Presented toNWCG Fire Environment Working Team

7 June 2006

Timothy C. Spangler, Ph.D.Program Director

Fifteen Years of Innovative Education and Training for NOAA/NWS Weather

Forecasters

1979

2003Katrina 20061700UTC Sun Aug 28

UCAR Founded in 1960 by the university

community to create, operate, and manage NCAR on behalf of NSF and the universities

Represents one of the most active and broad community partnerships anywhere in science Universities NSF NCAR

69 UCAR Member InstitutionsTwo representatives each meet annually

UCAR Board of Trustees

UCARFinance & Administrati

on

Corporate Affairs

UCAR Office of ProgramsNational Center for

Atmospheric ResearchEducation

& Outreach

SOARS

Constellation ObservingSystem for MeteorologyIonosphere

Climate(COSMIC)

Cooperative Program forOperationalMeteorology

Educationand Training

(COMET)

UnidataVisiting Scientists

Programs(VSP)

Global Learning & Observatio

n to Benefit the Environme

nt(GLOBE)

Digital Library for

Earth System

Education (DLESE)

Earth Observing Laboratory

(EOL)

Societal- Environmental Research and

Education (SERE)

AdvancedStudy

Program(ASP)

Institute for the

Study of Society

and Environment (ISSE)

Earth and Sun Systems Laboratory

(ESSL)

Atmospheric

ChemistryDivision(ACD)

Climate &Global

DynamicsDivision (CGD)

HighAltitude

Observatory

(HAO)

Mesoscale &

MicroscaleMeteorolog

y(MMM)

The Institute for

Multidisciplinary

Earth Studies (TIMES)

Computational &

Information Systems

Laboratory(CISL)

ScientificComputing

Division(SCD)

Institute for

Mathematics Applied

to Geoscienc

es(IMAGe)

Research Applications Laboratory

Joint Office

for Science Support (JOSS)

National Science Digital Library (NSDL)

University of Alabama in Huntsville

University of Alaska

University at Albany, State University of NY

University of Arizona

Arizona State University

California Institute of Technology

University of California, Berkeley

University of California, Davis

University of California, Irvine

University of California, Los Angeles

University of Chicago

Colorado State University

University of Colorado at Boulder

Columbia University

Cornell University

University of Denver

Drexel University

Florida State University

Georgia Institute of Technology

Harvard University

University of Hawaii

University of Houston

UCAR’s Member Institutions (2006/1960)

Howard University

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Iowa State University

University of Iowa

The Johns Hopkins University

University of Maryland

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

McGill University

University of Miami

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

University of Minnesota

University of Missouri

Naval Postgraduate School

University of Nebraska Lincoln

Nevada System of Higher Education

University of New Hampshire

New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology

New York University

North Carolina State University

The Ohio State University

University of Oklahoma

Old Dominion University

Oregon State University

Pennsylvania State University

Princeton University

Purdue University

University of Rhode Island

Rice University

Rutgers University

Saint Louis University

Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UCSD

Stanford University

Texas A & M University

University of Texas at Austin

Texas Tech University

University of Toronto

Utah State University

University of Utah

University of Virginia

University of Washington

Washington State University

University of Wisconsin- Madison

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

University of Wyoming

Yale University

York University

COMET Fast Facts

Founded in 1990

Staff of 36

Annual budget $5 million

Over 165 universities have participated in

COMET activities since 1990

Over 400 hours of computer-based

distance learning created for 30,000 users

world-wide

Award Winning Program

2004 Louis J. Battan Authors Award, K-12 Category for Hurricane Strike!™

For Polar Lows Ungava Bay 01 December 2000

2000 Hurricane Conference Outstanding Achievement Award for Community Hurricane Preparedness

Bronze Medal

for Boundary Detection

& ConvectionInitiation

Honorable Mention in the non-interactive media category of the Science & Engineering Visualization Challenge

Award Winning Program 2006

American Geophysical Union

Excellence in Geophysical Education Award

2006

COMET Sponsors

NOAA National Weather Service National Environmental Satellite Data Information

Service National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental

Satellite Systems

DoD Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command Air Force Air Weather Agency

International Meteorological Service of Canada Australian Government, Bureau of Meteorology European Meteorological Satellite Agency

A PowerPoint presentation is not a learning experience

Adult learning is about changing behavior and improving performance

Distance Learning Weather Forecast Community

Air Force 3,000

Faculty & Students 3,000

Private Sector 2,000

NWS 2,000

Navy 1,700

Canada 300

Total ~12,000

COMET/MetEd Averaged Monthly Usage (adjusted)

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

Year 2000 Year 2001 Year 2002 Year 2003 Year 2004 Year 2005

Sessions

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

40,000

45,000

Visito

rs

User Sessions (avg./yr.)

Visitors >1min. (avg./yr)

What is Online Learning?

Distance Learning vs. Classroom Learning

An Ongoing Comparison Recent meta-analysis* of 232 comparison research

studies from 1985 to 2002 showed

Small effect favoring DL in achievement of learning objectives

Small effect favoring classroom learning on attitude toward instruction

Variability was wide on both measures Indicates quality course design is more important than choice of

media* Bernard, R. M., et al. (2004). How does distance education compare with classroom instruction? A meta-analysis of the empirical literature. Review of Educational Research, 74(3), 379-439.

For an online distance learning program to be successful, it must be well designed and engaging

“If the people don’t want to come out to the park, nobody’s gonna stop them.”

Yogi Berra

Features of Online Multimedia Instruction

Self-paced

Individualized path

Every student is forced to interact

Instruction is available anytime, anywhere

Instruction has longevity to reach a large

audience without ongoing delivery costs

Learner Engagement Interactivity & high production values to stimulate learning

Sound Instruction

Sound Instruction

Exploratory LearningLearner chooses path through materials

Sound Instruction

Direct Instruction Traditional Lecture/Seminar

Scenario-based Learning Establish a realistic context

Sound Instruction

Demonstration Depicting a process visually

Sound Instruction

Designing Conceptual Visualizations

The starting point… Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics, 1987

Designing Conceptual Visualizations

In the final version texture, color, and lighting are added to create realistic three dimensionality

Models 2 and 3D Animations

Sound Instruction

Problem-based LearningLearn new content while presented with a problem, “on demand learning”

Sound Instruction

Time Savings for Computer-based Instruction

# of Studies Average time saved

131 54%

82 31%

173 34%

154 24%

1 Orlansky & String, 19772 Fletcher, 19973 Kulik, 1994 (Higher Ed.)4 Kulik, 1994(Adult Ed.)

COMET Modules by TopicTopic Modules Approximate

Content Hours

Aviation 19 38

Climate 6 6

Coastal Wx 13 26

Convective Wx 17 55

Emergency Mngmt 12 26

Fire Wx 6 13

Fog & Low Stratus 15 24

Hurricane/Tropical 11 23

Hydrology/Flooding 16 36

Marine Meteorology 15 29

Mesoscale Meteorology 27 67

NWP 39 76

QPF 7 14

Satellite Meteorology 37 81

Space Wx 4 7

Winter Wx 29 72

Radar Meteorology 1 10

Oceanography 2 2.5

Environmental Education 1 2

Many modules in the list are double-counted and a few are only available on CD

MetEd Averaged Monthly Usage

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

4,000

4,500

Sessions

Year 2000 Year 2001 Year 2002 Year 2003 Year 2004 Year 2005

.gov

.mil

.edu

.eg.gc.ca

The Future for NOAA/NWS

Fewer residence courses Travel is expensive Distance learning very effective

Blended courses Mix of computer-aided learning and teletraining

Virtual courses Traditional intensive multi-day course delivered at a

distance

Both blended and virtual courses preserve some of the “social” benefits of a residence course.

Future Trends: Technology POSSIBILITY

If iPod technology and memory storage continue to improve at their current trajectory

By 2013 our iPods will be able to hold the entire text contents of the Library of Congress*

By 2024, our video iPods will be able to hold every film ever made*

OUTCOME In the foreseeable future we will be able to store every online

document, training module, animation, simulation, game, Webcast, Podcast in our pocket or purse

CHALLENGE Instructional technologists will have to both imagine new

instructional uses for technologies and carefully evaluate them

*From Rodney Brooks, Director of MIT Computer Science and AI Lab, AECT Speech

The Future: Enhanced Design Simulations

Put the learner in a realistic environment Use computer gaming for instruction

Decision Support Assist the Mayor of New Orleans to choose the path

of least regret

Risk Management Provide a wide range of potential outcomes

Teach response to rare events Expand the range of familiar situations

Getting their degrees?