FOCUS 

The Praxis Pedagógica is an international scientific publication journal which is arbitrated under the blind pair mode and semiannually published in digital version by the University Corporation Minuto de Dios - UNIMINUTO. Its objective is to socialize and debate about research on educational practices and experiences for their transformation and improvement. Pedagogical Praxis collaborates with other entities for its publication in Spanish, English and Portuguese.

Praxis Pedagógica convenes researchers who present their unpublished results about avant-garde educational theories, practices and innovations which will impact Research Centers as well as civil, political and public organizations and various development models of our societies. The journal receives research, review and short articles and opinion, reflection or debate articles as well as case reports, reviews, letters to the editor, editorial, interviews, monographic issues and dossiers. The content of these papers is related to praxeological and social pedagogy, specific didactics, educational inclusion, social innovations in education, learning environments and teacher narratives.

AUDIENCE 

Praxis Pedagógica is aimed at researchers, higher education teachers who are interested in understanding and improving their practices, but also at masters and doctoral students in search of guidance and inputs to advance their research projects, strategists and thinking tanks in public policy, and civil organizations whose action emphasis reflects the focus of the journal.

Instructions for authors

1. Authorship

The journal acknowledges as authors to whom have made substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; have participated in the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; have made significant inputs in drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and have given final approval of the version to be published. All authors are accountable for all aspects of the work.

Those who have contributed in activities of funding, surveying and  data analyzing, or have been related to the project in capacity of chief of department or administrative duties, not are author, but, according with their participation, must be acknowledge as contributors.

 2. Receipt of proposals

The journal receives unpublished contributions from authors of various nationalities, institutions and research centers. Therefore, these articles have not been published before nor are in the process of being submitted for review before to any other scientific journal, except in the case of pre-print texts which are in a repository and have not yet been evaluated.

Proposals are accepted from various theoretical and methodological perspectives. The primary publication language is Spanish, however articles in English and Portuguese are also received and published. The journal maintains an open and permanent call for the reception of proposals for publication.

3. Advantages of publishing in Praxis Pedagógica 

• Immediate availability of the online article in pdf, html and xml formats
• Inclusion in abstracts and indexing repositories and systems at national and international level
• Free access to articles by all interested parties
• Creative commons 4.0 publication license
• Citations’ number monitoring
• Assignment of an article identification number (DOI, Digital Object Identifier System)
• Print on demand
• Publication’s Certification
• Presentation and audiovisual promotion by the authors
• Standard identification of each author with respect to its publication

 4. Type of articles 

A variety of proposals are received: 

              Research articles

They can be postulated or requested by the editor. They are the result of rigorous and high-quality research with special relevance findings and novelty in the proposed topic and have not been published previously, but they are in their preliminary form (reports, thesis, abstracts or posters).

              Review articles

They discuss about a special interest topic and thoroughly study the available literature within a proposed time frame. They indicate the methodology for the selection of texts, the categories to be analyzed and the objective of the analysis.

              Case reports

It refers to a specific situation in which scope of a theory, intervention methods and possible outcomes are addressed. The following format is suggested: presentation, review of the theory in question, description of the particular situation and results of the different tools applied, possible interpretations, intervention and results obtained, summary, discussion, acknowledgments and references.

              Short article

 It follows the structure of a research article, but all its sections are short, as its purpose is to communicate noticeable advances of a research project in advance. It must have a maximum length of 3000 words.

              Opinion, reflection and debate article

 It offers a duly informed discourse analysis on a topic of special relevance.

              Reviews

It includes a summary and critical commentary on a recent publication (not older than six months), in which its impact on the discipline and the academic community in general is indicated.

              Letters to the editor

They are replicas which are written in a concise manner where clarifications are requested, other possible explanations are offered and methodological or argumentative weaknesses are pointed out in the data interpretation. A rule of maximum three aspects in two written pages and a minimum of 5 references should be followed.

              Editorial

 It is requested by the editor and points out aspects of great interest for the development of a discipline. Researchers who are interested in proposing an editorial topic should contact the editor.

 Article structure 

 The sections which must be included within a research article are described below. The other typologies of manuscript must keep the same order in the limit of their nature.

• Title: it must be brief and inform the reader about the topic to be treated. It must be provided in Spanish and English. The publisher reserves the right to modify it for reasons of visibility, impact and publicity.
• Abstract: It must have 350 words maximum, in which the author illustrates to the academic community about the problem to be treated, the research objective or reflection, the methodology or procedures used, the results and conclusions. This section should be presented in both Spanish and English
• Keywords: The author suggests up to 10 keywords maximum and 5 keywords minimum both in Spanish and English. These words should allow potential readers to easily find the article through digital search engines. The publisher reserves the right to modify, omit or add keywords. A controlled vocabulary or recurring terms in the databases can be used.
• Background: This section explains - with the support of evidences - the dimension and importance of the treated topic, as well as previous attempts by other researchers to understand it. It defines the phenomenon to study and the objective of the investigation, in addition to making explicit the working hypothesis or the line of inquiry.
• Methods: The followed theory and the corresponding methodological approach is explained. A description of facts, texts or people under study, their characteristics, the tools applied and all the procedures followed must be included. The information should be sufficient for other researchers to conduct the same study and verify the results
• Results: The results obtained with the support of graphs are reported with no into excesses.
• Discussion: Here the results are related to those obtained by other authors and which have already been published. Differences and contributions between studies are established. Likewise, controversial theoretical models and how the study tends to confirm or question them are discussed.
• Conclusions: All the final ideas influenced by the data obtained are gathered in this section. In turn, these must clarify whether the working hypothesis was validated or not.
• Declarations:
• Acknowledgments: Gratefulness is expressed to those who significantly collaborated in the study.
• Funds: it is declared if the project had financing and from which entity.
• Availability of data and materials: It includes who to contact or where to find data.
• Authors’ contributions: each author contribution must be included in case of articles performed my multiple people
• Ethical approval and participants’ consent: the ethics committee who approved the project must be specified as well as if participants signed the informed consent.
• Conflict of interests: authors declare if conflicts of interests exist and describe their nature.
• References: Only texts cited in the article are shown. They must be listed in alphabetical order within a range between 30 and 50, where at least 50% correspond to publications made in the last 5 years. 

Articles evaluation 

The articles which are submitted for publication are double blind evaluated by at least two evaluating pairs. The identities of the authors and evaluators are anonymous. Peer selection will be done considering academic career, expertise on the subject and publications. A possession of a related Master’s Degree or Doctoral degree is compulsory for being selected as evaluator.

              Aspects and criteria to evaluate:

 

• Title:  It is consistent with the content and objectives, and its thematic is clear and indicative for readers.
• Abstract and keywords: It properly indicates the content and allows to easy locate the topic of the article and access it through the different search engines.
• Introduction: It adequately exposes the theme of the article, highlights its importance, quotes the background and clearly states the objectives.
• Content: it includes well formulated hypotheses or problems, original and solid argument, theoretical and methodological foundation, and results’ report.
• Writing and style:It has clarity and consistency, handles a style appropriate to the topic, has correct spelling and appropriately uses punctuation marks.
• Tables and illustrations: They must be relevant with correct enumeration and references.
• Conclusions:They must be consistent with the introduction, respond to the objectives, are of interest and generate new contributions to the discipline
• Footnotes and references: They must be relevant and written under the APA standards parameters. The bibliography is up to date and contains a critical analysis of cited texts.
• General concept: it must be timely current with respect to the subject, original and provides contributions with methodological rigor.

 Articles which reach a 70% rating out of the maximum are considered publishable. However, the final decision is strictly on the editor, whose opinion must be based on the editorial committee and the publishing institution.

Processes and publition timings 

 The journal has stipulated an optimal publication time of 13 weeks, distributing the editing and publishing timings as follows:

·                 Reception and evaluation of the article by the editor. Article’s relevance and originality are determined. As for its originality, the editor will submit the article to a plagiarism detection software. Duration: one week.

·                 Initial review by the editorial committee: one week

·                 Acceptance and search for peer evaluators: up to two weeks

·                 Peer evaluation: four weeks maximum

·                 Adjustments and corrections by the authors: one week

·                 Style correction: one week

·                 Acceptance of changes from the author: one week

·                 Text layout: one week

·                 Publication and indexing: one week

 

Responsibilities of authors, peers and editors 

              It is under authors’ responsibility:

 

• To present a complete information about identity, institutional affiliation, ORCID, SCOPUS ID, Google Scholar and nationality.
• To postulate the article following the guidelines of the journal and with its duly signed annexes: declaration of originality and acceptance of the publication license.
• To deliver the illustrations and other required documents to the editor in accordance with the guidelines.
• To adjust the article in the shortest possible time after receiving editor’s comments. If there are several authors, the main author assumes the responsibility of making the necessary adjustments.
• To comply with the ethical considerations established by the journal.

 

              It is under editors’ responsibility:

 

• To ensure the relevance and originality of the article through the use of anti-plagiarism software.
• To define acceptance or rejection of the received article to start the publication process.
• To ensure the evaluation of the article by qualified personnel within the established time limits.
• To communicate to the author about the comments received and indicate the necessary adjustments.
• To ensure the scientific quality of the contents, the correct use of language and the presentation and design of the article for publication.
• To maintain the author informed about the status of the article.
• To ensure compliance with all guidelines, procedures and ethical considerations of the publication
• To ensure compliance with time and quality in the various phases of the editorial process
• To maintain updated archives of the editorial process of each of the articles with their respective supports.
• To dutifully respond to requests, complaints and claims by the authors and other members of the academic community.

 

              It is under peers’ responsibility

• To evaluate the document by following the instructions of the editor and y ajustado al formato presentado
• To provide sufficient details which allow the editor to give an informed decision and the author to prepare the appropriate adjustments to the document.
• To perform their work within the expected times.
• To present their evaluation in an objective manner, which contributes to the professional growth of the researcher.

To follow the ethical considerations assumed by the publication

Publication license and open access policy 

Both authors and readers should be aware that articles published in this journal are under the Atribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). This means that anyone can share and distribute published material in any format and adapt it, combine it, mix it or transform it for any purpose (commercial included). All of the above is allowed only if appropriate credit to the original publication is provided and the changes introduced are indicated.

Embargo policy 

Once the editorial process is completed, all articles will be immediately and permanently online, and available to the public both for reading and downloading.

Costs for article processing (APC - articles processing charges)

The costs for articles’ processing, handling and publication are entirely covered by the University Corporation Minuto de Dios and they do not constitute any charge for authors or readers.

Distribution mechanism 

The journal may print some copies for legal deposit and marketing purposes. Its main distribution channel is via academic and social networks as well as national and international academic community. Digital marketing strategies are used both through our website and Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube profiles.

Ethical considerations 

The process of duly producing and disseminating scientific journals requires compliance with high standards of ethics by all parties involved in the publication process: the publishing institution, the editor, the peer reviewers and the author

Duties of the institution

 

• Ensure the quality and integrity of the editorial process

ü    Maintain complete and intact files and databases of all products and publishing processes.

ü    Encourage the adoption of best practices throughout the editorial process.

ü    Ensure that editors, authors and evaluators follow all established procedures and are ethically oriented in all their decisions.

ü    Be aware of the publishing industry advances in order to introduce new practices which may contribute to the best journal performance.

• Protect editorial autonomy

ü    The editorial process adheres to strictly academic criteria and will not be hindered by advertising motivations, influence peddling or ideological biases.

• Promotion of good editorial practices

ü   In addition to subscribing the journal to COPE, the editors have tools to detect plagiarism, affiliations and courses aimed at strengthening the suitability of their work.

 

              Duties of the editor

 

• Publication integrity

ü   The editor is directly responsible for deciding which articles will be published. This decision must be made in coordination with the institutional policy, the editorial committee and with the authority delegated by the institution to support the process. The publisher must ensure that published articles respect copyright, do not commit plagiarism or slander and the information they present can be validated by readers.

• Article evaluation

ü    Article evalutation ensures that the assessment process is fair, impartial and carried out within a reasonable time frame. Research articles are evaluated by two external and independent peers and, if necessary, the editor will consult other opinions.

• Impartiality

ü    The editor ensures that articles are evaluated for their strictly academic content without regard to race, gender, religious beliefs, political inclinations or other criteria. The transparency of the process must be guaranteed at all times. For this purpose, all official communications must be archived and tracked within the platform.

ü    It is editor's duty to properly inform the evaluators about their tasks, the fair and considerate deal with the authors and the rigorousness regarding the treatment of the discipline.

ü    The editor establishes an appropriate appeal approach with respect to decisions made by the peers or those made directly by him/her.

 

• Fair metrics

ü   The editor will not attempt to artificially alter or influence the different measurement or citation mechanisms, nor request the authors to include references for non-academic reasons.

 

• Confidentiality

ü    The manuscripts submitted for review must be handled with strict confidentiality, as well as the data and identities of the authors and evaluators. The editors will not use materials from unpublished manuscripts without prior consent of the authors, nor will attempt to obtain personal advantage or gain while covering their duties.

• Conflict de Interests

ü    The editor must inform the institution or the representing authorities about any conflict of interest which might affect its appointment. The editor will also refrain from participating in decisions related to texts which have been written by him/her, family, friends or parties with whom he/she has commercial or interdependent relationships. In such circumstances, an independent person must assume the entire process and publicly declare the procedure followed.

 

              Duties of the peers

 

• Article quality

ü    The evaluating peers supports both the editor and the author. On the one hand, they provide the editor with sufficient arguments to make an informed decision and on the other hand, they collaborate for the substantial improvement of the authors’ texts. Both author and manuscript must be treated with excessive care and delicacy by the peers. The journal aspires to have rigorous texts, but also constructively contribute to the training of researchers.

ü   If the evaluator feels disqualified for a proper assessment, he/she must immediately notify the editor. All parties are aware that the “time” factor is of special importance during the editorial process, so the evaluator will give priority to his/her task as quickly and seriously as possible. Although he has a maximum time After a 30-day evaluation, it is desirable that such work be carried out reasonably within a shorter time.

• Confidentiality

ü    All manuscripts must be treated with absolute discretion. The evaluator will refrain from sharing with others the information provided such as the judgments or suggestions made, as well as directly contacting the author.

ü   No evaluator is authorized to use unpublished material, neither in their own research nor in their own documents without author's written authorization. Moreover, no personal advantage of the provided information is allowed.

• Scientific integrity

ü    The evaluator will be careful in detecting potential good editorial practice flaws by the author, such as omission of citations, plagiarism, texts’ similarities or data manipulation. Any type of anomaly must be reported to the editor.

• Impartiality

ü    The evaluator must be aware of their own biases and academic inclinations and try not to interfere with their text evaluation. All observations must be supported with evidence and reasonable arguments. The evaluator will also avoid making judgments directed at the author.

ü    Only citations for scientific purposes can be included by the evaluator. It is considered a conflict of interest the citation of evaluators’ articles.

• Conflict of interests

ü    The evaluator should consult the editor in case of perceiving any type of conflict of interest. This means friendship, family, business, competition, rivalry or subordination relationships. The evaluator will also refrain from using information for his/her own personal advantage.

 

              Duties of the author

 

• Originality and source acknowledgments

ü    The text must be entirely written by the author and therefore considered as original. In case of using materials, texts, works or ideas from others, these should be rigorously referenced. It is the moral duty of the author to indicate who influenced his/her ideas. Textual quotes or extensive paraphrasing of other sources is considered plagiarism and is therefore an unacceptable practice.

• Data management

ü    The author must be in possess of the data which support his/her publication and garantee to provide more information for a reasonable period of 4 years when necessary. Data manipulation and false information are considered reprehensible behaviors.

• Quality

ü    Research articles must give an accurate account of the work carried out and explain the relevance of their results. The text must provide sufficient information regarding materials used, processes and methodologies. This will allow other researchers to replicate the exercise and validate the results.

• Multiple versions

ü    The author must not simultaneously submit his/her manuscript to different journals or publish multiple versions of the same research. Eligible prior publications are: abstracts, theses or partial class notes. Such publications must be declared in advance. The lack of providing this type of information is assumed as an attempt to deceive.

• Authorship

ü    An author is the person who writes and gives the constitutive form to the text, as well as anyone who collaborates in an essential way in the conception, design, execution and interpretation of the investigation or problem treated. Other people who participate in the editorial process or collaborated in one aspect of the investigation deserve tribute from the author in the section corresponding to “acknowledgments”.

ü    It should be made clear in the text who claims its authorship. Any modification in this regard must be duly supported and approved by all authors, leaving the final decision at the discretion of the editor.

• Informed consent and assent

ü    It must be stated explicitly whether the investigation has required approvals from any ethics committee or request for informed consent or assent, either for using animals or for dealing with human beings. All sensitive use of data must comply with current legislation in Colombia on data management. As for the use of images, due consent must be provided which permits its use and publication.

• Conflict of interests

ü    It is authors’ duty to disclose any type of link with companies, financial entities, civil, political or public organizations which may benefit from their results. Likewise, the entities that financed the project, the contractual relationships, shareholdings if any, or any other aspect which could be interpreted as bias or influence must be declared.

The Minuto de Dios University Corporation is a member of COPE and consequently subscribes to its principles  “Committe on Publication Ethics” https://publicationethics.org/

Metrics 

The journal periodically monitors a variety of measurement systems. However, these do not constitute a determining factor for the assessment of the articles or the authors. Different contributions are valued for their scientific content and for strictly academic reasons. Consequently, the journals edited by the University Corporation Minuto de Dios - UNIMINUTO adhere to the San Francisco declaration (Dora).

            Here a partial list of metrics we offer tracking service of:

·                 Most consulted articles

·                 Most cited articles

·                 H and h5 indexes of the journal (Google Scholar)

·                 Impact factor (SJR)

·                 Rejection rate

 

Appeals, retractions, complaints and claims 

Authors whose articles were rejected, should contact the editor who will provide details on the most appropriate procedure to follow. Likewise, anyone who feels their rights are violated by the contents published within the journal, should first contact to the editor. The editor will make the respective inquiry and will make clarifications, retractions or apologies.

Depending on the seriousness and complexity of the facts, the editor will escalate the case to either the editorial committee or the Publications Directorate of the publishing institution.

Limitation of Liability Statement 

The content of the articles is under the sole responsibility of the authors who in addition guarantee that their manuscripts are in observance with the applicable Colombian legislation. The published material does not represent any opinion from the University Corporation Minuto de Dios - UNIMINUTO. Any use and exploitation of the content will be subject to the aforementioned legislation in accordance with the licenses or authorizations granted by the authors, provided that the purpose of facilitating, disseminating and promoting learning, teaching and research is fulfilled.

Habeas Data Policy 

The Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios - UNIMINUTO (hereinafter UNIMINUTO) declares to protect personal data provided by students, aspiring professors, professors, administrative staff, suppliers and donors under the provisions of Law 1581 of 2012 of the Republic of Colombia. UNMINUTO also informs that their personal data will be used according to the authorization made by the data owner. This treatment may be carried out directly by UNIMINUTO or by a third party determined by UNMINUTO. The personal data provided are collected by the Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios for higher education services, as well as for the execution of the Corporation's own activities, in accordance with the purpose of the database in which Personal Data are present. UNIMINUTO informs the holder of the personal data that the following rights will assist him/her.

1.To Know, update and rectify your personal data with regard to UNIMINUTO as responsible or entrusted or with regard to any person in charge of data processing.

2.Request proof of granted authorization.

3.To be informed by UNIMINUTO about the given use of your personal data.

4.To raise any request, petition, complaint or claim regarding the processing of personal data.

5.Submit complaints, requests and claims to the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce.

6.To revoke the authorization and/or request to the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce the suppression of the data when constitutional and legal principles, rights and guarantees are not respected.

7.To access to personal data for free.