SoTL in the States

Tone & Voice: Because we learn from both lived experience and scholarly analysis, posts may be reflective, practical, analytical, or critical.  

Audience & Clarity: SoTL brings together practitioners, educators, and faculty developers from many disciplines and institutional contexts, so posts should be written clearly for a broad audience.

Attribution & Citation: Generous attribution helps sustain SoTL’s collaborative intellectual community, so authors should strive to make the shared work of SoTL visible by acknowledging the people whose insights, scholarship, or words have informed the work. This includes citing published materials and — where possible — recognizing colleagues and conversations that shaped its development. In-text and parenthetical citations and the accompanying reference list should be in Chicago author-date style.

Context & Care:  Because this work is shaped by institutional, cultural, and political conditions, posts are encouraged to situate ideas within the contexts that influence them. Such descriptions help readers understand how ideas and experiences emerge from particular circumstances, rather than from assumed universals. At the same time, posts should describe people and institutions with care, as authors consider how details are presented and avoid identifying individuals or situations unnecessarily when doing so could impose risk on others. 

Length & Readability: Because readers often engage with blog posts between teaching, meetings, and other commitments, blog posts should be focused, concise, and between 500 to 1,000 words. Longer posts should be divided into a series of posts.  Clear titles, headings, and subheadings help guide readers and support accessibility for a range of users and reading practices.  Posts sharing resources should be between 100 and 500 words, and written to guide the reader in understanding and using the resource, including a brief description of the resource and a bulleted list of “How you might use this resource.” 

Authorship: Because SoTL in the States aims to build community, posts normally include the author’s name. If a post feels risky in light of one’s circumstances, it may be published anonymously, with a brief statement explaining the rationale for anonymity. (This statement will be published with the post to document the broader contexts and risks our community is navigating.)

Formatting & Accessibility:  To support a rich and diverse scholarly community, all posts and shared materials should be accessible to a wide range of readers, including those using assistive technologies. This is one way we enact SoTL’s commitments to equity, participation, and shared knowledge-building. Authors are asked to follow basic accessibility practices when preparing blog posts, images, and shared resources, including using clear headings, descriptive links, alt text for images, and accessible file formats. Before submitting, please review the checklist below.

Text & Formatting

• Use clear headings to organize your post (not just bold text).
• Write descriptive links (e.g., “View the handout,” not “click here”).
• Use short paragraphs and avoid large blocks of text.

Images & Graphics

• Add alt text (1–2 sentences) for all meaningful images.
• Indicate if any images are decorative (no description needed).
• Include any text in images in the caption or body.
• Explain any charts or visuals in the text.

Color & Readability

• Ensure text is easy to read (good contrast; avoid light text on light backgrounds).
• Don’t rely on color alone to convey meaning.

Multimedia

• Provide captions or a transcript for videos.
• Provide a transcript for audio content.

Shared Files (PDFs, Word, slides)

• Start with an original file (e.g., Word or Powerpoint) before exporting to PDF.
• Apply the checklist items above.
• Ensure the document has a clear reading order.
• Run the “Check Accessibility” tool and address any issues.