Do you have products you'd like reviewed?
Then let us consider
them for NSTA Recommends®. Launched in fall 2000, NSTA
Recommends is an online review service that truly does act
as a professional grapevine. It lets teachers tell teachers
about the most helpful science resources available for grades
K-College.
Here's how the service works. Publishers submit books, software,
kits, or videos that fit the guidelines below. NSTA then
recruits a qualified teacher to evaluate each item's value.
If the resource makes the grade - and only the top
25 percent of submissions actually do - we feature
the review on the NSTA website and in one or more of NSTA's
award-winning journals. NSTA Recommends reviews are then
available for free to all science educators
looking for ways to make their teaching livelier and more
effective. (And who isn't?)
The following frequently asked questions will help you decide
which of your products to submit to NSTA and how to submit
them.
What does NSTA Recommends review? High-quality books,
software, kits, and videos that serve as useful science
teacher resource materials for grades K-College.
What doesn't NSTA Recommends review? Do
not send us textbooks, fiction, "coffee-table"
books, reference books, or non-educational software games.
Also, we do not consider subject areas such
as history, literature, math, or geography unless
they explicitly tie in with science teaching.
Where do the reviews appear?
On the NSTA Recommends website and in the grade-appropriate
NSTA journals.
What happens to submissions? An experienced teacher
in the appropriate subject and grade level reviews each
resource for scientific accuracy, classroom usefulness,
and overall value. That draft commentary is edited and
enhanced by our lead reviewer, a leading science educator.
If we accept your product for inclusion, we will notify
you by e-mail when the review goes up on the NSTA Recommends
site. In addition, we will send tearsheets to the appropriate
publisher when a product review appears in an NSTA journal.
How long does this process take? The average
review cycle takes four to six weeks from the time we
receive the materials until a review appears on the
NSTA Recommends website. Note: We do not return rejected
materials to the publisher.
What are other benefits to being reviewed? When
we consider products for the NSTA Recommends service,
we also consider them for inclusion in all of NSTA's
resale venues. These include our NSTA Recommends catalog,
our online Science Store, and our on-site sales at our
popular NSTA Conventions.
How do publishers submit materials for consideration?
Please send three copies of each title.
It's helpful to enclose press releases or fact sheets
about each title, with such information as target grade
range, length, ISBN, list price, a general description,
and author information. Send products and fact sheets
to:
NSTA Recommends
1840 Wilson Boulevard
Arlington, VA 22201
NSTA Recommends is a paperless process;
we handle all communication via e-mail. As a result, you
must supply us with a contact name and e-mail address
for all communication regarding the reviews.
Our goal for NSTA Recommends is simple: We want to
build the biggest and best roster of science classroom products
anywhere. It would be our pleasure to consider yours. Please
submit them today!
For more information about NSTA Recommends, contact Emily Brady
at ebrady@nsta.org,
or phone her at (703)312-9205.
NSTA Recommends is now supporting TE-MAT reviews (professional development materials in mathematics and science).
Professional development products submitted to NSTA Recommends will be additionally considered for
inclusion in the TE-MAT database at the discretion of the NSTA staff. If reviewed favorably,
then the review will run in both venues. For more information on TE-MAT,
please go to http://www.te-mat.org.
Please note that you do not need to submit additional copies of your product---all
professional development products will be considered for this dual purpose.