Teacher Enhancement and Leadership Training Providing Online Distance Learning Opportunities in Water in the Earth System (WES) Science Education

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9819359GEERThe American Meteorological Society, with the assistance of the United States Naval Academy, the US Navy, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the State University of New York at Brockport, will conduct a Teacher Enhancement Project with a strong leadership component. An innovative Internet-based distance-learning course directed towards middle-school teachers will be developed and implemented nationwide. The course,"Water in the Earth System (WES) Online", will incorporate inquiry-based instructional strategies and a holistic concept of Earth from oceanic, atmospheric and terrestrial water and problem-focused perspectives. Course participants will be prepared as Water in the Earth System (WES) resource teachers who will demonstrate the value of Internet access to environmental information in classroom applications. All teachers involved will be prepared to promote Earth system studies across the school curriculum in support of the National Science Education Standards.This Project will develop and implement a three graduate credit-hour distance learning course partially delivered by Internet that introduces over 1,600 teachers to scientifically authentic and pedagogically sound learning activities. As WES resource teachers, the course participants will interact with an estimated 16,000 teachers (and 160,000 students) in their home schools within two years. A core group of 40 teacher Local Implementation Team leaders will be trained to provide course implementation and follow-up leadership.Cost sharing amounts to about 5% of the NSF award.