COMET Presentation:
Pedagogical Contributions of Educational Environments:
The Traditional Classroom, Computer-based Learning, and the World Wide Web

by Brian E. Heckman and Dwight Owens
UCAR/Cooperative Program for Operational Meteorology, Education and Training (COMET®)
Boulder, Colorado

Presented to the American Meteorological Association meeting in January 1996.

1. INTRODUCTION

Educational delivery systems have been evolving with some helping to improve efficiency and cost effectiveness, and others simply fading away without making major impacts. The current system in vogue is the Internet and World Wide Web (WWW). Many educational institutions have a web-based learning (WBL) program or are planning to develop one. Not long ago, multimedia computer-based learning (CBL) was the rage. What is happening? Is one better than the other? Or is it the proverbial "bandwagon" effect?

We suggest that university faculty, K-12 teachers, and operational forecaster trainers ask some fundamental questions. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the different learning environments? What kinds of learning activities are best supported by each? How might we blend them, taking advantage of each environment's unique strengths?

In this paper, we focus on three learning environments that are especially important to the university sector: the traditional instructor-led format, computer-based learning, and web-based learning. We consider some of their relative strengths and weaknesses and the kinds of learning activities they best support. Finally, we propose that these different environments should not mutually exclude one another. Rather, they can be integrated into multi-venue learning environments, in which the strengths of each one are maximized.

2. COMPARISONS AMONG LEARNING VENUES

Regardless of the learning environment, the effectiveness of instruction is highly dependent on the skill of the teacher and the design and implementation of the instruction. Beyond these factors, each environment has its unique set of advantages and disadvantages. Media theorist Robert Kozma (1991) writes:

The research ... suggests that capabilities of a particular medium, in conjunction with methods that take advantage of these capabilities, interact with and influence the ways learners represent and process information and may result in more or different learning when one medium is compared to another for certain learners and tasks.

Kozma is distinguishing between individual media forms, such as text, graphics, or video; however, we can extend his discussion to consider the capabilities of different learning environments. In the following sections, we compare three such environments, highlighting some of their relative strengths and weaknesses.

2.1 Instructor-led Classroom

Traditionally, most meteorology departments rely on two main modes of instruction: the group lecture and the laboratory session. In each one, the teacher can do a number of things that are difficult or nearly impossible with CBL and WBL. The teacher can continually observe students for cues about their level of comprehension, probe their understanding, and respond to difficulties with a wide range of strategies. The teacher can engage the students in an endless variety of individualized and cooperative learning activities. The teacher can attend to student motivation and work to maintain or deepen interest and enthusiasm. Through his or her physical presence, the teacher can instill confidence and spark insight. Finally, by the instructor sharing his/her experiences, students can build upon their own knowledge and skills.

Classroom learning promotes two levels of socialization: among students via group discussion, team projects, peer evaluation, etc.; and between students and professionals via guest lectures, field trips, etc.

Despite its many advantages, the traditional classroom has some inherent limitations due to its physical layout. Unlike CBL and WBL, the number of learners and teachers that can feasibly participate in the learning experience is limited. The geographical distribution of participants is restricted as well. The typical classroom has few learning resources when compared to the vast range of materials on the WWW. In contrast to the CBL environment, it is difficult for a classroom teacher to provide individualized pacing and high levels of immediate, direct, personalized feedback.

2.2 Student-centered Computer-based Learning

One of the great strengths of CBL is its capacity to support individualized learning. Learners can study at their own pace and receive direct, immediate, and tailored feedback. The content can be reviewed as needed, relieving learners of the need to rely solely on memory and notes. The CBL environment is also less threatening; learners can experiment and make mistakes with less risk of embarrassment or peer criticism.

Another key attribute of multimedia CBL is the potential for rich, highly integrated mixtures of media elements. The responsiveness can be much greater than that which is currently supported by the slow transfer rates of the Internet. The speed and bandwidth of the WWW will certainly increase in the future, but it is hard to imagine a distributed network achieving transfer speeds comparable to those between the disk drives, memory, and displays of modern personal workstations. In a recent article by Galbreath (1995), the author concludes that although network-based interactive multimedia appears easy on the surface, there are major obstacles that must be cleared before it can compete with CD or laser disc-based systems.

A third key attribute of the computer-based learning environment is the computer's ability to process and transform information. Kozma (1991) writes:

...computers can juxtapose, or transform, information in one symbol system to that in another.... The computer can take equations, numerical values, or analog signals and transform them into graphs.... it can [also] operate on symbols according to specified rules, such that a graphic object on the screen can move according to the laws of physics, for example.

A meteorologic example which takes advantage of the computer's unique processing power is an interactive skew-T simulator. Such a program might allow students to manipulate various boundary layer parameters in a sounding and observe the corresponding changes in stability profiles, etc.

Finally, CBL modules can expose students to experiences and perspectives of well-known experts. For example, COMET CBL modules feature selected experts who guide students through various learning activities such as conceptual model presentations and case studies. Students can experience a variety of teaching styles and can see how different experts interpret meteorological events.

However, there are a number of limitations associated with the CBL environment. Because of its high level of individualization, learners tend to feel isolated. It is difficult to emulate the cooperative learning and socialization that occur in the classroom. In addition, the content in CBL programs is frozen at the time of publication. Contents tend to fade into obsolescence, whereas classrooms and WWW sites are dynamic, allowing teachers to respond flexibly to changes or advances in the discipline.

2.3 World-Wide Web-based Learning

The most salient attribute of the WWW is its scope. The web offers access to an incredibly vast array of learning resources, far outstripping that which can be feasibly included in CBL modules or even school libraries. It is a fantastic learning venue for the self-directed student who enjoys exploratory learning. It also supports an unprecedented level of connectivity, allowing interaction between students, teachers, professional groups, and other participants around the world. This attribute can be harnessed to promote socialization and cooperative learning in ways that go far beyond the classroom, as well as CBL.

On the other hand, some of the web's greatest advantages can become a hinderance to learning. Not all learners enjoy exploratory study or know how to apply appropriate learning strategies. Some prefer more structure and guidance, while others may tend to "link out" to other web sites, travelling far astray of lesson objectives. In contrast, classrooms and CBL can more readily support structured, managed learning experiences. Compared to classroom learning, WBL is also rather impersonal. The deep personal message imparted by gifted teachers through direct contact and interaction cannot be conveyed electronically. Finally, as mentioned above, WBL is more limited than CBL in its multimedia integration and responsiveness.

3. LEARNING VENUE SELECTION

Classroom instructors often serve as both selectors and developers of teaching materials. For example, teachers may select textbooks, films, and videos and develop hand-outs, overhead slides, tests, etc.

As computers increasingly become available in classrooms and school laboratories, instructional providers are able to select and develop computer-based teaching materials. As Internet connectivity expands and multimedia titles proliferate, so do the opportunities for integrating CBL and WBL into classrooms and curricula. In this context, questions arise about what kinds of learning tasks are better-suited to the different learning environments. Building on the comparisons and contrasts between the different learning environments drawn in the previous section, we now briefly consider several clusters of learning tasks and the environments that can best support them.

3.1 Automatic Recall

Learners need to be able to recall or demonstrate certain facts, patterns, rules, or procedures quickly and easily. Examples of these might include:

• state the freezing temperature of water
• identify a Doppler velocity "zero line"
• state the directions of geostrophic flow around low pressure centers in either hemisphere
• describe the forecasting procedure of working from the synoptic scale down to the local scale

It is often necessary for learners to thoroughly assimilate and memorize these kinds of learning objectives because they need to apply them, sometimes automatically, in a wide array of situations. Memorization results from repetition, and drill and practice is a common way to promote this degree of skill and knowledge acquisition.

There are several good reasons to use CBL for drill and practice-type exercises. CBL is individualized, allowing each learner to achieve proficiency at his or her own pace. The computer is also tireless (unlike human teachers); learners can practice to their hearts' content. Multimedia CBL is especially well-suited for learning tasks such as pattern recognition that require quick, repetitive access to numerous images or sounds. Finally, the computer can automatically keep scores and track student progress, freeing teachers of such tedious record-keeping.

3.2 Simulation and Experimentation

We often call upon students to engage in generative learning activities, which involve hypothesis formulation, experimentation, analysis, and induction. Laboratories are familiar settings for this type of learning; however, some topics and phenomena cannot be explored safely or cost-effectively in the lab. For these and other topics, computers can be used to create simulated experimentation environments.

For example, numerical models can be used to simulate storm systems. Using programs like Vis-5D, students can interactively explore three-dimensional data spaces to search for or predict various relationships. Such learning activities were described by Biggerstaff and Nielsen-Gammon (1995) at the AMS-sponsored Fourth Symposium on Education.

Another example of CBL simulation is the displaced real time (DRT) case study. This kind of simulation poses specific diagnosis or prediction problems and provides learners with meteorological data products from an actual historical weather event in the context of an operational forecast office. The COMET Residence and Distance Learning Programs use this type of forecasting scenario in classroom lab exercises and CBL modules.

3.3 Information Gathering and Exploration

Teachers often call upon their students to conduct independent exploration and research on class-related topics and report the results in term papers, class presentations, or special projects. Students are challenged to apply intellectual skills and metacognitive strategies as they seek out, acquire, analyze, synthesize and verbalize new knowledge. For the teacher, these activities require monitoring, guidance, and evaluation at various stages of the process.

Due to its vast scope and rich connectivity, WBL offers some innovative and exciting means of supporting these kinds of learning activities. Students can use search engines to seek out web sites and information sources. They can join newsgroups and trace discussion threads for topics of interest. They can also initiate discussions and solicit opinions from Internet talk groups. For their part, teachers can use e-mail to monitor student progress or provide guidance and feedback.

The web can also be used as a platform for students to present their findings. Students can build their own web pages complete with hot links to references and related information sources. These can be submitted for teacher and peer review at various stages during the development process. Such activities were implemented by a University of Colorado at Denver class during the spring of 1995. For more information, refer to the paper by Ryder and Wilson (1995).

3.4 Dialogue and Debate

When complex issues requiring judgement and opinion are involved, nothing seems to substitute for discussion and debate. Two environments are most suitable for this type of learning: the classroom and talk groups on the Internet. The Internet allows outside participants such as professionals in the discipline or teachers and students at other institutions to be involved.

Classroom and Internet-based dialog may also be combined. For example, students in a marine meteorology course which uses CBL modules as core content may be linked via Internet to the experts who helped develop the module. Students can engage in direct dialogue with the experts, helping them clarify their understanding of the material. In turn, the experts can initiate more in-depth lines of questioning regarding concepts or skills used to forecast the sea state.

4. MULTI-VENUE LEARNING

Throughout this paper, we have briefly compared some of the strengths and weaknesses of three learning environments and outlined a few of the activities for which each is well suited.

This discussion is framed in the context of the modern classroom which is becoming increasingly integrated with computer technologies such as interactive multimedia and the world-wide web. These learning environments should not be perceived as threats to the classroom learning environment, nor should they be mistaken for a technological panacea, which can offer magical automated solutions for every teaching challenge.

Teachers and educational providers could instead consider these new environments as powerful teaching aids to integrate into the classroom, with each forum contributing its unique strengths. For example, we might envision a meteorology class in which:

• CBL modules are used for drill and practice on basic concepts and patterns
• computer simulations are used for lab exercises and student forecasting contests
• the Internet is used to support discussion groups and interactions with other students and teachers around the world
• the WWW is used for research projects
• the classroom is used for lecture and debate

Such a classroom may already exist in your institution. If not, you could be the one to combine and integrate these new technologies into a powerful multi-faceted learning environment.

5. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This paper is funded by a cooperative agreement from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of NOAA or any of its subagencies. We wish to thank Ms. Marianne Weingroff and Ms. Eileen McIlvain for their assistance, patience, and guidance in preparing and editing this paper.

REFERENCES

Biggerstaff, M. and J. Nielsen-Gammon, 1995: Classroom applications of interactive meteorological v isualization. Preprints, Fourth Symposium on Education, Boston, Amer. Meteor. Soc., 37-40.

Dickson, W. P., 1985: Thought-provoking software: Juxtaposing symbol systems. Educational Researcher, 14(5), 30-38.

Gagné, R.M., L.J. Briggs, and W.M. Wager, 1992: Principles of instructional design (4th ed.), Jovanovich College Publishers, 365 pp. Galbreath, J., 1995: Multimedia on the network: has its time come? Educational Technology, 35(4), July-August 1995, 44-51.

Kozma, R., 1991: Learning with media. Review of Educational Research, 61(2), 179-211.

Martin, T., 1995: The development of interactive world wide web courseware for students of engineering and technology at Deakin University. Geelong, Victoria, Southern Cross University. Paper available on-line at http://www.scu.edu.au/ausweb95/papers/education1/martin

Ryder, M and B. Wilson, 1995: From local to virtual environments: making the connection. Unpublished paper presented at the meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, April 1995. Available on-line at http://www.cudenver.edu/~mryder/aera95.html.

Salomon, G., 1979: Interaction of Media, Cognition, and Learning. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass, 282 pp.