Beginning in 1998, Teaching with Problems and Case Studies (TPCS) will be a regular feature column of the Journal. A submission to TPCS should follow the standard JCE author guidelines except as indicated in what follows. It should include an original and three copies of: (1) an abstract with keywords, (2) a summary, and (3) online supplementary material. We will publish the summaries in the print version of the Journal, while the supporting information will appear in JCE Online.

This policy is based on four fundamental goals:

• the Journal will only print the information a reader needs in order to decide whether to use the problem/case study
• readers who decide to use a problem or case study should be able to adapt it to their circumstances quickly and easily
• peer review of the submitted problem/case study should be based to a large degree on the written and technology-based materials used by students and faculty
• more detailed information, including student materials, should be available in a format that is easily accessible to students and faculty

Summaries of Problems and Case Studies in JCE: The problem/case study should be designed so that it requires about one academic week of student effort and may either enhance or replace the course lectures. The summary is limited to one to one and one-half journal pages (about 1000 to 1500 words) and should provide enough information for a reader to determine the usefulness of the problem/case study. The column will give preference to problems and case studies that are designed such that one student, working alone within the allotted time, could not be expected to complete them without the resources of the group. The summary is not the same as the abstract (which should be about 200 words long). This description of the tested problem/case study should include, but is not limited to:

• a summary or shortened version of the full problem/case study
• the goal of the problem/case study
• the relevance of the problem/case study to chemistry
• if applicable, the relevance of the problem/case study to concepts of other disciplines
• the format to which the problem/case study was originally intended (i.e. discussions, debates, student papers, group projects, etc.)
• the estimated time to be spent on the problem/case study
• a list of required resources (if any) that may not be available in a typical chemistry department
• a summary of the possible outcomes for the problem/case study in a classroom setting
• a suggested means for student evaluation

Online Article Submission: The supplementary materials for a problem/case study will be available online and can be downloaded and edited by those who wish to use a problem/case study. We require that all written materials are in the format of either Microsoft Word or WordPerfect. For online submissions, it is not necessary that all figures and tables be included at the end of the document. Once a manuscript has been accepted, the author will be asked to supply computer-readable versions of all the materials. Those who do not have access to the Web can request printed copies of all materials related to a particular problem/case study. We will provide these via the US Postal Service at cost. For the JCE Online submissions, be sure to include:

• the summary article that was submitted for publication in the print version of JCE
• a full description of the problem/case study
• directions, handouts, and any other pertinent information required for the students
• detailed teaching notes including background information, points for troubleshooting, suggestions for teaching the material, and tips for success
• if necessary, any additional information that would elaborate on the important concepts of the problem/case study
• any author-produced software or other technology-based material required for the problem/case study
• supplementary information from chemistry or other disciplines used in the exercise
• an annotated bibliography listing appropriate primary, secondary, and electronic sources of information
• a list of suggested keywords to aid students in searching for information
• an outline of strategies, or examples of questions, for assessing the usefulness of the problem/case study

Publication Process: As problems and case studies are submitted, they are sent for review, and then queued for publication. Since most problems and case studies involve "real-world" scenarios, they may be somewhat time-sensitive. Please try to write problems/case studies so that their appeal is long-term, yet timely. A decision to publish will be based on the reviewers' evaluations of all the materials submitted, including the summary and teaching notes, student materials, and other support documents submitted for publication at JCE Online.

Reviewers Sought! Since this column is relatively new and there are few practiced teachers of the case method of teaching in chemistry, we strongly encourage those who are interested and have used case methods for the purpose of teaching to register as reviewers: send a notice to the column editors (grantkrow@aol.com or kkostka@uwc.edu), or complete the reviewer's registration form on the JCE home page.