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Author Guidelines

The OUSL Journal provides a forum for previously unpublished research articles on theory and practice relating to teaching and learning at the University level, in particular but not exclusively, in the field of Open and Distance Learning (ODL). It welcomes contributions from researchers all over the world, which demonstrate innovative research in the areas of ODL, Education, Engineering Technology, Natural Sciences, Humanities and Social Sciences, and Health Sciences. It aims at encouraging sharing of quality research among a broader spectrum of an international audience.

Submissions must be in English
There is no article processing charge (APC) or publication fee.
Use the template provided to prepare your manuscript
Length of the article should be 3,000 to 6,000 words, excluding the Reference List
An abstract of 200-250 words should be provided with the article
Include 3-5 keywords that best describe the article in order to facilitate access by search engines
Paper size is B5 and margins are 2 cm (0.75”) for top, bottom and right, and 3cm for left
A Title Page including the following should be submitted

A concise and informative title
The name(s) of the author(s) with affiliations and addresses of each author
Papers with multiple authors should name a corresponding author with contact information such as e-mail address, mail address, telephone/fax numbers
The corresponding author must make sure that all names of the co-authors given are in order

9. Formatting Requirements:
Text:

For the body of the document, use Calibri font, 12-point type size, single-spaced
The whole document should be fully justified (not only left-justified).
No headers and footers, no page numbers
The text should be divided under headings/sub-headings
For Headings, 12-point, upper- and lower-case, bold
For Subheadings, 12-point upper- and lower-case, italic

Tables, Graphs and Figures:

Minimum 10-point type size, all captions should be upper- and lower-case, bold, and centred
Tables/Graphs/Figures must be placed in the correct location within the article

Illustrations and Photographs

Halftones, minimum of 9-point type size
Captions should be in upper- and lower-case, bold, and centred
Images must be computer-designed and submitted as embedded images in your document

References

Please use the APA Style (6^th Edition)
i.e. Within the body of the text (Surname, Year)

List of References (Eg.)
Format for Books
Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Place of publication: Publisher
Format for Journal Papers, Print version:
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Volume number (Issue number), page range
Format for Journal Papers, Online version:
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Volume number (Issue number), page range. http://dx.doi.org/xx.xxxxxxxxxx or Retrieved from http://xxxxxx

Authors are responsible for the accuracy of all reference
Where available, URLs and DOIs for the references should be provided

10. Suggested Structure of the Article:

Abstract
A maximum of 250 words clearly outlining the contribution of your paper
Key Word
Maximum of 5 key words
Introduction
Clearly explain the nature and scope of the study, purpose, and contribution of the paper
Body of Paper
Present the conceptual/theoretical framework, previous research, research methodology, results and discussion of findings
Use headings and subheadings as needed
Conclusion
Clearly indicate and discuss conclusions and implications
Acknowledgements
A brief acknowledgement section may be included between the Conclusion and References (optional)
Do not include author biographies
References
References should be cited according to guidelines of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA style) (6^th edition)

11. Ensuring a Blind Review:

All articles submitted to OUSL Journal will undergo a double-blind peer reviewing procedure by experts in the area(s) represented by an article, selected by the Editorial Board
Authors are therefore requested to submit a blinded manuscript without any author names and affiliations in the text, references, or on the title page
It is your responsibility to delete your name and those of co-authors from the text and from reference list, and replace with "Author"
The decision of the Editorial Board on the publication is final.

12. Other Requirements:

Save your file in .doc, .docx, or .rtf format. PDF is not an acceptable file format
Name the file with the first and last name of the corresponding author
If you include materials that require copyright clearance or permissions, please provide the "permission granted" document or a contact phone or email address

Guidelines and Template for Research Articles

Title (14-Point Type Size, Upper- and Lowercase, Bold and Centred)
Abstract
A maximum of 250 words clearly outlining the contribution of your paper
Key Words
A maximum of 5 key words
Introduction
Clearly explain the nature and scope of the study, purpose, and contribution of the paper
Body
Present the conceptual/theoretical framework, previous research, research methodology, results and discussion of findings. Use headings and subheadings as needed
Headings 14-Point Upper- and Lower-Case Bold
Use headings and subheadings as needed
Sub-Headings 12-Point Upper- and Lower-Case Bold
Use headings and subheadings as needed
Sub-sub-headings 12-point upper- and lower-case, italic
Use headings and subheadings as needed.
Conclusion
Clearly indicate and discuss conclusions and implications
Acknowledgements
A brief acknowledgement section may be included between the Conclusion and References (optional). Do not include author biographies
References
Use APA Referencing Style (6^th Edition)

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.

The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
The submission file is in Microsoft Word, RTF, or WordPerfect document file format.
Where available, URLs for the references have been provided.
The text is double-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal.
If submitting to a peer-reviewed section of the journal, the instructions in Ensuring a Blind Review have been followed.

Copyright Notice

Copyright on any research article is transferred in full to the Open University of Sri Lanka upon publication in the OUSL journal. The copyright transfer includes the right to reproduce and distribute the article in any form of reproduction (printing, electronic media or any other form).

From June 2018, all articles in the OUSL Journal are Open Access articles, published under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. This license permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium; provided it is licensed under the same terms and the original work is properly cited.

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The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.

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