Tonight I watched the ASMCUE 2022 session entitled “Inspiring Evidence-Based Teaching Innovations in Biology Classrooms with the Journal CourseSource.” Jenny Knight, the Editor in Chief at the University of Colorado Boulder, presented this session about CourseSource. I attended this session live, and likely missed key information! There are 39 editors, 12 advisory board members, and 400 reviewers. Knight mentioned there are about 12,000 users of CourseSource. The goals for the sessions were to explain some of the logistics of what is CourseSource! CourseSource is a peer-reviewed, open-access journal for active learning in biology and now physics! Knight described resources from the journal as a place to find open-access active learning materials that have been field-tested with students. The lessons are designed for people to put them in practice. CourseSource started in 2012 in response to Vision and Change. CourseSource was initially funded by HHMI and NSF and supported by numerous professional societies. The journal is now on QUBES, and all articles are organized by Courses. Knight mentioned that toxicology is a new partner. Not all Courses have learning goals aligned to societies because not all Courses have partnering societies, such is the case for introductory biology. In the example of the Microbiology course page, Knight mentioned that you can click on the learning goals to download them. Depending on the learning goals you select, corresponding articles are populated on the page.
CourseSource has five types of articles: lessons, the science behind the lesson, teaching tools and strategies, essays, and reviews. Lessons can be classroom activities or laboratory exercises. Science behind the lesson has the objective of informing someone new to the field. Teaching tools and strategies could be how to form groups or create surveys for feedback. Essays are, like all CourseSource articles, peer-reviewed and cite literature. Reviews are more in-depth analyses of a topic. CourseSource has a growing author base. Knight highlighted how the search capabilities of the journal on QUBES have improved. The example that Knight did was the CRISPR activity that Leigh Ann Samsa and I wrote with a couple of others (Adam and Linnea!). Knight explained that some instructor materials (keys) are available only to registered users. Knight shared some of the publicity that the journal has generated, including articles being mentioned in reports and National Academies Press. I enjoy being part of this journal and community. I learned a couple of new things watching this recording!
