This article is not only a checklist for evaluating, but also a checklist on what you need in a web quest. First, the teacher needs to decide on what type of web quest they are going to have the students do; a short term project or a long term project. Would you like the assignment to last 3-4 class periods or 3-4 weeks? Once you have made this decision you can focus on the type of project the students will be completing.
A few of the requirements I feel need to be included are below:
- Allow for collaborative tasks and for individual work.
- Provide a variety of activities to accommodate different learning styles.
- Give clear directions.
- Technology must be used in the final project.
In teaching freshman math, I don't have many opportunities to have the students work together on projects. This will allow them to use reasoning skills to prove an outcome, instead of just following the steps to the correct answer.
Copyright 101 for Educators
The underlying meaning of this article is copyright is a VERY complex issue. To be on the safe side always get written permission before copying anything from the Internet or any other publication. If you can't get written permission, original create all material yourself! A lot of students are not taught the difference between right and wrong at home, so the only place they are going to be held accountable is in the classroom. We need to be role models in every aspect of life.
2 comments:
Susan,
Having a checklist when creating a webquest is very helpful, when you're stuck with what to do next. Teaching elementary science and social studies, webquests have definitely helped my teaching and the students motivation to learn
As far as copyright laws, you are 100% correct is when in doubt, get written permission. It helps you in the long run and you don't have to stress about if you are copyrighting information or not.
WebQuests are good tools when they are done properly. If you follow these guidelines and your check list you will increase your chances of success. I think that there is one failing of many WebQuests though. Even one that meets all the standards can be a dismal failure in the classroom. The way to avoid this is to follow your guidelines AND try it out and refine it. The best WebQuests that I’ve seen were either based on a proven activity or project. You can do this by either basing your WebQuest on something you did successfully before, or make a basic WebQuest and then try it out on your class. Once you have a good product refine and publish your WebQuest. The best way to avoid problems with intellectual property etc., I’ve found, is to create original content. Really, it’s not that hard. Have you ever noticed that much of what is out there is not a perfect fit? Sometimes you have to use others as authorities to back you up, or you have no other way of showing a picture of something unless you borrow it. When you need to use others stuff don’t be afraid. As long as you cite them and get permission when necessary you are okay.
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