Connect

The instructional goal of a short term WebQuest is knowledge acquisition and integration, described as Dimension 2 in Marzano's (1992) Dimensions of Thinking model. At the end of a short term WebQuest, a learner will have grappled with a significant amount of new information and made sense of it. A short-term WebQuest is designed to be completed in one to three class periods.

The instructional goal of a longer term WebQuest is what Marzano calls Dimension 3: extending and refining knowledge. After completing a longer term WebQuest, a learner would have analyzed a body of knowledge deeply, transformed it in some way, and demonstrated an understanding of the material by creating something that others can respond to, on-line or off-. A longer term WebQuest will typically take between one week and a month in a classroom setting.

Why Use a WebQuest?

A well-planned WebQuest has guidance for the students, an imaginative and flexible project, and a set of web links that provide the information/content for the task.

There are hundreds of WebQuests already developed on the web. Your WebQuests should be specifically tailored to your curriculum and students. WebQuests have been developed for all age groups, K-12 through graduate level. Before using one that is already available online, always check to ensure the information and tasks are relevant to your course curriculum and that all of the links are working.

Before creating your first WebQuest, search through existing ones. Look for creative, exciting projects that you may be able to adapt to your course. You can get some great ideas from others. If you would like to use an existing WebQuest, you should request permission from the original author to use their material. Many WebQuests are available for use freely in education, however, it is always good practice to obtain permission before using. The author's name and/or email address is usually provided somewhere within the WebQuest.

The Process
	First consider... Do you really need to create a WebQuest from scratch? Why reinvent the wheel? Consider adapting existing WebQuests to meet your needs. http://webquest.sdsu.edu/adapting/index.html. 1. Pick a topic that requires understanding, uses the web well, fits curriculum standards, and has been difficult to teach well. http://webquest.sdsu.edu/project-selection.html

	2. Templates are available online, so you don't have to start from scratch. Select a design that will fit your topic. Download the student and teacher templates for the design you chose. Open them up in your favorite web editor (FrontPage, Composer, etc.). http://webquest.sdsu.edu/designpatterns/all.htm 3. Write up the Task in the student template and the Standards and Learners in the teacher template.

	4. Complete the Evaluation section in the student template. Duplicate it in the teacher template and add any extra information needed by teachers. http://webquest.sdsu.edu/rubrics/weblessons.htm and http://webquest.sdsu.edu/rubrics/rubrics.html

	5. Flesh out the Process section by finding a focused set of resources to provide the information needed by learners. How to do a Google search: http://webquest.sdsu.edu/searching/fournets.htm Specialized Search Engines: http://webquest.sdsu.edu/searching/specialized.html If you have any doubts about the legitimacy of a site, check it out with Fagan's URLInfo tool. http://www.faganfinder.com/urlinfo/ Scaffold where needed with Process Guides. http://webquest.sdsu.edu/processguides/ Check yourself: http://webquest.sdsu.edu/processchecker.html

	6. Complete the Introduction, Conclusion and Credits section and all other parts of the teacher template. Add graphics where appropriate. Read: http://webquest.sdsu.edu/finepoints/ Have someone else evaluate your draft: http://webquest.sdsu.edu/webquestrubric.html
The process isn't always as linear as this, of course. As you work your way through the steps, you may need to go back and modify the work done in previous steps. By the time you get to the bottom, you're done! The most difficult part is choosing a design and task. The most time-consuming part is designing the process.

Component	Purpose
Introduction	Capture student interest and provide background information on the topic.
Task	Describe the project/activity and expected goal. Keep in mind the learning objectives for the assignment. The Taxonomy of Tasks page should help you create an assignment appropriate for your learning objectives.
Process	Explain the steps that students should follow to complete the assignment successfully. Use this Process Checklist to tell students what they should do when. Share the following Process Guide with your students to help them analyze the web data more effectively.
Resources	List the web sites and other sources that students should use to complete the assignment. Students should be encouraged to use up-to-date and reputable sources/sites for information.
Evaluation	Assess the results of the activity. You may adapt the following Rubric for Evaluating WebQuests to fit your specific quest.
Conclusion	Review the activity and encourage students to reflect on the assignment and its results.

Why Use a WebQuest?

The Process