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Music Educators Journal

Published quarterly, Music Educators Journal offers peer-reviewed scholarly and practical articles on music teaching approaches and philosophies, instructional techniques, current trends and issues in music education in schools and communities and the latest in products and services. A digital subscription is included with your NAfME membership as is access to the online archive of back issues. (Print edition is available for an additional $20 subscription fee; please contact memberservices@nafme.org or 1-800-336-3768.)

Scroll for Book Review Guidelines, Video Review Guidelines, and Technology Review Guidelines. 

Feedback or questions? Contact Ella Wilcox.

March 2023 Music Educators Journal cover

Music Educators Journal Book Review Guidelines

Music Educators Journal (MEJ) is soliciting book reviews written by its readers. Please comply with the following guidelines in requesting a title and submitting a review: Assignment of books: Reviews will cover books on music education and music history received in the MEJ editorial office. Members interested in writing a review should contact the book review editor for a list of books available to review. Reviewers are required to be NAfME members. Books will be assigned and sent to reviewers on a first come, first served basis. Unless otherwise stated, reviewers will be able to keep any books they review. Reviewers are assigned one book to review at a time and will be assigned no more than two books in one calendar year. We prefer that reviewers not review books written or edited by friends or acquaintances; if reviewers do know the book’s author or editor, that relationship must be disclosed to MEJ. We also prefer that reviewers not review books that compete with a book written by the reviewer—any such conflict of interest must be disclosed. Writing the review: Read the book in its entirety. Your review should be approximately one typed page (single spaced) and no longer than 500 words. (The word count includes the introductory information included with every review.) Focus more on reasoned critique than on providing a summary of the book. Discuss the book’s strengths and weaknesses. Provide details to support your praise or criticism. Do not simply say the book is interesting or useful. Offer specific examples (and the page numbers, if possible) of what is interesting or useful about the book. Try to avoid jargon and overly technical language. If technical language is required, define the terms used. Use book reviews previously published in MEJ for guidance.

Answer the following questions in your review:

  • What is the goal or purpose of the book?
  • Who is most likely to find the book useful?
  • To the best of your knowledge, is the information in the book accurate?

Other questions that you might want to consider as you write your review include the following:

  • How well does the book live up to its promises on the back cover?
  • Is the title accurate?
  • Is the author qualified?
  • Are the resources used by the author appropriate?
  • Does the book have useful charts, graphs, illustrations, diagrams, or photographs?
  • How does this book relate to other books in the field?
  • Are there other more useful books available on this topic? (If the book is truly weak, you may consider mentioning some better materials in your review.)

Editorial and publication policies: NAfME editors will edit reviews to ensure conformity with the reviewers’ guidelines and MEJ style, which is based on The Chicago Manual of Style (15th ed.), published by the University of Chicago Press. MEJ is copyrighted as an entity, so authors must transfer copyright to NAfME. Due to space limitations in the print journal, some reviews might appear on NAfME’s website. The book review editor makes the final decision regarding publication of any review submitted.

Additional information: To obtain a list of books currently available for review, contact Ella Wilcox or call 800-336-3768.

Music Educators Journal Video Review Guidelines

Music Educators Journal (MEJ) is soliciting video and DVD reviews written by its readers. Please comply with the following guidelines in requesting a title and submitting a review:

Assignment of videos and DVDs: Reviews will cover videos and DVDs received in the MEJ editorial office. Reviewers must be NAfME members. NAfME members interested in writing video reviews may request a list of available videos from MEJ editorial staff. Videos and DVDs will be assigned and sent to reviewers on a first come, first served basis. The reviewer will be able to keep the video or DVD unless the video distributor requires review copies to be returned. Reviewers will be assigned only one review per calendar year.

We prefer that reviewers not review videos developed by friends or acquaintances; if reviewers do know someone involved in production of the video, that relationship must be disclosed to MEJ. We also prefer that reviewers not review videos that compete with books, videos, or other materials developed by the reviewer-any such conflict of interest must be disclosed.

Writing the review: Watch the video or DVD, including any bonus features. Provide a brief summary (2-4 sentences) of the video, but focus mainly on reasoned critique in the review. Discuss the video’s strengths and weaknesses. Provide details to support your praise or criticism. Do not simply say the video is interesting or useful. Offer specific examples of what is interesting or useful about the video. Avoid jargon and overly technical language in your review whenever possible. If technical language is required, define the terms used. Reviews must be between 200 and 400 words. (The word count includes the introductory information included with every review.) Use video reviews previously published in MEJ for guidance in writing your review.

Be sure to answer the following questions in your review:

  • What is the goal or purpose of the video?
  • Who is most likely to find the video useful?
  • To the best of your knowledge, is the information in the video accurate?
     

Other questions that you might want to consider as you write your review include the following:

  • How well does the video live up to the promises on the back cover?
  • Are there supplementary materials included with this video? How helpful are these materials?
  • How does this video relate to other videos in the field?
  • Are there other more useful videos available on this topic?
     

Editorial and publication policies: NAfME editors will edit reviews to ensure conformity with the reviewers’ guidelines and MEJ style, which is based on The Chicago Manual of Style (15th ed.), published by the University of Chicago Press. MEJ is copyrighted as an entity, so authors must transfer copyright to NAfME. Due to space limitations in the print journal, some reviews might appear on NAfME’s website. The video review editor makes the final decision regarding publication of any review submitted.

Additional information: To obtain a list of videos currently available for review or to request a title for review, contact Ella Wilcox or call 800-336-3768.

Music Educators Journal Technology Review Guidelines

Music Educators Journal (MEJ) is soliciting reviews of software and technology-related books written by its readers.

Please comply with the following guidelines in requesting a title and submitting a review:

Assignment of items for review: Reviews will cover software, books, and any other technology-related materials received in the MEJ editorial office. Members interested in writing a review should contact the technology review editor for a list of items available to review. NAfME will provide a list of items available for review to interested members. Reviewers are required to be NAfME members. Items will be assigned and sent to reviewers on a first come, first served basis. In most cases, the reviewer will be able to keep the item reviewed. Reviewers will be assigned one item to review at a time and may review no more than one item in one calendar year.

We prefer that reviewers not review materials written or developed by friends or acquaintances; if reviewers do know anyone involved in the creation of the materials, that relationship must be disclosed to MEJ. We also prefer that reviewers not review items that compete with materials created by the reviewer—any such conflict of interest must be disclosed.

Writing the review: Read the book in its entirety, or spend some time using the software. Teachers may wish to try out the software in the classroom with their students.

Your review should be approximately one typed page (single spaced) and no longer than 500 words. (The word count includes the introductory information included with every review.) Focus more on reasoned critique than on providing a summary of what the software does or what the book says. Discuss the material’s strengths and weaknesses. Provide details to support your praise or criticism. Offer specific examples of how the material being used might be helpful to music educators or what flaws prevent it from being useful.

Remember that many MEJ readers are not experts in the use of technology, so be careful in your use of technical language. If technical language is required, define the terms used.

Answer the following questions in your review:

  • What is the goal or purpose of the book or software?
  • Who is most likely to find the book or software useful?
  • How might teachers use the software in the classroom?
  • To the best of your knowledge, is the information in the book/software accurate?

Other questions that you might want to consider as you write your review include the following:

  • How well does the software or book live up to the promises on the box or back cover?
  • How does this book or software relate to other materials in the field?
  • How useful is the material to someone who is not a technology expert?
  • Are there other more useful materials available that meet the same needs? (If the item is truly weak, you may consider mentioning some better materials in your review.)
     

Editorial and publication policies: NAfME editors will edit reviews to ensure conformity with the reviewers’ guidelines and MEJ style, which is based on The Chicago Manual of Style (15th ed.), published by the University of Chicago Press. MEJ is copyrighted as an entity, so authors must transfer copyright to NAfME. Due to space limitations in the print journal, some reviews might appear on NAfME’s website. The technology review editor makes the final decision regarding publication of any review submitted.

Additional information: To obtain a list of materials currently available for review, contact Ella Wilcox or call 800-336-3768.