Statutes of the journal

Preamble

 The Electronic Complutense Journal of Research in Music Education (e-ISSN: 1698745) is a scientific periodical published by the Music Teaching Unit of the Department of Didactics of Languages, Arts, and Physical Education of the Faculty of Education at the Complutense University of Madrid. The publication aims to foster global knowledge exchange among researchers, music professionals, and active professionals in the field of Music Education at all formal educational stages, as well as informal areas related to music education.

Research reports from a wide range of paradigms and methods—both established and innovative—are accepted, as well as methodological proposals and book reviews.

Articles may report on research conducted in any music education context: school (early childhood, primary, secondary education), vocational (informal learning, private lessons, music schools), professional (conservatories, universities, teacher training, orchestras, studios), community (choirs, bands, folk groups), therapeutic (Music Therapy), or experimental (cognition and neuroscience).

1. Management Bodies
 
The management bodies responsible for scientific coordination and publication of the journal are the Editorial Board and the Advisory Board. All members of these boards are committed to complying with the Ethical Code that the Complutense University of Madrid may establish for scientific journals.

1.1. Editorial Board: Structure and Composition

The Editorial Board will consist of a Director, a Secretary, and up to eight members. The Director must be an active professor contractually linked to the area of Music Education Didactics at UCM, and must meet the following requirements: (a) hold a doctoral degree and (b) have a recognized research six-year term or equivalent merit.

Members may be university professors with a doctorate and a solid scientific trajectory with at least three indexed publications. At least one-third of the board members must belong to institutions other than the Complutense University of Madrid.

The Editorial Board will assist the Director in all functions, especially in monitoring submissions (reception, evaluation, acceptance) and defining the journal’s content and style (drafting submission guidelines, creating and guiding sections, etc.).

The Director is elected by vote within the area of Music Education Didactics, and the proposal is submitted to the Department Council of Didactics of Languages, Arts, and Physical Education at UCM for approval.

In the event of a tie between two candidates for the Director position, the teaching trajectory within the Department will also be considered.

Members are appointed by the Director based on proposals from the Music Education Didactics area or through a public call, with final approval by the Department Council.

If there is no candidate for Director or member due to lack of proposals or eligibility, the Department's management and the outgoing Director may propose a current member of the outgoing board (with contractual ties to UCM) as Director, and staff from the same area as members.

The Secretary is directly appointed by the Director and must: (a) be a university professor with a doctoral degree, (b) have at least one indexed publication, and (c) belong to the area of Music Education Didactics at UCM.

All members will serve for a maximum of three years and may renew their term for one additional year. However, during the first three-year term after these statutes are enacted, the Director may begin renewing members in halves for operational reasons.

If a member must leave before the three-year term ends, they must inform both the Department and the Director at least two months in advance. During this period, the Department may call for a replacement via the Department Council.

1.1.1. Duties of the Director

- The Director will be responsible for the coordination and representation of the journal, the relations with the Editorial Board, the Advisory Board, and with Ediciones Complutense. They will also manage relationships with other institutions concerning the journal.
- The Director will appoint the Secretary, according to the established requirements.
- The Director will call at least one annual meeting with the Editorial Board.
- The Director must report to the Department Council or Faculty Board on the operation of the journal and its needs.
- The Director will be responsible for maintaining the highest scientific quality of the journal, as well as its recognition and inclusion in national and international databases and its evaluation for obtaining quality seals, with support from the Editorial Board.
- The Director will have a casting vote in all Editorial Board deliberations.
- The Director may not serve as an author.
- The Director will collaborate with the Secretary in the specified editorial functions.

1.1.2. Duties of the Secretary

- The Secretary will manage the reception of manuscripts and handle them throughout the evaluation and publication process.
- The Secretary will be responsible for communication with authors, members of the Editorial Board, the Advisory Board, and Ediciones Complutense.
- The Secretary will coordinate the initial review of manuscripts by the Editorial Board to decide which papers are to be peer-reviewed and which are to be returned, based on compliance with journal requirements.
- The Secretary will send manuscripts to reviewers along with instructions and an evaluation template.
- The Secretary will oversee the entire editorial process (preparing and delivering manuscripts – including the cover pages – layout process, sending proofs to authors, pre-print version revision, notifying authors of publication, DOI assignment, etc.).
- The Secretary will prepare meeting agendas with the Director and record the minutes of the annual Editorial Board meeting. They will also be responsible for keeping the minutes and certifying the work done by board members, scientific advisors, and reviewers.
- The Secretary will collaborate with the Director in promoting the journal, institutional relations, exchanges, indexing, and any task aimed at improving the journal’s quality and recognition.
- The Secretary may not serve as an author.

1.1.3. Duties of the Editorial Board Members

- Board members must attend the annual meeting called by the Director. Notification will be via email at least two weeks in advance. If a member cannot attend in person, they must provide a means to participate in real time.
- Board members, assigned by the Director and Secretary, will conduct an initial reading of submissions to decide which should be peer-reviewed and which should be returned to authors, pending final decision by the Director. Optional written justification may be submitted to aid the Director's final decision.
- Members will propose external reviewers for submissions and may not act as reviewers or authors.
- Members will support the journal's leadership in tasks necessary for proper operation, including ensuring timeliness and periodicity, and contributing to improving the quality, recognition, and visibility of the journal.

1.2. Advisory Board

- The Advisory Board aims to ensure academic rigor, guide editorial policy, attract authors and readers, and promote the journal as much as possible. It will also assist in evaluation and audit processes.
- Advisory Board members will be proposed by the Director and approved by the Department Council or Faculty Board.
- Candidates must be reputable professionals and researchers, not institutionally affiliated with the journal, and preferably doctoral researchers from foreign institutions. A reasoned statement of motivation may be submitted.
- Members may exceptionally participate in peer review, provided at least one review is performed by someone outside the Advisory Board.
- Advisory Board members may not serve as authors.

2. Characteristics and Operation

2.1. Periodicity

- The journal will be published once or twice a year in continual publication. Additionally, special issues may be proposed to Ediciones Complutense.
- Original article submissions will be accepted from September to May.

2.2. Structure

- The journal will include a miscellany of articles on various topics and will consist of the following sections:
  1. Editorial
  2. Research Articles
  3. Book Reviews in the field of Music Education

2.3. Publication Guidelines

- An annex with publication guidelines will be included, covering: manuscript submission, editorial process (review, evaluation, and publication), notes, and bibliographic references.

2.4. Evaluation Guidelines

- All manuscripts that pass the initial screening will undergo anonymous peer review.
- Manuscripts will be subject to at least two rounds of evaluation.

ANNEX

Publication Guidelines

- Manuscripts must be submitted via the journal’s website between September and May.
- Submissions will undergo preliminary screening by the Director and at least one Editorial Board member. If accepted, they will be sent for blind peer review.
- Reviewers will conduct up to two evaluations if needed, issuing a professional judgment as: ACCEPT, ACCEPT WITH MINOR REVISIONS, MAJOR REVISIONS REQUIRED, REJECT.
- Accepted papers must follow the Ediciones Complutense style guide.
- Papers will be published on the website in October/November and/or May/June.
- References and citations must follow APA