From this new year 2024, the European Journal of Psychology of Education (EJPE) will be publishing a new format that we call “Special Section”, designed to encourage collaboration between teams of researchers working on the same research object or topic in the field of psychology of education.

As we mentioned previously (Tartas, 2023), three keywords are at the core of EJPE: diversity, collaboration, and development. We would like to illustrate how this new format may support and enrich these three dimensions.

Let us first define the new format.

What is a special section?

A Special Section is a collection of 4 to 6 papers focusing on a specific area of research that has a broad appeal and falls within the aims and scope of the Journal. It might be proposed by a group of researchers, a member of the Editorial team (i.e. an associate editor and/or editor in chief), or members of the Editorial Board. It provides an excellent opportunity to develop a particular topic or issue at the scientific level, to examine unaddressed aspects, to explore innovative methodological approaches, and to encourage new lines of research.

Writing and submitting a proposal explaining the relevancy and contribution of the Special Section in the field of Psychology of Education is the first step. After a discussion among the Editorial team (associate editors and editors in chief), the editors in chief inform the guest editors whether their proposal is accepted or not. Then, the guest editors will be registered and will be assigned the handling editors for individual papers within the special issue. All submissions abide the same peer review process as regular papers and are published in the issues of the Journal when they are accepted. They are labelled as belonging to a Special Section within the collection. The Special Section is made up by an Introduction paper (proposed by the guest editors), the 4 to 6 papers, and a Commentary that ends the section by proposing a critical overview and new avenues for research.

The conditions to propose a Special Section meet the ones expected for a Special Issue: two guest editors from different universities (at least one from a European university) coordinate the Special issue/section.

Why are we introducing this format?

The Special Issue has the same objectives as the Special Section: it offers new avenues of research on the same theme or object. However, the number of contributions is reduced: 7 to 11 for a Special Issue, only from 4 to 6 papers for a Special Section. For us as Editors-in-Chief, publishing Special Sections contributes to provide more visibility to European collaborative research projects on relevant and topical issues in psychology of education. It may promote collaboration already existing within a project but it can also lead to new collaborations with other groups of researchers sharing the same object of research. Moreover, it may offer a diversity regarding the theoretical or methodological approaches. It also aims at proposing a frame for developing new ideas and new approaches allowing the exploration of the complexity of learning and developmental processes within educational settings. It is a way for us to support dialogues between different domains of psychology (social psychology, developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, etc.) with psychology of education. From the beginning of the journal, EJPE has developed a particular interest for studies on social interactions in learning contexts, on peer collaboration to learn and develop, and on social representations of the different social actors and institutions embedded in learning as process.

We are delighted to announce that several Sections are in preparation and will be published between 2024 and 2025:

  • Exploring Motivation for Learning Mathematics in Primary School (guest editors: Jelena Radišić, University of Olso and Aleksandar Baucal, University of Belgrade) (this issue).

  • Doing participation in child talk and interactional synchronicity (guest editors: Birte Arendt, Universität Greifswald, Kati Hannken–Illjes, Philipps–Universität Marburg and Ines Bose, Martin–Luther–Universität Halle–Wittenber).

  • Ageing, learning and development: A sociocultural perspective (guest editors: Nathalie Muller Mirza, University of Geneva, and Tania Zittoun, University of Neuchâtel).

  • Perspectives on authentic Learning (guest editors: Valentina Nachtigall and Joachim Wirth).

  • Value Development in the School Context (guest editors: Elena Makarova, University of Basel, Switzerland, Anna Döring, University of Westminster, UK, Ella Daniel, Tel Aviv University, and Maya Benish Weisman, Hebrew University of Jerusalem).

As their titles and the affiliations of the guest editors suggest, these special sections and issues illustrate very clearly the keywords of our Journal: diversity (of topics), collaboration (between research groups, situated in different countries), and development (of theories and methods, on learning processes). They will undoubtedly make a significant contribution to advances in psychology of education research.

Valérie Tartas, Cintia Rodriguez, and Nathalie Muller Mirza, co-Editors in Chief