The Journal of American History has launched a new web initiative that uses online tools to bridge the gap between scholarly publishing and the practice of classroom teaching. The project, called "Teaching the JAH," delivers "teaching packages," each of which features an article from the print journal, along with supporting documents that demonstrate how it might be used in the U.S. history survey course. The additional materials might include images, audio and video clips, or excerpts from primary historical texts, depending on the targeted article. The author of the article also contributes a short piece describing how he or she has taught the topic using the documents included on the site.

The first installment features Constance Arenson Clark's article, "Evolution for John Doe: Pictures, the Public, and the Scopes Trial Debate." The article introduces the visual images of evolution used by scientists in the early twentieth century. It complicates the usual history of evolution by investigating the assumptions scientists incorporated into their diagrams, illustrations, and exhibits. The teaching package will invite professors to explore the history of science during their lectures on the Scopes trial.

Teaching the JAH is funded by the Indiana University Ameritech Fellows Program. Four installments will be produced semiannually over the next two years.

The web site is free to the public and can be accessed at http://www.indiana.edu/~jah/teaching