Ever use a WebQuest? Do you know the benefits they have for teachers and students?
This page will reveal how teachers can be trained to learn all about WebQuests, its incorporation of literacy and technology, and how to motivate students to become higher leveled thinkers.
With more needs than students in the past, 21st century learners are coming to school needing more stimulation. This will require assessments that are designed to go beyond multiple choice and includes performance tasks that allow students to demonstrate research, writing, and analytical skills (Smarter Balanced, 2012). Schools and districts are adopting more assessment instruments such as culminating tasks and online assessments to record more accurate student performances, which is a great shift for some teachers, students, and schools. It will take much more preparation to get students ready for the higher leveled thinking tasks ahead of them.
One way to do this would be to use English Language Arts (ELA) related WebQuests in the classroom. Developed by Bernie Dodge in 1995, a WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all the information that learners work with comes from the web (Dodge, 2007). This two day grade leveled group training involves teaching K-5 teachers how to use WebQuests to incorporate inquiry and student-based learning into the classroom, as well as create an extended literacy activity. This will be done through whole and small group instruction and computer implementation. The purpose of this training is to increase student participation, prepare for state assessments, and increase higher leveled thinking.
The schedule below would be an overview of the training process included in this project.
Day 1
- Introduction and explanation of course outcomes & objectives (Course and Day 1)
- Determine the learning theory related to a WebQuest and its use in the classroom
- Provide and explain the arrangement of learning activities
- Determine the use of media to complete the course activities
- Determine how the course will be assessed
- Trainer will implement course materials, instruction, and activities
- Conclude and evaluate course instruction and student learning
- Provide agenda for the next day’s course
Day 2
- Introduction and explanation of course outcomes & objectives (Course and Day 2)
- Review Day 1 topics
- Determine the arrangement of the course instruction and divide the group into grade leveled teams
- Trainers will facilitate the WebQuest creation process
- Conclusion and showcasing of finished products
- Evaluation of student learning, course content, and trainer delivery
Final Project Paper
Story Boards
Resources
This video describes what a Web Quest is and its benefits from the perspective of young students. They provide great information and their opinion on its usage in the classroom.
This site is actually a course description page for a college course at Penn State University. It provides an adequate overall description and how to instructional pointers for using and creating WebQuests. It offers a list of WebQuests building sites.
Another helpful resource is the website Webquest.org because it was created by the developer of WebQuests Bernie Dodge. It also provides historical information, tools, research, and online resources for building and sharing WebQuests.
Want to know how WebQuests align with Common Core State Standards? Check this article out from Critical Thinking Works that gives more information.
http://criticalthinkingworks.com/?p=266
References
Smarter balanced assessment consortium. (2012). Retrieved from: http://www.smarterbalanced.org/k-12-education/teachers/
Dodge, B. (2007). What is a webquest?. Retrieved from: http://www.webquest.org
The Elements of Learning 