Christiana IbangaEDIT 271

Spring 2008

This web-based module provides information to educators and learners on how to create a WebQuest.

The main audience are educators, K-12 grade teachers, students, businesses and others.

The module consist of 2 units:

Overview

Steps in Creating a WebQuest

At the end of this module, learners will be able to:

Define “WebQuest”

State at least 3 benefits of a WebQuest

Identify the six main components of a WebQuest

Write a task for a WebQuest

Create a basic WebQuest

It is an inquiry type of lesson where most or all of the information needed by the learners is obtained from the web. After acquiring and processing the information, learners synthesize and apply their new knowledge. The task may be hypothetical or based on a real life situation.

WebQuest allows the learner to focus on the task at hand by using information (web resources and other materials) provided by the instructor, rather than spending time “surfing” the web to get information. The emphasis is on critical thinking rather than merely acquiring information.

It is a constructivist approach to learning, exploring and discovery. WebQuest was designed by Bernie Dodge with Tom March in 1995 at San Diego State University.

Click below to see examples of WebQuest:Global Warming: http://teacherweb.com/WQ/HighSchool/Global%5FWarming1/

School Security Improvement: http://teacherweb.com/WQ/HighSchool/School%5FSecurity/

Click below for more examples: WebQuest.org: http://www.webquest.org/search/index.php

TeacherFirst.com: www.teachersfirst.com/tchr-quest.cfm

TeacherWeb.com: http://teacherweb.com/TWQuest.htm

Webquest 101- What is a Webquesthttp://www.teachersfirst.com/summer/webquest/quest-b.shtml

Engages learners in critical thinking (Bloom’s Taxonomy) activities rather than mere reading and comprehension

Integration of technology into classroom instructions Learners are being prepared to tackle real life

problems It sharpens students’ research skills and promotes

communication It promotes cooperative learning Students have opportunity for independent exploration

and discovery

Some Web Design Skills Web Editor: to create a web page for your

WebQuest. Saving your PowerPoint Presentation as a web page is another option

Web Server to post your WebQues: A lot of school districts and schools have servers for their teachers

Computer with Internet Access Some understanding of Internet NavigationEmail Address

According to Bernie Dodge, topics suitable for webQuest include:

Contemporary World Problems e.g. Global warming, Deforestation, Greenhouse Effects

Hypothetical Problems

Real Life Realities like buying a car, stocks or real estates, job search and creating budgets, travels to different locations.

For ideas of topics, go to:Selecting a WebQuest:http://webquest.sdsu.edu/project-selection.html

(1) What is a WebQuest?

(2) Name three benefits of a WebQuest?

(3) You need a computer with Internet access to create a WebQuest

(A) True

(B) False

Preplanning Stage

Like any other lesson, WebQuest needs to be planned. Below are some of the planning stages:

Teacher select a topic: one that is interesting and engages learner in higher level thinking. The topic should be aligned with educational standards and curriculum.

The teacher or instructor uses search engines like Google and Yahoo to find and bookmark web resources that are useful to the selected topic. These web resources will be made available to students to complete their webQuest task.

IntroductionTask Process Resources Evaluation ConclusionIn addition, you may include these optional

sections: a credit section, an email section and a teacher’s notes

section. However, they are not required in a webQuest.

Learners are provided with background information about the webQuest in the introduction section. In short, this section introduces learners to the webQuest activity.

Students are assigned into groups of three to five, depending on the number of students in class.

Students are also assigned roles that are interesting and motivational within the group in an effort to accomplish the upcoming task.

Click below to see a well written introduction:Women in Science:http://asterix.ednet.lsu.edu/~edtech/webquest/women.html

It states what the learners should accomplish at the end of the WebQuest. In short, what the results or end product should look like.

This section also tells learners how to present their findings. PowerPoint presentation, word processing document, web page (online), and verbal presentations are examples.

Click links below and to read the WebQuest task:

Creating a Community Garden:http://aclresources.net/communitygarden/task.html

This section outlines the step-by-step instructions that learners need to go through to accomplish the task

Students are given a list of web resources that the instructor has put together to use in accomplishing the task.

Click below to see a well written process:Native American Tribeshttp://zunigacy.tripod.com/webquest/index1.htm#Process

In this section, the teacher or educator provides a list of web resources that students will need to accomplish the task. The resources include:

web sites (bookmarked)

books and other printed materials

audios/videos

Click below to see an example of web resources:Welcome to Dr. B’s WebQuest Workshop:http://www.teachersfirst.com/getsource.cfm?id=8611

In this section, the teacher provides each student or In this section, the teacher provides each student or each group of students with a rubric to evaluate their each group of students with a rubric to evaluate their work. work.

WebQuest WebQuest CritieriaCritieria

ExcellentExcellent44

Very GoodVery Good33

Good Good 22

DevelopingDeveloping11

ScoreScore

TitleTitle Title includedTitle included Title not shown Title not shown clearlyclearly

Wrong titleWrong title No titleNo title

Audience identifiedAudience identified Audience properly Audience properly identifiedidentified

Some Audience Some Audience identifiedidentified

Audience not Audience not properly properly identifiedidentified

No audienceNo audience

All component of a All component of a WebQuest WebQuest

All components All components includedincluded

4 components 4 components includedincluded

2 components 2 components includedincluded

No components No components includedincluded

WebQuest WebQuest Introduction and Introduction and TaskTask

Very well writtenVery well written Well writtenWell written Not well writtenNot well written No WebQuest No WebQuest Introduction or Introduction or TaskTask

WebQuest Process WebQuest Process and Evaluationand Evaluation

Very well writtenVery well written Well writtenWell written Not well writtenNot well written No WebQuest No WebQuest Process or Process or EvaluationEvaluation

WebQuest WebQuest Resources and Resources and ConclusionsConclusions

Very well writtenVery well written Well writtenWell written Not well writtenNot well written No WebQuest No WebQuest Resources or Resources or ConclusionsConclusions

PowerPoint PowerPoint PresentationPresentation

Very well organized Very well organized and excellent and excellent presentationpresentation

Well organized Well organized and well and well presentedpresented

Somewhat Somewhat organized and organized and somewhat good somewhat good presentationpresentation

Presentation Presentation was not was not organized or organized or goodgood

Learners will use the rubric to evaluate their web Learners will use the rubric to evaluate their web Quest.Quest.

Once you have completed your webQuest, you can post it online to make it available to your students and to share with others by using these tools and sites:

Filamentality http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/fil/index.html

Webquest Simple Toolhttp://www.aclresources.net/webquests/create.html

Teacherwebquesthttp://teacherweb.com/IdxStatesQ.htm

Using information provided in this module, choose a Using information provided in this module, choose a hypothetical audience of learners, choose a topic, and hypothetical audience of learners, choose a topic, and create a WebQuest for your learners. create a WebQuest for your learners.

In this section:In this section: Instructor or teacher summarizes the WebQuest Instructor or teacher summarizes the WebQuest experienceexperience

The learners and teacher discuss the WebQuestThe learners and teacher discuss the WebQuest

Learners reflect upon the WebQuest experienceLearners reflect upon the WebQuest experience

Teacher gets feedback from learners on how toTeacher gets feedback from learners on how to improve the WebQuest project in the future. improve the WebQuest project in the future.

Well done! You have completed the module on creating a WebQuest. This module has provided a general overview of WebQuest, an educational tool that engages learners in critical thinking and promotes cooperative learning.

In this module, WebQuest is defined. The benefits and steps in creating a WebQuest are provided. Many resources for creating WebQuest are listed.

It is my hope that more and more teachers and educators will use WebQuest in the future to enhance learning in the classroom and other educational institutions.

Official WebQuest Page (Bernie Dodge’s Webquest Portal)http://webquest.org/index.php

Building Blocks of a Webquest: http://projects.edtech.sandi.net/staffdev/buildingblocks/p-index.htm

Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators on Webquestshttp://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/webquest/webquest.html

Webquests: Concepts to Classroomhttp://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/webquests/

Teacher’s First http://www.teachersfirst.com/summer/webquest/quest-b.shtml

Webquest Templates http://webquest.sdsu.edu/LessonTemplate.html

Filamentality http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/fil/

Warrenburg Schools WebQuest Academyhttp://warrensburg.k12.mo.us/webquest/

Webquest Simple Toolhttp://www.aclresources.net/webquests/index.html