Qualities of Effective Web Quests

A WebQuest is a specific kind of web-based learning activity. It was developed by Bernie Dodge, a professor of educational technology at San Diego State University. WebQuests provide students with the opportunity to work independently or in small group activities that incorporate research, problem solving, and application of basic skills. This teacher-created lesson guides student research using the Internet while incorporating skills such as problem solving.

Qualities of Effective Web Quests

The Beauty of Web Quests are their flexibility since they can be anything to anyone. This makes it hard to identify a typically effective Web Quest. Nonetheless, we have found that Web Quests that promote learning typically have 6 common attributes.

1. Introduction:

The introduction is a means of providing the students with background information that is intended to be a springboard for them to begin the process of inquiry. One way is to present a simulation that leads students to develop a product/service, evaluate a time period, give advice on a given issue, manage a business situation, engage in a debate, or tackle one of life's challenges.

2. Task:

Formulating challenging questions is the difficult part of developing an effective Web Quest. In most cases, a single question is posed that requires students to analyze a vast array of information. For example, "Compare the leadership styles of George Washington and George Bush," or "You just made a revolutionary invention, what steps would you take to insure that no one can steal your ideas for profit?"

3. Process:

In this section, the teacher leads the student through the task. The teacher offers advice on how to manage time, collect data, and provides strategies for working in group situations. Teachers sometimes label this section: learning objectives or advice. In some cases the section is replaced with a complete time line for the project.

4. Resources:

Students are provided with tools (usually web sites), or leads to tools that can help them complete the task. In order for this to be valuable, a teacher must thoroughly review each source. When deciding on sources consider the following:

a. Only list sites that support the proper view for which you are aiming. For every site that explains how > helpful the rain forest is, there are two sites to explain how bad it is.

b. Make sure all the sites you choose are appropriate and do not link to any inappropriate sites.

c. Make sure the source is credible. Anybody can create a web page. Try to use a commercial (.com), non-profit (.org), or educational organization (.edu) site. These sites have something to lose by providing you with poor content.

d. Make sure the site is up to date.

5. Evaluation:

The outcome for Web Quests is usually a product, in most cases, in form of a written/oral report or multimedia presentation. An effective assessment tool to evaluate a product of a Web Quest is a rubric. Rubrics help make the teacher's expectations clear for students. Ideally, rubrics can be created collaboratively with students' input.

6. Conclusion:

Effective Web Quests have a built in mechanism for student reflections. To receive feedback, you can survey your students about their experience, or have the students send you an e-mail sharing their thoughts.

Source: http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/web_quests/