Mod 9 - WebQuest

So it's taking me a little more time than I initially anticipated to decide on which Internet Community Project to join. So many choices... Instead, I thought I'd take a peek at the WebQuest powerpoint and a couple of examples of Web Quest tasks developed by teachers.

Here's a quick rundown of my initial impressions and thoughts on the WebQuest format:

The powerpoint sets the stage for a different type of student assessment and activity, one in which students pursue information using the internet as their primary source and engage in a task (or a project) that encourages higher level thinking. The expectations for the learner are clearly mapped out in the WebQuest document that includes a multidimensional rubric. The task can (and should) be interactive between the learner and the teacher, because the revision process exists on both sides of the equation. Teachers are responsible for developing a task that integrates different styles of learning, multiple levels of understanding, and pertains to the Standards in addressing skills and information that students need. 

K. Potter's San Diego High example, in which students prepare and teach a standards based math lesson to elementary students is straight forward in its execution, and requires students to complete a six step process (in the form of a book). The rubric for assessment (Evaluation) is clearly stated and shows the four "tiers" of quality in six different categories. These benchmark descriptions help Potter's students have a clear vision of the type of work expected from their third grade students, and how to assess learning and participation based on the standards for each category. 

Potter's WebQuest also includes an internet resource page, where students can tap into links that their teacher has amassed as they engage in their own search for appropriate information as it pertains to their assignment. The assignment in itself requires students to think about their own learning in reflective ways, and to identify their strengths as learners and teachers. Designing a math lesson for younger students not only requires Potter's students to identify necessary math skills and teach them verbatim, but to teach in a way that is effective, engaging, and appropriate for younger children. The booklets also require a one page reflection, which I feel is key in having students respond to any new learning model. 

 The level of understanding required of Potter's students in assembling this booklet is necessarily high because students must not only understand the curricular content (which high school students are free to choose from a list), but they must develop a developmentally friendly task using the correct vocabulary for their third-grade students. Potter's assignment is not simply a "math lesson," but also a language arts, communication, and computer literacy assessment. 

I feel that WebQuest could be integrated into my existing framework for different content areas, however I have yet to see exactly how independent my students are in using technology. Obviously, at the early elementary level, a great deal more emphasis would be placed on simple step directions (such as following a link), and less on teaching skills to others or typing up reflective thoughts. I imagine the initial start up time for using WebQuest and migrating my lessons to this format would be rather substantial, even if some of those lessons already exist in a similar structure (sans internet resource links). The model for WebQuest is essentially a model for good teaching as far as I am concerned, in that it requires students to engage in a higher level of understanding and thinking, and to utilize authentic resources such as those found on the internet. Multidimensional rubrics, reflection on learning experiences, and rich/integrated tasks should be the core for most student assignments regardless of a teacher's familiarity with WebQuest. 

Nonetheless, I do very much like the delineated format of the WebQuest model and the way it simplifies the process into a readable package that encourages students to work with technology to achieve other curricular goals. In schools where teachers are at a loss for ways to meaningfully integrate technology and the internet into their classroom plans, programs like WebQuest provide the means for translating existing (and under-developed) lessons into larger experiences that develop a wide range of skills that students will undoubtedly use in the future, as computer literacy becomes an increasingly vital component of survival in the job market and the world of information.