Development of an Active Learning Meteorology Course for Non-Science Majors

The method of instruction of an introductory Meteorology course for non-science majors was modified to emphasize active learning. Educational materials and pedagogical methods developed at Queensborough Community College (QCC) and other 4 year colleges was introduced to the predominantly minority student body at QCC. Many of the students at QCC did poorly at pre-college schools where lecture based learning is the chief method of instruction. It is not unexpected that many of them are having difficulty if the method of instruction has not changed at the postsecondary level. The intent of introducing active learning was to have students develop an appreciation of science, and have an increased understanding of relevant scientific principles. Changes were first implemented in the laboratory. The manual was rewritten from the traditional "cookbook" manual, to one that incorporated discovery based activities. Because not all students in the lecture class sign up for the lab we were able to asses the impact these changes had on student learning. The lecture was also modified by introducing various activities designed to make students active participants in the learning process. As a result of these activities student scores increased as compared to student scores in a more affluent community college. Students also demonstrated increased conceptual understanding of the material and seemed to enjoy the class better. Lower scoring students demonstrated the greatest benefit, while the better students had little (or no) changes. The data suggests that the method of instruction can also have a negative effect on student performance.