SCHOOL MODULES

Find all of the SCHOOL modules available.

Module 1: Water

The Water module introduces open, reproducible workflows for working with hydrology- and water-safety–related datasets. Learners practice finding and accessing open data, working through acquisition and exploration steps, and producing interpretable outputs (e.g., maps/visuals) that support communication and community-facing understanding.

This module’s lessons include:

  • Prerequisites and glossary (accounts, tools, and key terms used across the module)
  • WSIM-GLDAS workflows for acquiring and working with a historical water anomalies dataset
  • MODIS NRT Global Flood data acquisition and exploration
  • Interactive lead exposure (schools) analysis focusing on water quality and data interpretation

Module 1: Water

Module 2: Air Quality

The Air Quality module focuses on how air pollution intersects with public health, place-based vulnerability, and environmental justice. Across the lessons, learners explore foundational air quality concepts, compare different measurement approaches, and work with public datasets/tools used in air quality and EJ analyses.

This module’s lessons include:

  • An air quality primer introducing key concepts and context
  • A comparative lesson on ground and satellite perspectives during a wildfire smoke episode affecting New York City
  • A multi-dataset lesson exploring air quality, social vulnerability, and health outcomes in Metro Detroit
  • EJScreen as an environmental justice screening and mapping tool
  • A lesson on PM2.5 patterns across socioeconomic strata

Module 2: Air Quality

Module 3: Disasters

The Disasters module introduces learners to applied workflows for understanding hazards and impacts using real-world disaster-related datasets. Lessons emphasize hands-on analysis and interpretation, connecting geospatial data work to exposure, vulnerability, and event-driven decision contexts.

This module’s lessons include:

  • Coastal hazards exposure analysis in Puerto Rico
  • A multi-sensor workflow examining Canadian wildfire impacts
  • A “watch report” style analysis of Maui heavy rainfall and flooding

Module 3: Disasters

Module 4: Climate and Agriculture

The Climate and Agriculture module examines how climate variability and change shape human exposure and agricultural conditions through applied analysis workflows. Lessons focus on developing interpretive skill with climate datasets, including patterns over time and event-focused analyses.

This module’s lessons include:

  • Human exposure to heat in a “bite-size” workflow
  • Long-term climatologies using nClimGrid-Daily data
  • A multi-indicator exploration of the 2022 Southern Plains flash drought
  • An exploration of the impacts of climate change on agriculture using public access data.
  • An analysis of temperature and precipitation anomalies in Washington State and their impacts on agriculture and people

Module 4: Climate and Agriculture

Community modules and documentation

In addition to the four core thematic modules, the SCHOOL project includes a community-generated set of lessons and a community-driven Sphinx documentation implementation. These deliverables support broader participation in developing and sharing SCHOOL learning resources.

Community lessons Wildfire burned area mapping (including Python workflows), Arctic climate impacts, California wildfires analysis, and snow storms (1990).

Community Sphinx implementation provides an additional documentation build and navigation experience for SCHOOL materials.

Community Modules Community Sphinx Documentation