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Peer Review of TeachingSeveral professional societies publish refereed journals that regularly include peer-reviewed articles on biology education. Examples are listed below. The editorial boards for traditional research journals of several additional societies have expressed an interest in publishing educational articles in their journals. They encourage the submission of scholarly manuscripts on teaching and learning in their disciplines. Newsletters of several societies include articles on teaching techniques, innovative laboratories, announcements of programs for teaching faculty, and useful educational resources. While these are highly informative, they generally lack the rigorous scholarship associated with peer-reviewed articles in refereed publications. Many professional societies use their web sites and/or newsletters to announce useful educational resources accessible via the Internet. The American Society for Cell Biology and the American Society of Plant Physiologists, for example, publicize critiques of books, software, web sites, and other resources that are applicable to undergraduate education. The degree to which a professional society endorses the quality of materials that it publicizes can vary greatly. BioScience, produced by the American Institute of Biological Sciences, is a refereed, interdisciplinary journal for biologists, written for professionals and students who seek a comprehensive and broad perspective on current research in the biological sciences. In the pages of BioScience, authors incorporate the interests of individual biological disciplines into overviews of recent research and essays on biological education, policy, history, and philosophy. Recent articles on teaching approaches included "Innovation in Large Lectures: Teaching for Active Learning" and "Teaching Evolution: We Need to Do Better." Advances in Physiology Education is dedicated to the improvement of teaching and learning physiology and to the advancement of physiology as a teaching profession. Through this journal, the American Physiological Society publishes peer-reviewed descriptions of new strategies for teaching, reports of education research, critical reviews of current educational practice, essays on physiology education, and articles that organize the content of physiology for problem-centered learning. Columns provide reviews of textbooks and computer software, notices and reports of meetings of interest to physiology teachers, and abstracts of relevant articles from other journals. The Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education presents peer-reviewed articles by educators for educators. This journal is published by the American Society of Agronomy in cooperation with the American Association for Agricultural Education, American Institute of Biological Sciences, American Phytopathological Society, American Society for Horticultural Science, Crop Science Society of America, Entomological Society of America, and the Soil Science Society of America. The Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education covers all disciplines in the life sciences, natural resources, and agriculture. Educators in extension, universities, precollege settings, and industry share teaching techniques, concepts, and ideas. Written by and for educators, submissions include case studies, editorials, features, profiles, and media reviews. To date, the Association for Biology Laboratory Education has produced 18 volumes of Tested Studies for Laboratory Teaching, the Proceedings of the Annual Workshop/Conferences of the Association for Biology Laboratory Education (ABLE). The annual workshops promote information exchange among university and college educators actively concerned with teaching biology in a laboratory setting. The aim is to improve the undergraduate biology laboratory experience by promoting the development and dissemination of interesting, innovative, and reliable laboratory exercises. The Association of College and University Biology Educators publishes the peer-reviewed journal, Bioscene - Journal of College Biology Teaching. This journal contains full-length articles on current issues in teaching, laboratory exercises that work, strategies to promote investigative learning, uses of technology in the classroom, assessment techniques, and much more. The American Society for Horticultural Science recognizes excellence in teaching scholarship through its annual Education Publication Award. This award is conferred on the authors of the best education article published in the society's peer-reviewed journals during the previous year. The ASHS peer-reviewed journals are the Journal of the ASHS, HortScience, and Hort-Technology. Furthermore, ASHS recognizes its reviewers through the annual publication of their names in its journal. Selected reviewers are given citations for excellence in reviewing, and associate editors are given certificates in appreciation of their service. The journal CUR Quarterly is produced by the Council on Undergraduate Research. It includes peer-reviewed articles on pedagogy, advising, assessment, and other aspects of undergraduate teaching. Peer-reviewed articles germane to undergraduate education are published in American Entomologist, the quarterly magazine of the Entomological Society of America. A regular "Education Connection" column discusses a variety of topics dealing with the teaching of entomology, from classroom experiences to fieldwork. The peer-reviewed publication, Biochemical Education, is a resource for educators who teach biochemistry to undergraduate, graduate, and medical students. Biochemical Education is published by the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. The Journal of College Science Teaching is a refereed journal published by the National Science Teachers Association for college and university teachers of introductory and advanced science courses. The journal communicates innovative, effective techniques to improve interdisciplinary teaching strategies for instructing science majors and nonmajors.
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