CREATING WEBQUESTS

Leanna Johnson

Lkjohnson09@live.com

St. Paul Lutheran School, Farmington, MO

 

A WebQuest is defined, by Bernie Dodge at San Diego State University, as "an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the Internet."

Webquests (WQs) are text and task-laden. Essentially, you are directing a student on an independent, yet guided, search: a “quest” for knowledge. It’s very important to organize in advance all of the Internet resources and activities. What are the fundamental elements you wish the students to learn from the WQ? Keep these objectives the top priority as you organize.

 

Explore/Educate-- organize the resources and allow students to explore and educate themselves.

Express-- select applications/activities that will involve higher learning skills and creativity.

Evaluate-- develop in advance how you will evaluate each expressed task.

 

A priority is to present a rubric per assignment before the student embarks on the WQ. The student needs guidance on what is important if you are to judge how well he has accomplished his goal.

 

Because most WQs are self-paced it is sometimes difficult to create a deadline for tasks, especially the first time. Watch the speed of the work as it evolves. When students establish an observable pace, set and announce a deadline. Make note of the time allowance directly on the WQ for the next time you use it, whether it’s allowing a week or just a class period to accomplish visiting sites or finishing an activity.

 

Remember that links die; test an archived WQ’s links when you reactivate it.

 

Creating WebQuests: Sequentials

  • Choose any particular area of the curriculum you wish to study in depth. The best WQs combine activities and applications that are exploratory, expressive, and creative. Choose engaging computer applications and activities.
  • Google-search any and all keywords that come to mind as you brainstorm the subject. You will discover more keywords as you begin exploring the search results, and they may be better than your initial keywords.  Make note of any search words that are highly successful; you may want to use them again.
  • Create a Favorites subject folder for any websites that contain compiled websites you wish to explore further. (A good compilation website example:  Gamequarium)
  • Compile pertinent websites by category as you go. Name the website in your notes; go ahead and link any that are a certainty.
  • Visually design your WQ page(s) by considering the age group. Use appropriate font, clipart, and layout. Tables are very helpful to keeping the page organized. Animated gifs, graphics, bullets and numbers help to keep the students aware of important text or an activity/task. Use anchors if the page is lengthy.
  • Simple commands are easier to follow than detailed commands, especially if the WQ has several tasks. Be succinct. You can elaborate on instruction when you present it to the class. Introduction, Task, Process, and Evaluation will aid navigation through the WQ.
  • In multi-task WQs for younger students, create separate pages for each task and use a “Next” button if you are working from a published site. Each task page should coordinate with the webquest home page but have its own personality so that it is distinct from the others. This is also helpful for you as a teacher because you can recognize quickly (and from a distance) what task the student is working. If you build a WQ with a word processing application, hyperlink your resources so they may be accessed with a click of the mouse. It’s possible to add interesting graphics and develop a great WQ even if all you have is Word or Open Office as your publishing application. A WebQuest does not need to be on the Internet to be useable.
  • Evaluate with applications (Sketchup, GeoGebra, Hot Potatoes, PowerPoint, etc…). Students evaluated by application enjoy the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned, and applications require higher level thinking and organizational skills than standard test or worksheets. Constructive projects like these develop meaningful learning.
  • It is essential to have a rubric in place at the beginning of the WQ. Students may go off on tangents of creativity if they don’t know what and how you will assess. Be clear about what is important and what is not. RubiStar at 4teachers.org is a great resource for rubric design.
  • Allow (and expect) free movement about the room. Group work is fine here! Many students want to assist with activities and applications once they master them. It’s a terrific way to lay a foundation of collaboration, self-confidence, and trust. Allow your student “specialists” to help each other. Many times teachers will learn more about an application from student exploration.
  • Be flexible. Even the most elaborate, thought-out plan doesn’t work sometimes. Students will accept your approach if you will accept it yourself and communicate that understanding. Tell them: “I thought this would work this way but it doesn’t, so I’m going to change our approach.”
  • Re-assess aspects of the WQ that need revision before archiving; make the changes necessary so it’s ready for the next use. Don’t forget to check links and update them when you activate it again.

 

 

 

FREE APPLICATIONS

Moodle (online classroom)

Webspiration (organization map)

Google Earth and Google Sketchup

CoffeeCup for Educators

GeoGebra

OpenOffice (Office Suite alternative)

Hot Potatoes (quiz maker)