Submissions

Author Guidelines

The Educación y Ciudad journal of Instituto para la Investigación Educativa y el Desarrollo Pedagógico (IDEP) is an open-access digital scientific publication with a continuous periodicity of two issues per year, whose purpose is to disseminate and socialize educational, didactic, and pedagogical knowledge, so as to contribute to the academic debate on cities and their territorial diversity.

Thematic lines:

• Educational research: presentation of research results in the field of education, didactics, and pedagogy.
• Pedagogical innovation: educational experiences that have generated significant, novel, and transforming changes, regarded as good practices or meaningful experiences.
• Educational policies: Analysis and critical reflection regarding public educational policies, their implementation, and their effects on education systems, institutions, subjects, and practices.
• Teacher training: Studies and reflections upon the initial, continuing, and advanced education of teachers, as well as on the professional development of educators.
• Education, society, and territories: Analysis of the relationship between education and social, cultural, and economic contexts.

The journal publishes articles that disseminate the processes and results of research works, reflection articles, review articles, and pedagogical experiences.

The journal’s target audience includes teachers, both male and female, as well as national and international researchers and, more broadly, those who have an interest in the field of education, didactics, and pedagogy.

The publishing of manuscripts in the journal has no cost for readers or authors. Moreover, it should be pointed out that the journal only publishes texts that have undergone the established academic assessment processes.

Each issue of Educación y Ciudad develops a monographic theme selected and approved by the Editorial Committee after an academic reflection regarding different proposed themes in relation to the current situation and the analysis of the educational and pedagogical context –primarily– but also of the social, cultural, and economic contexts. Then, an editorial team accompanied by a guest (expert) academic editor guides the process of characterizing the monographic theme.

The journal considers criteria of ethics and good practices, which, together with the sections policy that explains the characteristics of the articles to be published, must be consulted and complied with by the authors interested in submitting their manuscripts.

The management, administration, and publishing of the journal are carried out by means of the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform, with which the institutional guidelines to promote open access to knowledge are strengthened.

Guidelines for authors

Document presentation

All articles must be submitted in the Standard Submission Format. The maximum extension is 6000 words including references, abstracts, and keywords.

• Annexes (compulsory)

1. Authorization for the article to be published in IDEP’s Educación y Ciudad journal and be disseminated through diverse print and digital mechanisms and databases, (available in https://revistas.idep. edu.co/index.php/educacion-y-ciudad/for). If the article includes several authors, all of them must fill out the format and annex it in the OJS.
2. Duly signed informed consent if testimonials, images, graphs, and iconography, , are included (available in https://revistas.idep. edu.co/index.php/educacion-y-ciudad/for).

Article types

• Review articles. This type of text conducts a thorough and systematic review of the existing literature on a specific topic in the field of education. These articles aim to synthesize and critically analyze prior studies and research works, providing an updated overview of the state of knowledge in the thematic area addressed. They are composed of an introduction that contextualizes the topic, a methods section that describes the criteria employed to select the articles reviewed, a discussion that evaluates the quality of the evidence and offers recommendations for future research, and a list of updated and relevant bibliographic references, including citations of articles from academic journals indexed in recognized national and international databases.
• Research articles. This type of text presents, in a detailed manner, the original results of finished or ongoing research. These articles include an introduction that establishes the context and relevance of the research, a methods section that describes the conceptual references used, as well as the implemented methodological approach and procedures, a results section that presents the findings of the study, and a discussion that interprets the results and relates them to the existing relevant and updated literature, including citations of articles from academic journals indexed in recognized national and international databases.
• Reflection articles. These are texts that present an analytical and critical perspective of the author on a specific subject. In this type of article, the authors present perspectives and proposals supported by solid arguments founded upon updated and relevant theoretical references, including citations of articles from academic journals indexed in recognized national and international databases. These text must enrich to contemporary debates regarding education, promoting the diversity of voices and contributing to the construction of knowledge.
• Pedagogical experiences. This type of text narrates and analyzes a specific pedagogical experience, highlighting the objectives, the situation addressed, the design, the methods used, and the results obtained. These articles include an introduction that presents the context of the experience, a detailed description of the procedures and instruments, the activities implemented, and a reflection on the results and the observed impact. They provide relevant contextual information such as the educational environment, the participants, the sociocultural context, the challenges faced, and the lessons learned. They also provide recommendations for other professionals interested in replicating or adapting the experience, as well as a list of relevant and updated bibliographic references, including citations of articles from academic journals indexed in recognized national and international databases.
• Letters to the editor. These texts gather critical, analytical, or interpretative positions regarding the documents published in the journal which, in the opinion of the Editorial Committee, constitute an important contribution to the discussion of the selected topic by the referenced scientific community.

Article review process

1. Submission

Researchers interested in submitting their articles must thoroughly consult the publishing policies and guidelines of our publication in the web portal. The authors must register in the OJS system and submit their article along with the required supporting documents, which will be exclusively received through the journal’s OJS.

The reception of a work does not imply any commitment by the journal to its publication.

2. Preliminary review

After closing the call, the Editorial Committee will begin the review of the submitted articles, evaluating compliance with the editorial guidelines, the scope, and the objectives of Educación y Ciudad and the corresponding monographic issue to which the manuscripts were submitted.

Average response time: in this activity, the journal will take at least 30 working days to provide a response to the authors.

3. Review by expert academic peers

The articles that successfully complete the previous phase are sent to the peer review process. This process is carried out in the double-blind modality. The reviewers are selected based on their academic trajectory, experience, and knowledge of the topic, as well as according to the standards established by the current indexation bases.

The criteria to be assessed are

• Originality and relevance
• Methodology and rigor
• Structure and clarity
• Critical analysis and theoretical grounding
• Use of current and relevant references
• Contribution to the field
• Writing quality and presentation

The possible concepts from the reviewers are

• Submission accepted
• Revisions required (minor changes)
• Resubmit for review (re-evaluable)
• Submit elsewhere (suggestion for the author, not considered for the journal)
• Submission rejected
• See comments

The evaluation form is available here.

Average response time: eight weeks

If there are two different concepts from the academic peers, the text will be academically assessed by the guest academic editor and the Editorial Committee, who will make the final decision.

 Clarifying notes

• According to the initial verdict, the article may be submitted two a second round of peer review if necessary.
• A maximum of 10 reviewers will be assigned. If the corresponding requests are not accepted or completed, the Editorial Committee will inform the authors about the state of the process and will give them of continuing with it or withdrawing the article for submission to another publication.

4. Final decision by the Editorial Committee

Once the evaluations of at least two expert reviewers have been received, they are consolidated and sent to the authors with the corresponding recommendations. The authors must respond with a letter indicating the changes made to the article, according to the reviewers’ suggestions. With the new, modified version of the article, the Editorial Committee will verify the incorporation of the peer reviewers’ comments and issue a final decision.

The possible evaluation results are

• Submission accepted: the article meets the criteria and is accepted for publication
• Minor revisions required: specific adjustments or modifications are requested before the final approval
• Submission rejected: the article does not meet the quality standards or does not align with the scope of the journal

5. Editing process

This stage takes place after the article has gone through the peer review process and has been accepted for publication. The copyediting process consists of reviewing and improving the writing, grammar, punctuation, style, and coherence of the text. The article will be sent for the authors to review and approve the style and linguistic suggestions. They must return the corrections to the final version within five working days after receiving the observations.

Average response time: four weeks

6. Design and layout process

The authors will receive a designed version of the article for their final approval before publication. During this stage, only minor corrections related to typographical and layout errors can be made. The objective is to ensure visual coherence and compliance with the journal’s presentation requirements, ensuring that the article is ready for publication.

Average response time: two weeks

Guidelines for peer reviewers

The main objectives of the peer review process are to verify the quality of research before publication, to identify possible inadvertent errors by the authors, and to provide constructive feedback to improve research processes.

As a reviewer, it is of paramount importance to maintain the confidentiality of the evaluated articles and not share them with third parties.

During the review, the following criteria should be taken into account.

1. Originality and relevance. The article must present an original and significant contribution to knowledge. It must address a relevant topic and answer relevant research questions or problems.
2. Methodology and rigor. The article must clearly describe the methods and procedures used in the study, ensuring the validity, reliability, and reproducibility of the results. The methodology must be appropriate for addressing the proposed research questions and objectives.
3. Structure and clarity. The article must have a clear and coherent structure, with an introduction that establishes the context and the objectives of the study, a detailed methodology, results presented in a clear manner, and a discussion that interprets said results in relation to the existing literature.
4. Critical analysis and theoretical grounding. The article must demonstrate a critical analysis of the existing literature and a solid theoretical grounding. It must support its arguments and conclusions with relevant and updated bibliographic references.
5. Results and conclusions. The results of the study must be presented in a clear manner and supported by adequate analyses. The conclusions must be coherent with the results and answer the research questions proposed.
6. Contribution to the field. The article must make a significant contribution to the field of study, be it by means of new findings, through a novel perspective, or via an innovative methodology.
7. Writing quality and presentation. The article must be written in a clear, concise, and grammatically correct manner. Moreover, it must comply with the format and style guidelines established by the journal.

The academic peers will have a period of four weeks to carry out the evaluation of the text, according to the criteria set by the journal in the review form.

Content and structure of the article

Spanish and English title

The title, which should be up to 20 words long and include no abbreviations, parentheses, formulas, acronyms, or unknown characters, must be brief, precise, and codifiable, so that it can be registered in international indices.

Author information

All those who participated in the article must be registered in the OJS submission system with their corresponding full name, email, country, ORCID, institutional affiliation, and a brief biography indicating their academic degrees, current position, institution, and country. The information may be registered in the submission system or sent in an attached file. Colombian citizens must be registered in the Curriculum vitae of Latin America and the Caribbean (CvLAC) and have an up-to-date institutional affiliation (please attach a link to or a screenshot of the registration).

Social media profiles

Social media profiles are useful for readers to know more about authors and their works. Make sure that all links are active and accurate. Providing your social media profiles is optional and shall not affect the consideration of your article for publication.

Spanish and English abstract

The abstract must succinctly address the article type, background, objective, methodology, main results, and conclusions of the research. It must be clear and concise, with a maximum extension of 250 words.

Keywords in Spanish and English

Please provide three to five relevant and specific keywords that reflect the content of the article. Make sure to use different words than those in the title to improve the search results. Avoid general terms and choose keywords that are directly related to the topic of the article, taken from a national or international thesaurus.

Introduction

The introduction provides the reader with an overview of the topic. In this section, the text must include the following components:

• This section must provide a brief preamble to the research topic, highlighting its relevance and timeliness in the field.
• Statement of the problem. It must present, in a clear and precise manner, the problem or the research question to be addressed in the study.
• Literature review. It must evidence a critical review of previous studies and existing literature.
• Justification and novelty. It must justify the importance and relevance of the study in theoretical, practical, or social terms. The novelty or originality of the work should be highlighted, e., the way in which it differs from other previous studies and contributes with new knowledge to the field of research. Finally, in the last paragraph of this section, the authors must indicate the main objective of the research.

Methodology

This section must thoroughly describe the methods and procedures used to carry out the study, in order for other researchers to be able to replicate or validate the results obtained. This section must be clear, precise, and organized, and it may include the following elements:

• This section must specify the approach or research designed used, be it experimental, correlational, qualitative, quantitative, or of another nature. The selection of the design should be justified in relation to the objectives and research questions proposed.
• Population or sample. It should describe the target population of the study and the way in which the sample was selected. It should detail the inclusion and exclusion criteria employed, as well as the sample size and the demographic characteristics of the participants.
• Data collection. It must describe the way in which the data were collected, including the tools, the instruments, or the questionnaires used. It must mention the primary and secondary data sources, in addition to specifying the collection procedures, g., interviews, surveys, observations, document analysis, among others.
• Procedures and protocols. It must provide detailed information regarding the steps and procedures followed during the study. It must describe how the intervention and data collection were carried out, and it must explain the protocols or specific instructions followed.
• Data analysis. It must detail the methods used to analyze the collected data. It must mention the statistical techniques and the computer programs used, as well as the criteria for interpreting the results.
• Ethical considerations (if applicable). It must describe the ethical considerations observed during the study, such as the obtainment of informed consents from the participants, anonymity and confidentiality, and compliance with applicable ethical and legal norms.

Results

When writing the results section, the following key aspects should be taken into account:

• Organization and structure. The results must be presented in a logical and structured manner, employing adequate titles and subtitles for each finding or main topic.
• Description of the results. The main findings must be described in a clear and objective manner.
• Coherence with the research objectives. The results presented must be directly related to the research questions proposed in the introduction. This section must emphasize the most relevant and significant results to answer these questions.
• Reference to the methodology. It is important to link the results to the methodology used. The specific procedures followed to obtain the results can be mentioned, and the statistical analyses or the techniques used in the study can be referenced.
• Use of visual aids. Tables and figures can be used to summarize and present the results in a clearer and more accessible manner. These elements must be duly labeled and referenced in the main text. The illustrations, graphs, drawings, images, photographs, must be called figures. Figures should be numbered with Arabic numerals in order of appearance in the text of the article, e.g., Figure 5. All figures must have an explanatory caption, which must be brief and should not appear as a title. Please do not include the caption within the figure; it must be submitted as an independent text. If the figure has parts, include identifying labels in the assembly. Which should be (a), (b)…
• Presentation of additional data. If there are additional data that support or complement the main results, they can be submitted in the form of annexes or appendices for readers interested in delving into the details.

Discussion

The purpose of this section is to analyze and interpret the results obtained in light of the research objectives and the existing literature. The discussion provides a space to reflect upon the findings and their relevance in the field, as well as to discuss their theoretical, practical, and pedagogical implications. The following key aspects should be considered:

• Interpretation of the results. The findings must be analyzed and explained in a clear and precise manner, relating them to the objectives proposed in the introduction. Patterns, trends, or significant relationships between the data collected can be identified, as well as discuss their implications in the educational context.
• Comparison with the existing literature. It is important to contextualize the results in relation to previous studies and the relevant literature in the field of education. Convergence or divergence points with other studies must be identified, and the possible explanations or discrepancies must be discussed. The discussion must be based on solid arguments supported by evidence and relevant references. Unsupported statements or baseless speculations must be avoided.
• Analysis of the practical and theoretical implications. The implications of the results for educational theory and practice must be explored. The contributions made to the existing knowledge can be discussed, as well as the implications for the design of educational programs, decision-making with regard to educational policy, or teaching practice.
• Limitations and possible future directions. It is important to acknowledge the limitations of the study and discuss possible pathways for future research. The methodological aspects to be improved could be mentioned, as well as additional questions that arose from the results or the research areas that could broaden the understanding of the studied phenomenon.

Conclusions

This section provides an answer to all the research questions proposed and presents the main implications and contributions of the study. The research questions proposed in the introduction must be answered in a clear and concise manner.

The authors may offer recommendations for future research in the studied area. They must provide a coherent and concise closure that effectively summarizes the key points of the study and highlights its importance in the broader context of education.

Acknowledgements (optional)

The acknowledgements section is a space to express gratitude to the people, institutions, and sources of support that contributed to the study. It may include acknowledgements for advisors, collaborators, participants, funding sources, institutions, technical collaborator, and administrative support. It is important to keep this section concise, in addition to obtaining permission before mentioning names.

Author contributions (compulsory)

This section must mention the specific contributions of each authors according to the CRediT taxonomy. We would like to stress the importance of acknowledging the individual contributions of the authors, as it promotes collaboration and strengthens transparency with regard to the authorship of the article.

Example:

Author 1: conceptualization, methodology, software. Author 2: data curation, writing (original draft). Author 3: visualization, investigation. Author 4: supervision. Author 5: software, validation. All authors: writing (review and editing).

Conflict of interest

The authors must disclose any potential conflict of interest during the research.

Funding statement

We request identifying those who provided financial support for conducting the research and/or preparing the article as well as briefly describing the function of the sponsor(s), if any, in the design of the study; in data collection, analysis, and interpretation; in writing the report; and in the decision to submit the article for publication. If the source(s) of funding had no participation, we recommend stating it.

Statement on the use of artificial intelligence (AI)

The authors must inform of the use of generative AI and AI-assisted techniques by adding a statement at the end of their manuscript, before the reference list.

Example:

During the elaboration of this work the author[s] employed [name of the tool/service] with the purpose of [reason]. Afterwards, the author[s] revised and edited the document, assuming full responsibility for the content of the publication.

References

The citations, references, footnotes, and quotations both in the body of the text and in this section must be presented in accordance with the norms of the American Psychological Association (APA 7^th edition). Each citation must be referenced by citing the source. The footnotes must follow a numerical sequence, and it must be ensured that they are few and succinct, i.e., that they are used to clarify the text.

Tables and figures

The figures and tables should be numbered independently with Arabic numerals in order of appearance in the text of the article (e.g., Table 1, Figure 5). All tables must be in an editable format, either included in the Word document or attached as Excel annexes. Furthermore, it is necessary for the format of figures, photographs, illustrations, or sketches to meet the following requirements: they must be captured, scanned, or retouched at a minimum resolution of 300 DPI (dots per inch). The accepted formats are PNG, TIFF, or JPG.