All Resources

Journal Article

Guest Editorial: Science Literacy and the U.S. Congress—A Call from Capitol Hill for Increased Cooperation in Meetng U.S. Technological Challenges

An opinion piece about the important role Congress plays in shaping our national research and development enterprise. Their actions are critical to the success of advancing fundamental scientific understanding and our ability as a nation to deal with...

Journal Article

Student-Designed Experiments in Scientific Lab Instruction: Students at the University of Puerto Rico Go back to the Basics to Learn Chemistry Concepts

Student-designed experiments emphasize depth of understanding. Revisiting "known" concepts like heat, temperature, uncertainty in measurements, mass, and volume, helps students deepen their understanding. Having to apply them in a new situation makes...

Journal Article

Research and Teaching: Student Self-Assessment of Higher-Order Cognitive Skills in College Science Teaching

A wide consensus exists among researchers that the development of students' abilities to ask questions, reason, problem solve, and think critically—in short, higher-order cognitive skills (HOCS)—should become a central focus of current science ed...

Journal Article

Point of View: Do Academic Research Costs Drive up Undergraduate Tuition?

This column shares reflections or thoughtful opinions on issues of broad interest to the community. This month’s issue focuses on the tuition and fee increases for colleges and universities....

Journal Article

Sharpening the Craft of Scientific Writing: A Peer-Review Strategy to Improve Student Writing

Writing is vital to the success of a scientist. Incorporating peer review into courses is an excellent way to enhance the scientific writing experience. Students find that the process of reviewing the work of peers and being subject to peer review ex...

Journal Article

The Case Study: What is a Case? Bringing to Science Education the Established Teaching Tool of Law and Medicine

This column provides original articles on innovations in case study teaching, assessment of the method, as well as case studies with teaching notes. This month’s issue features both medicine and law cases that are real stories....

Journal Article

Favorite Demonstration: Microbe Wars: A Demonstration of Microbial Antagonism—A Vivid Example of Microorganism Interaction

This article describes an exercise ideal for use in an introductory biology or microbiology class. It requires no specialized equipment, little expertise in microbiology, and provides a colorful demonstration of a microbial interaction....

Journal Article

Society for College Science Teaching (SCST): Creating a Learning-Friendly Curriculum—Striving to Assure that our Seeds of Thought are Viable and can Germinate and Grow if Sown in the Right Mental Fields

In this column the President of SCST shares his views with JCST readers. This month’s issue focuses on the importance of teachers making sure that the seeds sown are viable, and that they can germinate and grow if they fall into the right mental fi...

Journal Article

Phytochemistry and Culture: Connecting Science to Students' Experiences

This article focuses on science content that will draw from the lived experiences of culturally diverse students and foster an excitement about the true nature of science. Students begin to participate and bring knowledge from their lives to share op...

Journal Article

Facilitating the Reading/Discussion Connection in the Interactive Classroom: "Discovery Questions" Help Create Independent Learners

If students are to achieve the higher level of learning that occurs as a result of interactive classroom strategies and discussions, teachers must accept the responsibility of helping students develop their ability to extract information from textboo...

Journal Article

Research and Teaching: The Constructivist Learning Environment Survey May Help Halt Student Exodus from College Science Courses—Comparing Students' Preferences and Perceptions of Constructivist-Style Teaching Environments

The Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (CLES) appears to hold promise as a method of assessing college science learning environments. However, college science teachers must begin to appreciate students' preferences in learning environments....

Journal Article

Science at a Distance: Nontraditional Students Realize their Academic Goals Utilizing an Alberta University Distance-Education Program

With the increased availability of new technologies, distance educators have the opportunity to design science courses that provide students with a wider range of learning aids than are available at many traditional institutions, while at the same ti...

Journal Article

A Workshop on UNIX, Workstations, and Internet Connections: Demontrating to Nonusers the Vast Potential of Today's Computers

More and more of today's computer users need to keep pace with improved technology by enhancing their proficiency beyond word processing or spreadsheet applications to employ more sophisticated operating systems. The goal of the workshops featured in...

Journal Article

Getting Undergraduates to Critically Read and Discuss Primary Literature: Cultivating Students' Analytical Abilities in an Advanced Cell Biology Course

Many undergraduates have limited experience reading scientific primary literature, even though it's crucial for success in graduate school. This course offers, as its overall design, critical reading and examination of primary literature. An importan...

Journal Article

Editorial: Graphics in the Lecture Hall

The Journal of College Science Teaching’s editor shares thoughts regarding the current issue....

Journal Article

Social Issues and Genetic Testing: A Case Study Using Advocacy Groups—Student Forum Explores Potential Uses and Misuses of Genetic Information

Many biologists regard the twentieth century as the "age of genetics." Certainly, it is a time of revolutionary discovery and technological advancement. Genetic testing, artificial insemination, and DNA fingerprinting have become comonplace and gene ...

Journal Article

Point of View: Advanced Placement Science Courses—An Opportunity for Cooperation between High School and College/University Faculty

This column shares reflections or thoughtful opinions on issues of broad interest to the community. In this month’s issue, learn about the Advanced Placement (AP) Program and how high school and college/university science faculty are working togeth...

Journal Article

Favorite Demonstration: The Johnson D.C. Electric Motor Recipe—A New Twist to the Mystery of the Electric Motor

The world of electric motors is of interest to students of all ages. To teach students the basic principles underlying the direct current motor, an instructor needs a model that students can handle during a classroom activity or in a simple demonstra...

Journal Article

SCST: The Vocabulary of Biology and the Problem of Semantics: "Dominant," "Recessive," and the Puzzling Role of Alleles

In this column the leadership of SCST shares its views with JCST readers. This month’s issue focues on the vocabulary of biology and how many terms are inappropriate or misleading....

Journal Article

Research and Teaching: What Influences Students to Enjoy Introductory Science Laboratories? Some Keys to Building a Student's Enjoyment of the Introductory Science Laboratory

The University of Tulsa moved to update its general chemistry laboratory program. This provided an opportunity to investigate what factors are important in revising chemistry lab experiments to enhance student interest and enjoyment of experimental s...

Journal Article

Using Supplemental Instruction to Assist Nursing Students in Chemistry: A Mentoring Program's Support Network Protects High-Risk Students at Saint Xavier University

In professional communities of both nurses and chemists, it is widely agreed that chemistry is an essential component of nurses' educational preparation. This article highlights Supplemental Instruction (SI)—one method being applied to enhance nurs...

Journal Article

Science, Technology, and National Security: Helping Students Explore Vital Connections Between Scientific Knowledge and Public Policy

In this article, the author grafted discussion of scientific ideas onto students' natural enthusiasm for public policy issues and selected scientific concepts as the front end for a course that explores issues in national security. The scientific con...