Author Guidelines

Journal of College Science Teaching

Journal of College Science Teaching

The Journal of College Science Teaching is an award-winning, peer-reviewed, practitioners’ journal. Subscribers are members of the National Science Teaching Association who select it as their preferred journal. We hope you will consider writing a manuscript for JCST.

Questions?

Contact managing editor Caroline Barnes

Audience

University faculty
State and district supervisors and leaders

Schedule

Six issues per year

Formats

e-journal

Create

Create a Manuscript

We seek manuscripts that share ideas on and experiences with undergraduate science courses, particularly those for non-science majors. JCST also reports and discusses innovative teaching materials, methods, and evaluative criteria; disseminates contributions toward improving college science instruction; and describes work in disciplinary science courses that is broad enough in its approach to appeal to teachers in other scientific fields.

Manuscript Presentation

Your manuscript should:

not exceed 3,000 words (4,000 words for Research and Teaching column). Longer manuscripts may be returned for revision without being reviewed.
be written clearly and concisely with an introduction and conclusion.
stress interdisciplinary aspects of science teaching.
use SI (metric) units throughout the article.
have tables, graphs, and charts appropriately labeled.
acknowledge financial support for work reported at the end of the manuscript.
follow APA, 7th edition: References within the text should cite in parentheses the author’s name and year of publication; for three or more authors, the first author’s last name and “et al.” is used for the in-text citation. The full citation should be included alphabetically by author’s last name in a Reference list at the end of the article.

Photographs and Illustrations

To facilitate the review process, you’ll need to submit a single, complete file. Consequently, any graphics that you would like to submit, such as figures, tables, photos, and illustrations, should be included at the end of the text file. To minimize the size of the file, you can embed low-resolution images in the file. However, we will need you to submit high-resolution versions of the figures for use by the journal if your manuscript is accepted for publication. Please submit jpeg or tiff files of the figures, with at least 300 dpi resolution.

Students in laboratory settings must be shown following appropriate safety guidelines and wearing proper safety attire, including full-wrap, splash-proof goggles. Their faces should be visible, but they should not look directly at the camera. If the photo is used, a signed model release will be required of each student pictured.

Prepare

Prepare Your Manuscript

Guidelines

Peer Review

Detailed instructions can be found at Taylor & Francis Online.

Our manuscripts go through a double-blind peer-review process. We require two versions of the manuscript, one with author and institution information included, and one that has been anonymized. For the anonymous version, do not include names or institutions within the text of your manuscript. Both versions will go into the Taylor & Francis Author Submission Portal.

File Format Requirement

Submit the main body of your manuscript as a Word document (.doc or .docx). If your manuscript is not submitted as a Word document, it will be returned to you—which will delay the review process.

Figures, Photos, and Graphics

Figures, photos, and other graphics must be uploaded as separate files during the submission process (see Supplemental Materials section). All of the elements are converted into a PDF for our reviewers. The main body of your manuscript should be approximately 3,000 words (4,000 words for Research and Teaching column). Longer manuscripts may be returned for revision without being reviewed. References, captions, and other supplementary text are not included in the word count.

Word Count & Abstract

You may go over the 3,000 word count if asked to revise your manuscript
Your manuscript should be double spaced, use 12-point font and have one-inch margins. Avoid extra formatting of any kind.
A 200-word abstract should accompany your submission.

Summary

File Format

Word (.doc or .docx)

Figures, Photos, Graphics

Upload as separate files
High resolution: 300 dpi

Word Count

3,000 words
4,000 words for Research and Teaching column
double spaced
12 pt. font
1 in. margins

Abstract

200 words

Safety

We take classroom safety seriously. Before you submit your article, please review our safety guidelines.

Supplemental Files

Upload the following as separate files rather than embed them in the text of your manuscript. Authors are responsible for permissions for the use of any graphics or photos and for the accuracy of permissions, citations, quotations, figures, and facts used in their manuscripts.

Photos

Photos of students involved in the work you are describing. Be sure students are participating in a safe manner and have appropriate safety attire. Photos of students should be candid; they should be engaged in the activity, not posing for the camera. If photos of students are used, a signed Model Release Form is required for each identifiable student. Signed forms can be submitted to use after manuscript acceptance. Photos should be high resolution (a minimum of 300 dpi), so please check your camera settings before taking any pictures. You may also include photos of student work (with all identifying information removed), examples of apparatus used, the activity in progress, or images to be used in instruction.

Support Materials

Support materials you use to organize your lesson and support students. These include tables, charts, graphs, record sheets, assessments, rubrics, etc. Supplemental materials may be used in the journal article or we may provide a link to them in our Online Connections. Note that these materials will be evaluated by the reviewers.

Trade Books

Trade books directly related to the Disciplinary Core Idea(s) presented in your manuscript. These must be scientifically accurate and grade level appropriate. Refer to the trade books in the manuscript text and include them in a Resources section at the end of the manuscript.

Author Videos and Other Supplemental Multimedia Files

Author videos and other supplemental multimedia files, which can be posted on our NSTA Connections web page, embedded in the digital edition of the journal, and added to NSTA's YouTube channel. We are interested in audio and video files, slideshows, presentations such as PowerPoint files, Google slides, and other digital resources that enhance your article. You can also provide links to other online resources, such as YouTube videos and educational websites. If you would like to submit a file, please use www.wetransfer.com to upload your file and share it with jcst@nsta.org using the box found on the left of the screen at wetransfer.com (see image at right). Be sure to include your name and the title of your manuscript in the Message box.

Submit

1. Submit Your Manuscript

Is it your first time submitting?

All manuscripts are submitted electronically through the Taylor & Francis Submission Portal. The first time you enter you will be asked to set up an account (or you can login with your ORCID). User-friendly step-by-step submissions directions are given on the website.

Detailed instructions can be found at Taylor & Francis Online.

Our manuscripts go through a double-blind peer-review process. We require two versions of the manuscript, one with author and institution information included, and one that has been anonymized. For the anonymous version, do not include names or institutions within the text of your manuscript. Both versions will go into the T&F Author Submission Portal.

You will be notified when your manuscript has been successfully submitted. A notice will also be sent to JCST Field Editor, who will first check your manuscript for compliance with the guidelines in the above sections. If no compliance problems are found, your manuscript will be sent to three selected members of the JCST Review Panel whose background and expertise match the content of your manuscript. If there are problems with compliance to guidelines, you will be sent a letter detailing what needs to be done before resubmitting your manuscript under the same identification number it was initially given.

Submit

2. Upon Acceptance

The process is not over when your manuscript is accepted. You will be asked to clarify and provide additional information as the manuscript is reviewed by our editorial team. You will also be asked to update your material:

identify the people and institutions you had omitted during the blind review
complete your biography
provide model releases, credits, and captions for photos if you have not done so
submit other support material you may want to include.

Even if your manuscript was for an issue on a particular theme and then accepted, it may not appear in that issue of JCST. Space is limited, and the Field Editor may choose to save your article for a future issue in order to balance the grade level and subject matter of the content presented in the current issue. Articles are typically published within three years of acceptance.

4. Publishing

Once your article is published, you will receive five complimentary copies of the issue in which it appeared. NSTA will hold copyright to your manuscript, but our Copyright Transfer Agreement gives authors broad rights to reuse their work as long as the original source material is properly cited.

Questions?

If you have any questions about the submission process, please contact the JCST editor by email.

Caroline Barnes, Managing Editor