Water in the Earth System (WES): A Report on First Year Activities

Water in the Earth System (WES) is the newest educational initiative of the American Meteorological Society. WES is an innovative, Internet-based, distance-learning course directed toward precollege teachers, and funded by the National Science Foundation This course approaches water and global water cycle processes from an Earth System Science perspective, utilizing a project-based science framework consistent with the goals of the National Science Education Standards to study Earth System Science. The course delivery is modeled after the AMS DataStreme Project.

Initial steps included the development of written materials including a WES textbook and study guide, plus the course homepage. The WES text consists of twelve chapters each providing background information for one week of investigations of the flow of water and accompanying energy transformations within the Earth system. The WES study guide contains the first part of each week's learning activity; the second part is delivered in near-real time via the course homepage. Local Implementation Teams (LITs) were formed with a cadre of teachers who had participated in either Project ATMOSPHERE/DataStreme or the Maury Project. This past summer 35 of these teachers selected as LIT leaders attended an eight-day workshop on the basics of water in the Earth system and pedagogical aspects of the course. In addition, 35 other teachers who are WES LIT members attended either a Project ATMOSPHERE or Maury Project summer workshop to enhance their meteorological or oceanographic background. In preparation for national implementation of WES, all WES LIT members took the course as part of pilot testing during the Fall of 2000.

Beginning in January 2001, WES will be offered to approximately 250 teachers each semester for the next three years. These teachers will in turn assist their colleagues and students to employ the water cycle in the study of Earth System Science. The impact of the activities during the first year was to provide the necessary foundation which will enable the program to accomplish its long-term goals.