Online Weather Studies: An Introductory College Level Distance-Learning Course

The American Meteorological Society (AMS) has developed, pilot-tested and nationally implemented an introductory college-level, online distance-learning course in the fundamentals of atmospheric science, where students study weather as it happens. The course addresses the need for innovative and cost-effective science education opportunities for an increasingly diverse and non-traditional student population. It is offered primarily in two- and four-year institutions that do not have an atmospheric science program. Developed with funding from the National Science Foundation, it is licensed to colleges and universities as a turnkey package with electronic and printed components and an instructor support system. The course has been offered in spring and fall semesters, starting with a pilot study in the Spring of 1999. The pilot course offering involved participants from fourteen community colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S. In the full national implementation, natural science, earth science and geography departments offer the course. At many institutions the course provides exciting real-time content for a traditional lecture or lab course. It is also offered online by distance learning and continuing education divisions. The course contains learning activities with components written to current meteorological data and delivered via the Internet. The experience of real-time study enables students to negotiate scientific understanding of the atmosphere and its processes while actually tracking the ways the atmospheric system behaves. A real-world archived version also has been prepared for use where self-paced learning or unique scheduling requirements dictate. Internet delivery of current meteorological data and related learning materials via the Online Homepage is coordinated with the Online Weather Text and the Student Study Guide, the printed components that support the course. The AMS Online project staff produces a Daily Weather Summary and the twice-weekly real-time Internet Learning Activities. The staff, augmented by the faculty from the pilot study, provides collegial assistance to local instructors adopting the course. The Online Faculty Manual, an Internet Faculty Forum and a Faculty Homepage round out the support package of this unique local - national partnership in atmospheric science education.