Propose a Special Issue

The Malaysian Journal of Education (MJE) seeks to publish focused, coherent thematic volumes that will be of lasting use to the community and of the highest quality. We welcome such proposals for themed Special Issues that are within the scope of the journal.

Before submitting a full proposal, please first fill the form below to communicate an outline and rough timeline of the proposed Special Issue. This will enable us to provide a relatively quick decision on whether to invite you to submit a full proposal (i.e. whether the idea fits within the focus and scope of the journal) and also to indicate a timeline, should a full proposal be accepted. Regrettably, please note that there are periods when MJE have to turn away all Special Issue proposals owing to the number already commissioned and the number currently under review.

If you have been invited to submit a full proposal, please read the guidelines below carefully and provide all of the information requested.

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Potential Guest Editor(s) who would like to propose a thematic Special Issue for Malaysian Journal of Education are invited to prepare a proposal as outlined below.

This guide is prepared in the best interest of the Guest Editors. It should be read thoroughly and implicitly. Failure to adhere to our guide will lead to rejection of papers or subsequent delay or cancellation of the proposed Special Issue.

 

Special Issue Policies

  1. For Special Issues arising from conferences/ seminars/ symposiums/ congresses, the conference is to be treated as a basis for a coherent volume, and should not be seen as a reporting of proceedings. This means that:
    • Manuscripts are to be full, regular empirical research papers. Conceptual papers are not accepted.
    • The list of proposed manuscripts should represent a good coverage of the highest quality work from the conference/ seminar/ symposium/ congress, or should focus on a specific area e.g. a session/ workshop of particular interest from a broader conference/ seminar/ symposium/ congress.
    • MJE does not accept any submission of papers that have been published in full in a conference proceeding as novelty is an important criterion in the selection of papers.
  2. To manage the proposed Special Issue on behalf on MJE, 1 to 4 Guest Editors should be appointed among the proposing party (usually from the Conference/ Seminar/ Symposium/ Congress committee members). Among the Guest Editors, one Lead Guest Editor should be appointed to manage all the communication with MJE. The responsibilities of the Guest Editors are outlined in the section below.
  3. A minimum of 10 articles, and a maximum of 20 articles are required for a publication of a Special Issue in MJE. Publication of additional manuscripts (more than 20) must be requested from MJE.
  4. A maximum of two (2) articles are permitted by the same author in one Special Issue, provided the author sequence differs in each article (e.g. if author A is the first author in one manuscript, in a subsequent manuscript, Author A must not also be the first author).
  5. Articles by the Guest Editor(s) are permitted to be submitted to be published in the Special Issue.
  6. All manuscripts should adhere to the submission requirements as outlined in the submission guidelines.
  7. The final decision on any manuscript is reserved by MJE.
  8. A publication fee of RM200 (Ringgit Malaysia Two Hundred) is charged for the publication of one (1) article in the Special Issue. This fee should be made payable to Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s receiving account (CIMB 8002234307) upon acceptance of the final manuscripts for the special issue.
  9. It should be noted that MJE is a fully online journal, since the printing of the Journal’s hard copies has ceased in the year 2009. Therefore, any Special Issue will only be published online, and not printed.
  10. If a Special Issue “unravels” as a result of lack of (quality) submissions and therefore fails to cover the subject fully, as judged by the Editorial Board of MJE, the Special Issue may be cancelled by MJE. In that case, with the consent of the authors, any manuscripts under review may be invited to be transferred to MJE for completion of the review process and any accepted manuscripts by this route will be invited to be published in a regular issue of MJE.

 

Guidelines on Preparing a Proposal

A proposal for a Special Issue should be made using this form, and include the following:

  1. Lead Guest Editor’s information: name, title, affiliation, contact information, brief background
  2. Guest Editor(s)’ information: name, title, affiliation, contact information, brief background
  3. Special Issue Title (Theme)
  4. Theme Description: A 1-page information about the Special Issue, which should include the following:
    • Aims and scope of the Special Issue
    • How the Special Issue fits with the scope of MJE
    • The advances provided by the papers in relation to existing knowledge
    • Any novelty provided by the papers
  5. A proposed time schedule for:
    • Period for submission of manuscripts
    • Period for screening and selecting manuscripts to be published in MJE
    • Period for peer-review process
    • Period for revisions and editing
    • Date for the final manuscripts be submitted to MJE
    • Date of publication
  6. Manuscript abstracts
    • For proposals to be sent after manuscripts has been selected for the Special Issue, a list of manuscript abstracts must be included as attachment in the proposal
    • For proposals to be sent before manuscripts are selected for the Special Issue, a list of manuscript abstracts should be sent to MJE as soon as the selection period is concluded

A full proposal should be submitted along with an official letter from the Special Issue organizing committe/editorial at least twelve (12) months before the proposed publication date, via email to mje@ukm.edu.my

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Publication Process and Guest Editor(s)’ Responsibilities

 

Just as the Guest Editor(s) are instrumental in selecting a coherent set of manuscripts that fits within the scope of the Special Issue, they also have a vital role in ensuring rigorous independent reviewer selection, review (and re-review) processes, and scientific quality of the manuscripts. Below is an outline of the processes in publishing a Special Issue, as well as the role of the Guest Editor(s):

 

Planning and Proposing the Special Issue

  1. The Lead Guest Editor sends their proposal along with an official letter from the institution/organization to MJE. MJE will review the proposal and advise of their interest. All proposals will be thoroughly considered, however, please note that MJE may ask for modifications to any proposal or reserve the right to decline a proposal.
  2. If the final proposal is accepted, an acceptance letter from MJE would be issued to the Guest Editor(s). They then may proceed with the subsequent processes.


Call for Submissions and Handling of Submissions 

  1. The Guest Editor(s) are responsible for all Call for Papers; they may request for MJE to put an announcement in the Journal webpage.
  2. The Guest Editor(s) are responsible for screening the submissions and selecting manuscripts to be included in the Special Issue.
  3. The Guest Editor(s) should send the abstracts of the selected manuscripts to MJE.


Managing the Peer-Review and Revision/Editing Process 

  1. The Guest Editor(s) are responsible for managing the peer-review process for the Special Issue. Whilst MJE may be able to help in suggesting reviewers, the Guest Editor(s) are essentially responsible for gathering together a team of suitably expert reviewers.
  2. All communications with the reviewers should be managed by the Guest Editor(s), including the issuance of review invitation/acknowledgement letters to the reviewers.
  3. Each manuscript should be reviewed by at least two (2) independent reviewers; one (1) external reviewer, and one (1) internal reviewer (could also be among the Guest Editor(s)/organizing committee). The review must be documented using the MJE review form. Reviewers may refer to this guide to conduct the peer-review.
  4. During the review process, should a reviewer require “major revision”, the manuscript should be revised by the author, and the revised paper should be re-reviewed.
  5. The Guest Editor(s) must ensure that authors address all the concerns raised by the reviewers during the peer review process and revise their papers accordingly. Once authors have completed their revisions, the Guest Editor(s) may choose to return the revised manuscript to the respective reviewers for a final check – although this further stage may be dependent on the time frame for editing the issue.
  6. The Guest Editor(s) must submit the manuscripts to Turnitin® for plagiarism check or seek help from MJE for plagiarism check. The Guest Editor(s) must also ensure the plagiarism index of all manuscripts to be below 30%. Any index above 30% should be revised by the author.
  7. The Guest Editor(s) must ensure that the final manuscript conform to the requirements, structure, and style of publication of MJE. The final manuscript must also be formatted according to the template. Failure to adhere to these criteria and format may result in a delay of publication.
  8. In summary, the Guest Editor(s) are expected to apply the same editorial rigour as the Editor-in-Chief of MJE. Please note that the Editor-in-Chief of MJE who oversees the project will take the final decision on the manuscripts.


Submitting Copy for Publication 

  1. An Editorial/Preface should be written for the Special Issue by the Guest Editor(s), to introduce the Special Issue. This introduction is intended to lead the reader into the background and theme of the Special Issue, summarise the findings, and suggest perspectives for further work. It will be subject to a review by MJE. Click here to see an example of a preface.
  2. The Guest Editor(s) are responsible to submit the final manuscripts to MJE. The final submission should be made six (6) months before the proposed publication date. Although submission delays would most probably not result in a publication cancellation, please note that a delayed submission would result in a delayed publication. The final submission should include the following documents:
    • The final manuscript
    • Two (2) review forms for each manuscript
    • One (1) Turnitin® receipt for each manuscript
    • A list of the Received/Reviewed/Revised/Accepted dates for all manuscripts
    • Editorial/Preface


Post-submission 

  1. The final manuscript submitted to MJE is subject to one final check by the Editor-in-Chief of MJE. Please note that at this stage, manuscripts can still be returned to authors for revision, if required. Any further revision request is restricted beyond this stage.
  2. All manuscripts that are approved by the Editor-in-Chief of MJE will be issued an official acceptance letter from MJE.
  3. Upon acceptance, authors are required to sign a Publishing Agreement and make payment of the publishing fee. The payment may also be managed by the Guest Editor(s).
  4. The manuscripts then go to the typesetting team in UKM Publisher who perform quality checks and prepare the proofs. Once proofs are prepared, the Guest Editor(s) should make a final check and return them to MJE. Once the corrections are made, the issue is ready to be published online.

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For any inquiries regarding Special Issue publication, please contact the Managing Editor at mje@ukm.edu.my