P1.18 Project Atmosphere/AERA Connections: An International Expansion Of Meteorological and Oceanographic Education

Sunday, 9 January 2000
Faye McCollum, AMS/AERA, Muscogee County Public Schools, Columbus, GA

PROJECT ATMOSPHERE/AERA CONNECTIONS: International Expansion of Meteorological and Oceanographic Education

This presentation will feature highlights of the Fifth International Conference on School and Popular Meteorological and Oceanographic Education with special emphasis on school and group competitions in Ballarat and Melbourne, Australia. The program will include ideas, cultural exchanges and meteorological and oceanographic projects evolving between students and teachers in the United States and Australia. DataStreme participants, both past and present, will participate and monitor the exchange of information and assist in promoting scientific accuracy and problem-solving situations for students in both countries.

American students participating in the project are representatives from Elementary Magnet Academies in Columbus, Georgia. During the past two years they have been exploring the effects of El Nino and La Nina and are particularly interested in the seasonal variations between the two continents. Utilization of the worldwide web has yielded many answers but direct communication will expand their knowledge and understanding of weather related events. Projects on display during the Australian Conference will provide impetus for interaction and stimulate a keener interest in the exploration of Earth System's sciences as they relate to similarities and differences between the two geographic areas.

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