Publication analysis
About the publication
Title: Online Learning
ISSN: 2472-5730 (online) – 2472-5749 (print)
Website: http://onlinelearningconsortium.org/read/journals/
Purpose, objective, or mission: Online Learning Consortium is a community of higher education leaders seeking to improve and advance the quality of digital and online teaching.1
Formerly the Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, the goal of Online Learning is to “promote the development and dissemination of new knowledge at the intersection of pedagogy, emerging technology, policy and practice in online environments.”2
Target audience: “Scholars, practitioners, administrators, and policy makers in online education.”3
Publisher: Online Learning Consortium.
Peer reviewed? Yes, all articles are subjected to a traditional double-blind peer review.4
Type: LIS scholarly journal.
Medium: Both online and in print.5
Content: Online Learning is looking for papers that “investigate how online environments amplify, shape, and contain teaching and learning.”6
They also welcome submissions on the following topics:
- “online interaction
- collaboration
- individualized instruction
- multimedia
- adaptive environments
- blended learning
- issues of learning at scale (in both MOOCs and “traditional” online learning environments)
- emerging technologies
- analysis of large data sets in understanding online educational processes
- effective approaches and interventions that promote online student engagement, persistence and improvement”7
Frequency of publication: “Online Learning is published 4 times a year, and entire issues are published from time-to-time around a single topic or disciplinary areas. Calls for papers for special issues include specific due dates, but general submissions are accepted year-round.”8
About the publication’s submission guidelines
Location of submission guidelines: https://onlinelearningconsortium.org/read/guide-authors/
Types of contributions accepted: 6,000 to 8,000 word papers.9
“Papers building on and/or developing theory and supported by rigorous methods are the norm. Occasionally, papers reviewing broad areas are published, including critical reviews of thematic areas.”10
Submission and review process: Email the journal’s managing editor for more information: sturdy.knight@onlinelearning-c.org. Papers are submitted via the Open Journal System on the Submit a Paper page.
The acceptance rate for papers is 25%.11
Editorial tone: Scholarly.
Style guide used: APA Style 6th Edition Style except where otherwise indicated.12
Conclusion: Evaluation of publication’s potential for LIS authors
The OLJ is not limited to the LIS field, but covers online learning across all academic subjects. This gives authors room to work outside of the realm of librarianship. OLJ could be a fitting journal for authors who have done extensive research on a topic, considering the standards that the journal upholds. Be sure to keep an eye out for calls for articles to be published in special, single topic journal issues.
Audience analysis
About the publication’s readers
Publication circulation: OLJ can be found in the following databases: EBSCO, ERIC, H.W. Wilson Company, Cabell Publishing Inc., ERA Online, Ulrichs Web, Index Copernicus. The Online Learning Consortium is also a supporter of the Directory of Open Access Journals.13
Audience location and language or cultural considerations: Worldwide, but focused in the U.S.
Reader characteristics: Readers come from many different backgrounds, with a common interest in the dissemination of new research on online learning. The journal is written for “scholars, practitioners, administrators, and policy makers” so the journal’s audience is well versed in the online learning environment and the literature written about it.
Reader knowledge of LIS subject matter: Varied.
Conclusion: Analysis of reader characteristics and their potential impact on authors
Considering that OLJ is read by professionals from many different fields, it may be best to leave out LIS-specific jargon. Readers are interested in new knowledge and well researched topics, therefore in depth, scholarly articles may be best received.
Last updated: April 5, 2018
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