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Montana English Journal (MEJ) Guidelines

Submission Guidelines

The Montana English Journal (MEJ) is the annual publication of the Montana Association of Teachers of English Language Arts (MATELA), an affiliate of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). The editors welcome articles of interest to the primary audience—teachers of English K-16 in Montana. Your submission should be an original work that has not been published elsewhere or is not under review at an alternative publication venue.

Deadline for Manuscript Submission: June 01, 2021 

Manuscript Preparation Guidelines

  • Do not include a title page, abstract, or page numbers in your manuscript.
  • Submit your file as a single Word document, pdf or rtf. Any figures, tables, or images should be included within the manuscript. 
  • Documents should be double-spaced with one-inch margins. Manuscripts should be typed using size 12 Times New Roman font. Please bold all headings and subheadings but do not change the size or font. 
  • Manuscripts should cite sources accurately according to APA guidelines and include a References page. 
  • Your article will undergo peer review. Therefore, please mask the manuscript so that there is no reference to or identifying information about the author. Manuscripts can be unmasked after the article has been accepted for publication. Please also remove author information from any Word files (File > Properties > Summary > Author).

Submitting Your Manuscript

Submission Link: http://scholarworks.umt.edu/mej/ 

Please have the following information ready:

  • Name, address, school or institutional affiliation, telephone number, email address
  • A typed abstract for your article (100-word limit)
  • 3-5 keywords that will help readers search for your article
  • Your manuscript in Word, RTF, or PDF file

Peer Review Process

  • After submission to the ScholarWorks system, you will receive an email notification that your Montana English Journal submission has been received. 
  • The Editor reviews each manuscript before deciding whether or not to send the manuscript out for peer review. The reviewers will provide feedback on each article and make one of the following recommendations: (1) Accept, (2) Accept with minor revisions, (3) Accept with major revisions, or (4) Reject. 
  • When authors receive their manuscripts, they will have 14 days to revise and resubmit the manuscript (if applicable). Unless the recommendation was to accept the manuscript for publication, resubmitted works are not guaranteed to publish. 
  • Following publication and related uses by MATELA, all rights of reproduction, publication and all other rights under the US copyright law revert to the original author/artist


The Montana English Journal Publication Strands

Research Articles: These articles disseminate original research findings relevant to English education. We recommend that research articles include the following: research questions, a theoretical framework and/or brief literature review, methods (including data collection and analysis), findings, and implications for English educators. Full-length research articles should be between 4000-6000 words in length (including references). Please note that evidence of IRB approval, student assent, parent permission, and/or teacher consent should be available upon request if findings include participant voices and student or teacher work. 

Curriculum Design Articles: This strand provides an outlet for classroom teachers and teacher educators to share curriculum units. We recommend that curriculum design or teaching idea articles include the following: a rationale for the curriculum unit/idea that is supported by references to published works and the Montana State Standards; an account of the unit or lesson sequence’s learning objectives; and a clear overview of the curriculum unit, including an explanation of key resources. We also encourage reflection on the curriculum unit and plans for future iterations. Curriculum design articles should be between 2000-3000 words in length (including references).

Practical Teaching Idea Articles: This strand allows for English teachers and teacher educators to share teaching ideas and strategies that have worked for students in their classrooms. These articles may focus on implementing or adapting strategies learned through attendance at conferences such as MFPE, IEFA, or NCTE. They may also reference ideas encountered in pedagogical or scholarly texts. The strategy or ideas discussed could also be original, developed as teachers work with and for students. If you are writing about an idea sourced or adapted from somebody else, please be sure to cite any original authors and their work. Articles submitted in this category should be between 2000-3000 words in length (including references).

Review Essays: Review essays can focus on one or more texts. Reviews can evaluate pedagogical books, research studies, YA fiction, children’s literature, poetry, or any other work relevant to the field of English education. Reviews should be between 1500-3000 words in length (including references).

Teacher as Artist: The Montana English Journal editorial team also invites you to share your perspectives on English education through submissions of original prose, poetry, art, and photography. Your artwork and photography may also be selected to be featured on the cover of the journal edition. 

Preservice Teacher Strand: The editorial team also welcomes submission from preservice teachers enrolled in undergraduate or graduate education programs. Preservice teachers represent the future of our field, and we believe that our readership can learn from the voices and perspectives of those people preparing to enter the teaching profession. We encourage preservice teachers to consider submitting: (1) Reviews of pedagogical books, picturebooks, young adult literature, or other relevant texts; (2) Written interviews with teachers, scholars, or other stakeholders; (3) Memoir or personal narrative writing that speaks to your perspectives and experiences with regard to teaching and learning--especially given the shifts and changes to school as we know it due to the global pandemic. Please reach out to the Editor or your course instructors if you would like to discuss your idea before submission. The length of these submissions should not exceed 2000 words.

UPDATE Guidelines

Submission Guidelines

Update, MATELA’s newsletter, is published three times a year.  We invite submissions for the following:

Announcements—Upcoming events, contests, publication opportunities, grant deadlines, new policy, academic opportunities;

Commentary—Articles of no more than 2000 words with limited citations;

Reviews—Current books, films, art exhibits, app/software, or web sites (maximum length 2000 words);

Reports—Personal or district accomplishments during the current year; and

Visual Art—Original stand-alone art, cartoons, drawings, photographs.

Submission Process—Submit material via the MATELA  website on the publications page.  

Manuscripts should include quotations, endnotes, and works cited.  Material selected for publication in Update is non-refereed and selected based on spatial requirements, themed issues, relevancy, and the editor’s mood.

Format—Submit in digital form, preferably saved as a Microsoft Word or RFT file.  Do not send files with embedded graphics such as photos, graphs, or charts. Send them as separate JPEG attachments.  

Style—If applicable, use in-text documentation, following the current edition of the MLA Handbook.  Where appropriate, a list of works cited and any other bibliographic information should follow MLA style.
Also provide:

Statement of Originality—E sure that your article is your own work; initial the statement before you upload items.

Contact Information—Please fill out the form in its entirety.  Submit a mugshot to go with your byline.

Following publication and related uses by MATELA, all rights of reproduction, publication and all other rights under the U.S. copyright law revert to the original author/artist.

Update is published in
  • October     (submissions by September 1)
  • January     (submissions by December 1)​
  • April         (submissions by March 1)
Following publication and related uses by MATELA, all rights of reproduction, publication and all other rights under the U.S. copyright law revert to the original author/artist.
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