion among teachers and scholars, we will consider articles from all academic fields. Authors should consider this cross-disciplinary audience and limit the use of specialized terminology.

Before submitting a manuscript for publication, authors should prepare a 200-400 word abstract outlining the article and describing the kinds of interactive or multimedia elements that could be included in the publication. (The IMEJ multimedia production team will serve as technical advisers and work with those whose abstracts have been accepted to construct the interactive, on-line version.) Authors should include with the abstract a cover letter with educational affiliation and e-mail address and if possible, a link to any relevant Web-based material that we might review. Mail one hard copy of your abstract to IMEJ, P.O Box 7657, Winston-Salem, NC 27109 and one electronic copy to imej@wfu.edu.

Authors will be promptly notified of the status of their abstract. Those who are encouraged to submit articles will receive information from our multimedia experts and a preliminary schedule for submission and publication.

Text submissions will necessarily vary in length, although most average 1500 to 3000 words (6 to 12 pages). Authors are asked to submit one electronic copy of the text, along with a short biographical sketch. The electronic copy can be submitted in any standard word processing program or HTML. APA or MLA guidelines should be used in preparation of the manuscript and citation of sources. All tables and figures must be clearly labeled.

IMEJ editors will send authors prompt acknowledgement of the receipt of manuscripts and notification of publication date. Our multimedia team will consult with authors during the production of the interactive, on-line article, and our board will send authors a final version of the articles for review before publication.

Protocol for Submission and Review of Articles

In what follows, "author" may imply multiple authors, "Editors" refers to IMEJ's Editors-in-Chief, and "Associate Editors" refers to Editorial Board members. See Editorial Board web page.

  1. Following the procedures outlined in our "Information for Authors" policy statement, authors will send an abstract to IMEJ through email. The Editors and Creative Director will review the abstracts.
  2. Editors will notify the authors and invite submission, reject the abstract, and/or provide feedback for resubmission.
  3. If the abstract is approved, the Editors will notify the author and set a deadline for the draft.
  4. Editors identify a review coordinator or Associate Editor with expertise in the field to conduct a peer review of the full paper.
  5. The coordinator or Associate Editor receives from the Editors a deadline for the review. She/he identifies and forms an agreement with three readers. Readers can be members of the board, members of our review pool, or outside reviewers.
  6. When the author submits the article, Editors send it to the coordinator or Associate Editor for review. She/he sends it to readers. At least two of the readers must respond before the coordinator or Associate Editor makes a recommendation of approval, rejection, or resubmission to the Editors.
  7. The Editors consult with the Creative Director and make a final decision concerning the article.
  8. The Editors respond to the author. If the article is accepted, the author is sent recommendations for multimedia elements and editorial changes. Editors ask for written approval from the author and set up deadline for the preprint and final copy.
  9. A member of the multimedia team begins communication with the author in regard to multimedia elements.
  10. The author submits a revised version of the article. Editors proofread the article, and when the draft is approved, the multimedia team begins collaboration with authors on multimedia elements. At this time, authors are sent a copyright assignment agreement to sign.
  11. A preprint of the article is posted, along with multimedia elements. Editors proofread the preprint and request final revisions from the author.
  12. When final changes have been accepted by both the Editors and the author and the copyright form has been signed and returned, Editors register copyright of the entire issue, and the article is officially published.

Author's Guidelines for the Submission of Multimedia Elements

IMEJ Policy regarding Multimedia Collaboration

  1. The multimedia collaborator and author will schedule a period of approximately seven to ten days during which the authors will provide all multimedia materials necessary for the publication of the article.
  2. Authors are encouraged to provide suggestions regarding the integration of multimedia elements into the text.
  3. The multimedia collaborator will determine how the multimedia elements are most suitably presented, for example, in a separate window, as a pop-up image, or an inline image, etc.
  4. The IMEJ multi-media team reserves the right to crop, cut, trim, drop, resize images or to convert the format of graphics or videos to make them consistent with layout design and the educational thrust of the article.
  5. Authors should not submit superfluous video clips or other multimedia elements that do not augment the educational purpose that informs the article.
  6. The multimedia collaborator will not alter the content of the paper, but will strive to increase its educational value as she/he integrates multimedia elements into the text.

Technical Guidelines:

  1. IMEJ will provide ftp accounts for all authors. These should be used to upload all multimedia elements.
  2. Authors should use the following guidelines for sending images:
    a) Send original images, rather than jpg or gif images. (Exception: gif images may be sent if the original uses fewer than 256 colors.)
    b) Send the original images separately (not embedded in a Word document, or PowerPoint presentation)
    c) For ease in re-sizing plots or graphs, please send all pertinent spreadsheet data. (e.g., Excel spreadsheets).
  3. Authors should remember to include an appropriate file extension for all Mac files (IMEJ multimedia development facility is a Windows-based platform).

Copyright Policy for the Protection of Authors

Authors will be asked to assign copyright for their articles to Wake Forest University. We will create and maintain the definitive version of IMEJ articles on our server. Articles will not be modified without joint permission by the author and editorial board. While authors and readers may make links to the articles, reproduction without permission is a violation of our policy. Requests to republish or post articles must be made to IMEJ. Permission to make digital or hard copies of IMEJ copyrighted articles for personal or classroom use is granted as long as:

  1. Reproduction is consistent with "fair use" practices and materials are not distributed for profit or commercial advantage.
  2. Materials are used for scholarly or educational purposes.
  3. The author, the title of the article, the journal, and notice of copyright appears on each copy.

Agreement of Originality: Author's Responsibilities

IMEJ strives to provide authors with wide readership and copyright protection. In return, we expect that manuscript submissions have not been or will not be published elsewhere. Articles that differ from IMEJ articles by 25% or more will be seen as new works and are not bound by IMEJ copyright.

Authors must include complete documentation of all sources used in the creation of their articles and, before publication, submit copies of letters granting permission to use all copyrighted materials, including images or sound files, commercial software, and other traditional or on-line works. If materials that have not been published are used (such as students' writings), please send us release letters from writers even if the materials appear anonymously. All permission requests should include not only release for on-line publication, but also for publication of a compact disc.

The IMEJ board will be happy to field questions or share sample permission or release forms if necessary. These materials are for information purposes and should not be construed as providing legal advice. Authors may wish to consult their own attorney.

If questions of copyright infringement arise, the editorial board reserves the right to take the article off the server until the matter has been resolved.

Disclaimer

The views expressed in IMEJ are to be attributed to their authors, not the journal, its editorial board, or Wake Forest University.