Webquests

In [|education], a **WebQuest** is a research activity in which students read, analyze, and synthesize information using the [|World Wide Web]. Webquests were invented by [|Bernie Dodge] and [|Tom March] at [|San Diego State University] in [|1995]. According to the original paper by Dodge [|[1]], a WebQuest is "an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the internet, optionally supplemented with videoconferencing." The WebQuest is valued as a highly [|constructivist] teaching method, during which students actively build their own understanding of a topic. "Authentic," or real-world questions or problems are often researched, and students work cooperatively to find solutions. Instructors can target the rigor of the activity to challenge students by varying the level of abstraction of questions as defined by [|Taxonomy of Educational Objectives]. Relevance of instructional material is addressed by using Internet based news resources to infuse current events into the lesson. Usually, the quest is divided in the following sections: Students typically complete WebQuests in cooperative groups. Each student in each group then has a "role," or specific area to research. WebQuests often take the form of [|role-playing] scenarios, where students take on the personas of professional researchers or historical figures. (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WebQuest)
 * Introduction
 * Task
 * Process
 * Evaluation
 * Conclusion
 * Teacher Page

PMI on Webquests: Plus: Individual or collaborative education is a focus; using problem based learning or contextual learning Minus: requires access to computers for multiple lessons Interesting: a variety of learning techniques catering for various learning styles

General Links on Constructing your own: Instant Projects - very easy to use - free - http://instantprojects.org/webquest/main.php Webquest Building Blocks - http://projects.edtech.sandi.net/staffdev/buildingblocks/p-index.htm Webquests Templates - http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/WebQuestTemplate/webquesttemp.htm#Overview

Commercial Sites: http://questgarden.com/ Template program for designing webquests - $20 (US) online

Links: Selecting a Webquest - http://webquest.sdsu.edu/project-selection.html 270 Science Webquests - http://instantprojects.org/webquest/science.php?cmd=resetall Science Webquests - Not really science - it is social science - but it is a great example for a year 12 class - http://www.web-and-flow.com/members/lhayman/globalization/webquest.htm

Middle School Webquests Research Biomes - http://www.dowslane.org/biomeweb.html http://coe.west.asu.edu/students/micheles/biomes/index.htm

Greenhouse Worksheet

Space Colony Webquest http://www.coollessons.org/spacecolony.htm#INTERPLANETARY_SURVEYOR Space Doctor Game (http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/space/playspace/games/spacedoctor/) Rocketry http://www.spacegrant.hawaii.edu/class_acts/GravityRocketDoc.html
 * Space Webquests**:

NASA - International Space Station Plant Research Webquest http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/events/cotf/webquest/index.html#introduction

Environmental Mysteries http://enviromysteries.thinkport.org/ (addition by James Nixon)