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WebQuests in the Intermediate Elementary Classroom

Module by: Amy Sarkaria. E-mail the author

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Summary: The internet is becoming the standard research tool in academics today. WebQuests are a means to focus and educate students on the uses of the internet for research. This module focuses on the use of WebQuests across the curriculum in the intermediate elementary classroom.

Introduction to WebQuest Possibilities

According to Bernie Dodge, one of the WebQuest model creators, "A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all the information that learners work with comes from the web." Since the beginning days at San Diego State University, tens of thousands of teachers have welcomed WebQuests as a means to engage students in the kinds of thinking required by the 21st century. The WebQuest fever, so to speak, has caught on internationally spreading to countries like China, Brazil, Australia, Spain, and Holland.

Basically, a WebQuest utilizes the internet as a means of teaching a specific learning objective. A WebQuest provides students with predetermined internet links that will locate specific information as designated by the teacher. The students will follow step-by-step instructions that will take them through a course of websites and ask questions regarding the information on these websites. It is an opportunity for students to use the internet as a research tool to discover information about the lesson objective. It also prevents students from visiting alternate or inappropriate websites. The WebQuest is a meaningful way to bring technology into the classroom.

WebQuests support inquiry-based learning, a student-centered, active learning approach focusing on questioning, critical thinking, and problem-solving. WebQuests are a fun, interactive method of teaching that allow students to increase understanding through involvement.

WebQuests are not just about looking up information on the internet. The task, or purpose, is the single, most important aspect of a WebQuest and these tasks can stimulate higher level thinking. There is the mystery task which requires students to synthesize information from a multitude of sources like in http://www.pekin.net/pekin108/wash/webquest/. And, there is the journalistic task that allows students to recognize biases in the media by collecting data from a variety of sources and write about a particular event such as in http://oswego.org/staff/tcaswell/wq/gildedage/student.htm. Other tasks include design, compilation, creative product, consensus building, persuasion, self-knowledge, analytical, judgment, and scientific. To learn about the types of tasks and to get some examples visit http://webquest.sdsu.edu/taskonomy.html.

Teachers have options in the realm of WebQuest usage. Hundreds on WebQuests have been published and are easily located on the web and, if the published WebQuests don't quite fit the lesson of the day, they can be easily adapted and enhanced to meet your personal needs. Visit http://webquest.sdsu.edu/adapting/index.html for ten easy steps to choosing, enhancing, modifying, and adapting a WebQuest. Looking for more information on adapting a WebQuest, check out http://eduscapes.com/sessions/travel/adapt.htm.

Feeling ambitious? Then you might be open to the possibility of designing your very own WebQuest and here's a link that will get you started, http://webquest.sdsu.edu/designsteps/index.html.

Did anyone mention assessment? Not to worry, here's a ready-to-go rubric just for WebQuests.

http://webquest.sdsu.edu/webquestrubric.html

WebQuests, WebQuests, and More WebQuests

Webquests are so versatile and easy to use! Below is a compilation of websites linked to hundreds of WebQuests ready to be used in the classroom tomorrow. I've separated them out by subject but most are interdisciplinary. All the below links are geared for grades 3-5.

Science:

http://webquest.org/search/webquest_results.php?curr=currscience&grade=grade35&Submit=Search+Matrix

Mathematics:

http://webquest.org/search/webquest_results.php?curr=currmath&grade=grade35&Submit=Search+Matrix

Social Studies:

http://webquest.org/search/webquest_results.php?curr=currsocial&grade=grade35&Submit=Search+Matrix

English/Language Arts:

http://webquest.org/search/webquest_results.php?curr=curreng&grade=grade35&Submit=Search+Matrix

Art/Music:

http://webquest.org/search/webquest_results.php?curr=currartmusic&grade=grade35&Submit=Search+Matrix

Health/Physical Education:

http://webquest.org/search/webquest_results.php?curr=currhealth&grade=grade35&Submit=Search+Matrix

Note: All of the above links are through the website webquest.org. I just thought it would be easier to separate the lists of WebQuests by subject. If you would like to research more options just travel on to http://webquest.org/search/index.php. There are search options for primary grades and secondary grades and more subjects.

Here are some more fantastic links to more fantastic WebQuests.

http://oncampus.richmond.edu/academics/education/projects/

http://projects.edtech.sandi.net/staffdev/elem99/schedule.html

http://www.aacps.org/aacps/boe/INSTR/CURR/comed/es/webquest/Indexqu.htm

Not sure if you found a winning WebQuest, ask yourself:

  1. Is it a quality project?
  2. Does it fit my needs?
  3. Is it a good use of time?
  4. Is it a good use of technology?

WebQuests in the Classroom

Classroom Example One: The following link is from a classroom teachers website, http://www.myteacherpages.com/webpages/TTravis/wequests.cfm. Mrs. Travis has created a website that contains over twenty WebQuest links. She uses these links as group classroom assignments. Her setup allows for easy lesson planning with technology uses.

Classroom Example Two: The following link is to a top rated WebQuest: http://www.pageflakes.com/j.squires/. The authors of the WebQuest expressed the following regards, "We hope you enjoy using this webquest project with your students. The project is designed to be a 5-7 week unit of study (with room to grow!) depending on the tasks you set for your students and how 'big' you want to make the final debrief session. If the art work and investigations are done properly it could even evolve into an Earth 2.0 Presentation Night! We would appreciate any useful feedback and/or suggestions you can offer us and can be contacted via the email address: Earth2.0@hotmail.com. If you would like permission to edit our webquest, perhaps to edit the TO-DO list for example, please contact us via email to pass on your school email address and a brief outline of your plans."

Classroom Example Three: This example is another top rated WebQuest. It meets standard requirements for mathematics and is collaborative in nature. The following link will take you immediately to this WebQuest, http://schoolyardblitz.wikispaces.com/teachers. It was written by Jodie Tilley and Pennie White and has been successfully implemented. It has students design an outdoor space for their school using google sketchup.

Classroom Example Four: Acadia Owen, a student teacher affiliated with The College of William and Mary, created a WebQuest oriented lesson on the French Revolution. It was not a typical WebQuest activity but it held the same principles. Her lesson used a timeline website, http://mnemograph.com, that allowed students to add information about the French Revolution in chronological sequence. The WebQuest aspect was utilized in the students' research process. Ms. Owen used http://portaportal.com for student WebQuest research.

Now for the Flipside of the WebQuest

There are several drawbacks to WebQuests. First, if your school is not equipped with internet or enough computers, this activity will not work at school. Second, if the WebQuest is not carefully scaffolded, students will either not be able to follow the lesson or wander through possibly inappropriate internet sites. Third, it does take planning time to browse through all the WebQuests out there and find the right one. These are a few problems that can occur with using WebQuests but they can be overcome.

WebQuest Research, Oh My!

Since the beginning of the WebQuest phenomena in 1995, many graduate students and educators have researched the effects of WebQuests in the classroom. Most research has proven the positive effect of WebQuests on the learning experience. The following are a couple of examples of researched and published WebQuest successes.

In the article, "A WebQuest for Spatial Skills," students created a series of habitat maps and through creating the hypothetical habitat, students analyze, evaluate, compare, and contrast by making and justifying alternative choices. This is an example of the use of WebQuests to promote higher level thinking.

Another article, "Paving the Road to Technology Integration," discusses how a team of seventh graders created a WebQuest on the American Revolution that was, in turn, used by third graders in the same school district. The lesson turned into an unforgettable and invaluable learning experience for both students and staff that will last for years to come.

WebQuest Tips To Live By

  1. Don't let technophobia keep you away from this valuable student learning experience.
  2. Be familiar with the technological equipment provided by your school before planning a WebQuest activity.
  3. Set clear instructional goals and objectives before researching and using WebQuests.
  4. Computers and internet access are a must for WebQuest implementation so schedule computer lab use or laptop checkout ahead of time.
  5. Have a backup plan just in case the technology fails.
  6. Students need to be familiar with basic computer procedures (following internet links) or the teacher will have to include computer use instruction as part of the lesson.
  7. Do not force the use of a WebQuests, if it doesn't fit your lesson then, no worries, there will be other opportunities.
  8. Most importantly, be open to the endless possibilities that WebQuests present.

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