Focus and Scope
Subscription
Types of Manuscripts
Peer Review Process
Languages

Publication Frequency
Open Access Policy
Publication Charges
Copyright Notice

Focus and Scope

The Journal of Natural History Education seeks papers that provide information that will promote the development of natural history curricula and are generally accessible to natural history educators. Content of the journal ranges from the applied to the philosophical, but is entirely focused on the principles or practice of natural history education. Articles are invited from anywhere in the world. Our goal is to help disseminate the best and most create ideas independent of geographical context.

Subscription

Readers can subscribe to the journal in order to receive .pdfs of new articles at the same time that they are published online. To subscribe to the Journal of Natural History Education, go to: http://go.middlebury.edu/list?jnhe-subscription and follow the instructions.

Types of Manuscripts

We publish two basic kinds of articles, and authors should carefully consider the requested content for each in preparing their manuscripts.

Descriptions of curricula.—We publish descriptions of natural history curricula intended to communicate how a particular natural history course is offered. At a minimum, the author should include information on the following:

• Scope of the curriculum (e.g., birds in western Vermont).
• Audience (e.g., undergraduates, typically in their third or fourth year).
• Setting (e.g., a full Autumn semester course, with three hours of lecture and three hours of field lab scheduled each week)
• Activities, including intended education outcome.
• Evaluation of implementation (e.g., what works, what doesn’t, and how do you know). While statistical evaluation of methods is not required, some attention should be given to describing how you assessed the effectiveness of the curriculum.

Articles should not be used as a form of advertising for programs or schools. Emphasis should be placed on the curriculum itself, with mention of the programs or schools kept to an absolute minimum.

Analysis or synthesis of ideas.—We publish articles that explore ideas of relevance to natural history educators. The probability of acceptance increases as the author includes the following:

• A clear description of the issue to be analyzed or synthesized;
• A well-developed thesis about the issue;
• A review of the relevant literature related to the issue;
• Conclusions that can be practically applied in natural history education.

Examples of appropriate articles include:

• Natural History of Vertebrates: an undergraduate course
• The Escalante Canyons: a place-based curriculum
• A review of legal liability issues associated with field trips
• Description vs. experimentation in natural history education
• Integrating journaling in natural history classes
• Use and abuse of animal care and use guideline
• The essential role of natural history in the liberal arts curriculum
• The Grinnell field journal method as a teaching tool

Peer Review Process

The editor makes an initial appraisal of each manuscript. If the topic and treatment seem potentially appropriate for the journal, the editor initiates the review process, which involves at least two external peer reviews. Once the review process has been completed, the editor determines whether the manuscript is accepted, rejected, or recommended for revision and reconsideration.

Our goal is to have a rapid review process. Manuscripts are sent out for review electronically, and all correspondence takes place via e-mail. Although the peer review process is made faster by the use of electronic communication, traditional high-quality, peer-review standards are applied to all manuscripts submitted to the Journal of Natural History Education.

Languages

Papers submitted to the Journal of Natural History Education are reviewed in English. Accepted papers are, at a minimum, published in English. At the request of the authors, papers can also be published in other languages (e.g., English and Spanish; English and French; English and Chinese; English and Cherokee). Translation, however, is the responsibility of the authors and needs to be done from the final version of the manuscript. All language versions of a paper will be made available on the JNHE web site. Language versions need not be posted simultaneously, but can be posted as they become available.

Publication Frequency

Manuscript submission, peer review, and publication are all electronic. Each manuscript, upon acceptance, is made available online, ensuring timely availability of articles. It also ensures that all acceptable articles are published without constraints imposed by page limits. For citation purposes, published articles are added cumulatively to an annual volume.

Open Access Policy

We provide open access to all articles as downloadable .pdf files via our web site in order to promote the dissemination of tools and ideas that will foster natural history education. Teaching natural history is already challenging enough; access to information about teaching it should not make it harder.

Publication Charges

We do not charge for publication in the Journal of Natural History Education. Manuscripts are accepted based on their merit and contribution to the journal’s mission, not an author’s financial resources.

Copyright Notice

Copyright © for each article is held jointly by its author(s) and the Natural History Network, and is published by the Journal of Natural History Education with expressed permission. Both the author(s) and the Network can distribute the article freely without permission from the other as long as the full citation is included and the article is not altered from its published form.

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