Webquests
From RSCWMWiki
Contents |
Introduction
What is a WebQuest?
‘A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented activity in which most or all of the information used by learners is drawn from the Web. WebQuests are designed to use learners' time well, to focus on using information rather than looking for it, and to support learners' thinking at the levels of analysis, synthesis and evaluation.’ http://webquest.sdsu.edu/overview.htm
A WebQuest is an interactive classroom-based, investigative learning activity based around the Internet. The duration can be anything from one lesson, to a whole module, and the activities usually involve collaborative work and/or role-playing. The materials are selected by the practitioner before the activity begins, so that the learners concentrate on using the information rather than searching for it.
Topics that are ideal for this type of investigative activity are those with open-ended questions, or questions with many possible solutions, which require the learners to use their creative and problem-solving skills. Task questions could begin: “what was it like living in…..”, “what would Shakespeare think of…”, “what can we learn from….” Etc. So WebQuests work very well in subjects like social studies, history and science, where students need to develop analytical thinking skills.
Read the rest of this article here, including a whole list of links and templates for you to use : http://excellence.qia.org.uk/page.aspx?o=150447
- It can be as short as a single class period or as long as a month-long unit;
- It is usually (though not always) involve group work, with division of labour among students who take on specific roles or perspectives;
- They are built around resources that are preselected by the teacher. Students spend their time USING information, not LOOKING for it. reference
Exemplar webquest
Here is an example of a webquest that Kevin Brace created (April 2009) to experience and evaluate Second Life and Gardners Multiple Intelligences. Please feel free to download and reuse this webquest for your own purposes;
External links
Links to external web sites.
See also
Links to other pages in the RSC MediaWiki
RSC contacts
Kevin Brace contributed this article. He can be contacted by email and telephone: Kevin Brace [1]. 01902 518931 For more information about the RSC West Midlands, visit our website at http://www.rsc-wm.ac.uk
