Agora content is aimed at practising history teachers and educators.

Tone may vary from a formal, academic style to a more conversational style, depending on the nature of your contribution. You are asked to adopt a fair-minded approach when discussing the work of others, and this should be evident in the tone of the writing. Agora submissions are expected to be courteous and academically rigorous.

Please send submissions to the Agora editor at agora@htav.asn.au. By submitting a contribution to Agora, you agree to the terms of the author agreement. Please include a signed copy of the author agreement with your submission.

Style Guide and Editorial Process

Editorial process

Your article or review will be edited to correct spelling or syntax errors, apply house style and, where necessary, enhance expressions and clarify meaning. The editor(s) will endeavour to consult you before making substantial changes.

The editor’s decision on whether HTAV will publish your submission is final. If your article is published, you will receive a complimentary print copy of the issue in which it appears. Review authors receive a high-quality digital offprint of their review and are welcome to keep any materials sent to them for review.

Planning to write

At least 6 weeks before the closing date for submissions, please contact the Agora editor to pitch your idea for an article. Indicate which part of the Victorian History curriculum your article addresses, and include whether you are targeting an upcoming theme.

Please note that the submission dates refer to the final handover of a completed article, not a draft.

Content and tone

Material needs to be broadly appropriate for practising History teachers and educators.

Tone may vary from a formal, academic style to a more conversational style, depending on the nature of your contribution. You are asked to adopt a fair-minded approach when discussing the work of others, and this should be evident in the tone of the writing. Agora submissions are expected to be courteous and academically rigorous. Include a teaser sentence that summarises the article beneath the headline, and cite sources as endnotes in Chicago style.

Originality and copyright

Articles submitted must be the original work of the author(s). Note that third-party material used in Agora contributions is subject to the ‘fair dealing’ provisions of Australian copyright law, not the more generous ‘10% approach’ often used in school.

If it is essential for you to use copyright material beyond the scope of fair dealing (e.g. long quotations, images), please contact the editor as soon as possible to discuss getting appropriate permissions. Unless otherwise agreed, HTAV will seek permissions and pay related costs.

If you article is accepted, you assign copyright to HTAV but reserve your right to use your contribution in your teaching activities and other specified uses. Please see the author agreement for more information on copyright.

Formatting and style guide

Format

Please submit your item as a Word document with structural formatting (headings, bold, italics).

Images

Images should be submitted as individual jpeg or tiff files, minimum resolution 300dpi.

You’re encouraged to supply or suggest suitable images to accompany your article, and HTAV will also carry out image research as required. For copyright reasons, it’s essential that you provide the source of the image. If it is not your original work, please advise the editor as early as possible so we can start the process of getting permission to reproduce the item.

If school students or their work feature in your photographs, please ensure that you have written permission from the parent or guardian specifically releasing the image for publication in Agora. (Standard school permissions are generally not adequate.) If you wish, you can use this permission form.

Spelling

Spelling follows the Macquarie Dictionary. Please use –ise (not ize) and -our ( not –or) spellings.

Style guide

If you use the work of others directly or indirectly in your submission, it must be acknowledged. Agora follows the Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition). Please use the Word footnote feature and include full footnotes, not Harvard-style author date references. A bibliography is not required.

More information can be found at the Chicago Manual of Style website.

Download contributor guidelines (pdf)

Download author agreement (pdf)

Download student permission form (doc)