Balancing Change with Tradition in Synoptic Lab Instruction

Opportunities for creativity in synoptic instruction have never been greater. Recent technological advances, including easily accessible time lapse photography, powerful meteorological visualization software, and cloud-based data sources, offer the potential to transform the teaching of synoptic meteorology in positive ways. However, it is important to maintain emphasis on many of the traditional fundamentals as well. How can modern technology and pedagogy be integrated to enhance learning and inspiration in the synoptic classroom without the sacrifice of core synoptic knowledge? In this talk I will share my experiences and experiments, both successful and otherwise, in teaching synoptic meteorology from the 1990s through the present.