Author Guidelines

Submissions

DISIE publishes original research on digital innovation in special and inclusive education. Submission and peer review are free of charge; an APC of 380 EUR applies only after acceptance, with explicit waiver categories.

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Focus & Scope

Digital Innovation in Special and Inclusive Education (DISIE) is a peer-reviewed, Gold open-access journal on educational research and digital practice. The journal publishes work on how digital technologies, methods, and infrastructures support learners with disabilities, learners with special educational needs, and inclusive educational settings.

DISIE is interdisciplinary. We welcome submissions from special education, rehabilitation pedagogy, educational technology, human-computer interaction, accessibility research, learning sciences, and adjacent fields, including international and comparative perspectives.

Empirical studies, theoretical contributions, structured practice reports, focused short papers, and systematic reviews and meta-analyses are all in scope.

Before you submit

Languages

English is preferred; German manuscripts are also accepted. An English abstract is required for every submission.

Manuscript preparation

  • Anonymisation: remove names, affiliations, acknowledgements, and identifying self-citations.
  • Citation style: APA 7th edition.
  • Initial format: PDF. On acceptance we request DOCX, ODT, or LaTeX source files.
  • Accessibility: figures need alt text; tables need header rows; colour must not be the sole carrier of meaning.

APC and waivers

Authors of accepted articles are invoiced 380 EUR. The APC is due on acceptance, before galley proof. Submission and peer review are free of charge.

Automatic waivers apply when one of the following categories fits:

  • Research4Life country eligibility: Group A full waiver, Group B 50% waiver.
  • Invited editorial contribution: full waiver.
  • Replication study or registered report pre-registered on OSF or PROSPERO: 50% waiver.
  • Negative or null findings as the manuscript's main contribution: 50% waiver.
  • Doctoral student without third-party funding: full waiver; a short declaration is enough.

Submission checklist

By submitting to DISIE, the corresponding author confirms on behalf of all authors that:

  • The submission has not been published and is not under consideration elsewhere.
  • The manuscript is anonymised for double-anonymous peer review.
  • All authors have agreed to the submission and author order.
  • Conflicts of interest and funding sources are disclosed.
  • Ethics-board approval or a justified exemption is reported where required.
  • Any non-trivial use of AI tools is disclosed in line with the journal policy.
  • The submission follows the COPE Core Practices.

Article formats

ART

Articles

Description:
Original empirical studies with a clearly stated research question, transparent methodology, and a contribution to research or practice.
Length:
35,000-55,000 characters including spaces.
THE

Theory & Conceptual

Description:
Conceptual papers that develop, refine, or critique theoretical frameworks for digital innovation in inclusive and special education.
Length:
30,000-50,000 characters including spaces.
SR&MA

Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses

Description:
Systematic reviews, scoping reviews, and meta-analyses with reproducible search, screening, and synthesis protocols.
Length:
Approximately 50,000 characters including spaces, excluding tables and reference list.
SP

Standpoints

Description:
Short, focused contributions, pilot studies, replications, null findings, practice reports, and methodological notes.
Length:
18,000-28,000 characters including spaces.