快播

LLMY Author Guidelines and Submissions

We welcome contributions to Literacy Learning: the Middle Years. 

Authors of articles published in our journals retain the right to self-archive the final draft of their articles in their institution’s e-repository. 快播 does not give permission for authors to archive copy-edited published versions of articles published in our journals.

Literacy Learning: the Middle Years (LLMY) is published three times a year and it:

• documents and disseminates effective and innovative literacy teaching approaches for students in the middle years of schooling (Years 5-8/9) and recent research findings;
• publishes medium length articles in accessible formats, with illustrative material; as well as peer reviewed papers between 5,000-6000 words.
• caters for an audience of teachers, pre-service teachers, teacher educators and others interested in the teaching and learning of literacies in the middle years of schooling.

The editor invites contributions to the journal, including:

1. Key Article: Key academic article on a topical issue in literacy and language development, up to 5,000 words that invites responses as part of a symposium.
2. Respondents: Shorter articles written in response to the Key Article, between 1,000-1,500 words, reflecting on the innovations, ideas and research explored as part of the symposium, creating a written dialogue on the theme or topic being explored.
3. Peer-reviewed articles: Research articles submitted for peer-review of 5000-6000 words relating to innovations, classroom practices, pedagogies and research appropriate to literacy learning in the middle years of schooling. We welcome articles from Early Career Researchers.
4. Connecting points: An earlier LLMY article is revisited, now complemented by a contemporary postscript of about 400 words from the author, offering insights into changes or reflections on the piece since its first publication.
5. Practical strategies: This section includes articles of up to 1,500 words where practitioners share classroom practice based on the theoretical ideas in each edition. It is the practical application and innovation of literacy teaching and learning in the middle year of schooling. May include student samples, lesson plans, snapshots of process and assessments.
6. Off-the shelf: Book reviews on key texts relating to the journal’s theme or topic. These include books suitable for young people, books for literacy educators, films, Youtube, animation, visual texts, apps and other resources relevant to literacy teaching and learning in the middle years of schooling. Reviews are generally 350-500 words in length.

Note: We recommend that prospective authors read several articles from previous issues available on the 快播 website to get a sense of the style and content.

Upcoming Issues:

THEME	DEADLINE	PUBLICATION DATE
Teaching with AI: Evolving Literacy Pedagogies in the Middle Years The transformative impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in education is rapidly evolving, creating both opportunities and challenges for literacy teaching and learning. As AI literacy becomes increasingly important, educators must consider not only how to teach students about AI but also how AI can enhance literacy practices in the classroom. While AI offers the potential for personalised learning, content creation, and differentiated support, its role in Australian literacy education remains largely uncharted. Given that digital literacy and literacy are key general capabilities in the Australian curriculum these seem like timely questions for exploration. From generating tailored rubrics and curriculum programs to creating quizzes, content summaries, and decodable text lists, AI is already reshaping literacy instruction. As middle-years learners develop essential skills like prompt engineering, understanding how AI is integrated into literacy teaching is becoming increasingly important for effective and relevant classroom practice.	1 June 2026	October 2026
Literacy: Diversity, Learning and Neurodiversity The middle years are a pivotal time for literacy, when students’ identities, confidence, and engagement as readers and writers can shift dramatically. This edition, Literacy: Diversity, Learning, and Neurodiversity, will focus on inclusive, evidence-informed literacy teaching that recognises diversity as the norm and learning differences as part of the classroom landscape. This edition will highlight practical approaches for designing literacy learning that is accessible and meaningful for all students, including neurodivergent learners. Articles will explore strengths-based and culturally responsive practices that support comprehension and expression, and assessment approaches that capture what students know, without narrowing what literacy can be. Across reading, writing, speaking, viewing, and digital literacies, this issue will centre teacher decision-making and classroom realities to support participation, belonging, and growth in the middle years.	1 October 2026	February 2027
Building Literacy Through Text Structure and Features As students move through into the middle years of schooling, they encounter texts that are increasingly diverse in structure, purpose, vocabulary, and mode. Developing strong literacy capabilities requires students to recognise and interpret the structural elements and textual features that writers use to organise information, construct meaning, and position readers. This edition of Literacy Learning: the Middle Years, focuses on how explicit and responsive literacy instruction in text structure and textual features can support reading comprehension, critical interpretation, and purposeful writing across learning areas. Articles in this issue will explore approaches to teaching literacy through the analysis of textual features across print, visual, multimodal, and digital texts, and how these features contribute to meaning, point of view, and authorial intent. Across reading, writing, and viewing, this edition focuses on classroom literacy practices that strengthen students’ capacity to navigate complex texts and become strategic and critical meaning-makers.	1 February 2027	June 2027
Adaptive Professionalism in Literacy Adaptive professionalism in literacy education refers to teachers' capacity to make informed, context-responsive decisions that balance evidence-based practice with the specific needs of their students and communities. Rather than following prescriptive programs or rigid approaches, adaptive professionals draw on deep knowledge of literacy development, pedagogical repertoires, and diagnostic expertise to design responsive teaching that meets diverse learners where they are. In the middle years, where students encounter increasingly complex literacy demands across disciplines and demonstrate widely varying capabilities, adaptive professionalism becomes essential for effective literacy teaching. Teachers must navigate the tension between mandated curricula, standardised assessments, and accountability measures while remaining genuinely responsive to the learning needs in front of them. This edition invites articles that examine how middle years educators enact adaptive professionalism in their literacy teaching, including teacher decision-making around text selection, scaffolding strategies, assessment practices, differentiation approaches, and how literacy programs are adapted to meet student needs.	1 June 2027	October 2027

Submission of Contributions

A manuscript is accepted on the understanding that it is an original contribution that has not been published previously and is not currently under consideration for publication elsewhere.

Manuscripts should be submitted electronically via email to ALL editors:

• Kylie Bradfield-   kylie.bradfield@monash.edu
• Diane Hansford-   Diane.Hansford@une.edu.au
• Hermione Paddle-  hermione.paddle.21@ucl.ac.uk 
• Kelly Carabott-  kelly.carabott@monash.edu  

Authors wishing to have their articles peer reviewed should submit them at least 2 weeks prior to the deadline dates to allow ample time for reviewers and for revisions.

Authors of accepted and published articles will receive a hard copy of the journal edition, so please include the mailing address for all authors in your submission. 

 

Responsibilities

It is the responsibility of the submitting author

• to ensure that the APA 7 style guide is followed. Please note that manuscripts containing large numbers of errors, style problems or missing references will be returned for further editing.
• to obtain all permissions to reproduce copyright material, relevant permissions to publish children’s work, and permission of all individuals (as well as parents when individuals are under 18 years old) featured in photographs.
• to have ethical clearance and other permissions as appropriate.
• to inform the editor if an article is to be considered for the journal’s refereed section.

The review process for the refereed section

The editors will organise blind peer review for articles submitted for consideration for the journal’s refereed section. These articles should be de-identified, so that no names or details of authors are evident on the manuscript. Details about the author/s (name/s, address, telephone and email) should be included in the email that accompanies submission of the file.

Style guide

Prospective contributors should use the following style guidelines:

• Ensure articles are interesting and informative to a middle years teacher audience.
• Include an Abstract
• Include high resolution illustrative material where possible that enhances the content.
• Use Standard Australian English and spelling.
• Align text to the left with minimal formatting.
• Use single line spacing, 2.54 cm margins, size 12 Times New Roman font.
• Indent paragraphs after headings.
• Use bold for headings and align left. One level of heading is sufficient.
• Use APA (7th ed.) for in-text citations and the reference list.
• Embed tables in the text and provide a caption for each.
• Submit figures (images, diagrams) as separate files. These need to be high resolution (300 dpi), preferably in jpeg format. Screen prints taken from the internet are not always suitable for publication.
• Do not use footnotes. Authors should endeavour to include all text in the main body of the article. Where this is not possible, endnotes should be used.
• Prior to submission, check that all references are cited accurately in text and in the reference with correct dates of publication.
• Include a short bionote (50-75 words) for each author at the end of the article. Where appropriate, the bionote might indicate previous involvement with 快播.