WebQuest Assignment

Overview

You'll create a WebQuest lesson that you can use in your classroom. The lesson should involve learners in interacting with and using Web- and non-Web based information. Thus, activities should be designed so that students locate, analyze, evaluate, and transform the information in ways that are meaningful to them. The lesson can be designed for one subject or it can be interdisciplinary, and should cover a period of one to two weeks in a class. You may complete the assignments in teams of two; larger teams are not encouraged. If there is a compelling reason, you may also work as on this project individually.

Part One:  Planning your Webquests

Instructions:

1) Create in Word, a detailed outline of up to 2 pages in which you:

A. Give your WebQuest title, describe the grade level, language, subject matter area(s), the specific thinking skills (see Dodge, p. 2, for a list) that constitute your inquiry goals, and other contextual information; and

B. Outline your ideas for the following short term WebQuest components (see Building Blocks for details on each): Introduction, Task, Process, Guidance, Evaluation, Conclusion, & Teacher Notes.

2) Upload the outline as an attachment on SSF for peer review on the date noted on the schedule.

3) Provide feedback to your classmates' outlines.

Part Two: Developing your Webquests

1) Create a computer-generated initial draft of your Webquest. Please do not feel that you have to submit anything fancy. You can create your own Webquest on Netscape Composer or download a Webquest template. You can then upload your work to your mentor account or any other web space that you have.

Instructions for creating Webquests: Your Quest should be designed to be completed by your students in from five to ten one-hour class periods. It should have the following components (see Building Blocks for details on each component):

Introduction -- sets the stage and provides background information
Task -- authentic, doable, and motivating
Information sources -- Web and non-Web based sources
Process -- a very detailed description of the steps through which learners will accomplish the task
Evaluation -- by what exact criteria and process students' work will be assessed
Conclusion -- how closure of the inquiry will be completed
Sources acknowledgment page (see citation format examples)
Notes to Teachers page (see examples)
2) Submit the URL of your initial Webquest draft for peer review on the date noted in the schedule.

3) Provide feedback to classmates' initial drafts.
 

  Part Three: Getting "Expert" Help

Instructions:

1) Contact a teacher consultant and expert reviewer. Using the "Collections" and "Examples" lists on Bernie Dodge's site of WebQuest teacher-authors (or a teacher you know who is interested in working with you), identify a teacher you'd like to get advice from as you plan and create your WebQuest, and who will give you an expert review when you are finished. If possible you should choose a teacher who has created a WebQuest in the subject area and level you are interested in. Contact them via e-mail, explain your request, and when you have secured their agreement post their name, school, and e-mail address in the "WebQuest Consultant" folder in our SSF conference. Once you have posted your teacher, no other student can use that person, so it's good to do this early in the process!! Neither Jackie Carrigan, Tom March nor Bernie Dodge should be chosen for this purpose. Your initial e-mail contact to the teacher should contain a brief description of your assignment (you should also give the assignment URL so the teacher can read it), the things you are asking them to do, and your estimate of how long it will take them. After you have written your description and development/design plan e-mail it to your teacher consultant and ask for feedback; you can use this in revising your plans. After you have completed the WebQuest, e-mail your teacher expert reviewer and ask them for a critical review. In both cases, forward their e-mail responses to me directly at fpawan@indiana.edu.
 

Part Four: Revising your Webquests
Instructions:

Once you have received and looked over the suggestions made by your reviewer(s), make the changes that you feel are needed on your Webquest. Post the final draft on SSF in the appropriate folder and by the due date listed on the schedule.

At this point, breathe easy!

Part Five: Evaluation

Evaluation: Your WebQuest Web site is due on the date noted in the schedule (post the URL to SSF as instructed before class on that date). Each part of this assignment will be graded on inclusion and quality of the required components detailed above and the skillfulness/quality of their implementation in the WebQuest framework. Bernie Dodge's Grading Rubric gives ideas about qualities of good WebQuests. The following grading criteria will be used to assign the 60 points (10 points for each criteria):

You also need to hand in a team evaluation. Please hand it in individually directly to me at fpawan@indiana.edu.

All materials on the WebQuest site should have professional polish. This means they should be carefully proofread, preferably by someone other than yourself, with misspellings and grammatical errors corrected. Sites with these kinds of mistakes cannot earn the highest possible marks -- remember that other teachers may use your Quest, and you are models for your and others' language students.

Additional WebQuest Help

Everything you need to know about Quests can be found linked to this page: http://edweb.sdsu.edu/webquest/, including sections that you can cut and paste.

WebQuest Templates and Examples

Templates for WebQuest teacher and student Web sites exist on Bernie Dodge's Web site, and their formats can be used as extensively as desired. They should not be viewed as constraining the WebQuest site design, but are perfectly acceptable frameworks within which to develop the WebQuests.

Samples of WebQuests exist on two Web sites ("Examples" and "Collections") and should be reviewed for design as well as content ideas. Some of these examples will be presented and critiqued in class. Ideas from the work of others can be incorporated into this assignment, but the source of such ideas should be cited in the "Sources" page of the final product. However, you are expected to create and implement your own original ideas in your WebQuests, and not simply copy ideas from others'.

Indiana University, School of Education
Created by L. Ehman, modified by F.Pawan, July  2001.