Educational Program for Atmospheric Science Education in the San Diego/Tijuana/Ensenada Border Region

AMOUNT: $15,000 US

PROJECT LEADERS: Walter Oechel and Luis M. Farfán M.

INSTITUTIONS: San Diego State University and Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada B.C. (CICESE)

This project laid the initial foundation to provide interactive science education in the classroom for United States/Mexico border schools in the Tijuana/San Ysidro and Ensenada metropolitan areas. The project used the model that SDSU has established in other outreach projects, directly involving scientists in the community, working with teachers to convey scientific and technical concepts to students. This method has also proven successful in La Paz, Baja California, Mexico, as well as in other areas across the United States. Researcher Dr. Farfán provided relevant science material through a partnership with classroom teachers at the secondary and intermediate school level. Science education was the primary activity, geography, mathematics, and history also played a role in the program development. These areas were incorporated into the program by reviewing how weather has shaped history, how it varies geographically, and how some types of weather data are calculated. In this pilot project, weather analysis and forecasting for local areas were emphasized, using near real-time data, so that the students observed current weather conditions and understood the sequence of steps associated with the process of weather predictions.