WebQuestComponents

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​Below are examples of WebQuests that are strong in the various components. If you are adding to this wiki site, please be sure to explain a little about the WebQuest and why you feel it is strong in the designated area.
Some of these examples don't have explanations as to why they are strong examples. Feel free to figure it out and add the description and that will count as your contribution to the site.

Introduction

WebQuests with a strong Introduction
This introduction presents an idea that a character has and presents a few problems that the character faces. Without asking the reader to think about solutions to the problem, it poses another thought or question to think about. This introduction is strong because it sparks the reader's curiosity.
  • Rock the Vote The introduction provided makes young mines realize that they have a role and say to their future. It also incorporates present day media that students can relate to. It also capitalizes areas where enthusiasm is anticipated for these young minds.
  • Betsy’s Quilt This may be considered a strong introduction because it is pure fun and excitement. The author didn't bog the reader down with too much information. The introduction is done through a short, to the point paragraph about a diary found with possibly great finds.
  • Time Travel This introduction engages students by placing them in someone elses shoes in past history. It also allows students to work together to be sure that there is success in the classroom/content.
  • The Victims of the Holocaust The introduction is brief, yet the graphics give a great depiction of what is to come. It is evident that this could be developed into a great wiki.
  • Poetry of War This WebQuest has a particularly strong Introduction. It uses descriptive language and really hooks the reader in. It relates to the students very well and seems to be talking directly to them. It also does a good job of setting the background.
  • The Great Alaskan Purchase This webquest opens with a sort of provocative question, however its a very engaging one. This is a dead link!
  • Safe Sexuality and Health The introduction is a little long but it gives students a good ideas as to why they are doing this webquest and how it could help them in the future.
  • Compounding Interest - This WebQuest has a very creative and engaging introduction that introduces students to the idea of compounding interest in the real world.
  • A Nation Divided - The introduction to this WebQuest is very unique. It really engages the students and gives great background information.
  • The Great Depression- This introduction allows students to think about everything they have. It makes them wonder if they could have survived the great depression. It could be taught in middle and high school levels with different criterium. The Great Depression makes us thankful for what we have today. The introduction is very engaging because it actually puts us there and makes us feel the pain and suffering this caused. Teachers can also relate this WebQuest to new diasters in the world.
  • Process Drama: The introduction of this Webquest is most likely the only good thing about about it. Although the remainder of the Webquest is lacking, the introduction clearly states what "process drama" is, which makes students inquire how they will use it in the Webquest. (Do not use this as an example for anything other than a good introduction.)
  • Brain Busters Game Company: The introduction for this WebQuest gives a great description of the subject area in the introduction. It is also full of positive, encouraging words. For the most part the rest of the WebQuest was not bad except for the Title. That could have been a little more creative and eye catching.
  • Guess who's Coming to Dinner - The introduction for this WebQuest is short, to the point, but also gets the reader right into the situation and gives the backstory in a quick and enthusiastic way.
  • Never Again-Again?: The introduction allows students to connect to a real world issue (genocide) and how they are constantly affected by it and how they could help in ending it. The introduction also includes a quote and description that relates to its title and the topic of focus. The introduction will grab students attention.
  • Power Of Persuasion The introduction to this webquest not only gives background information on the task at hand but poses many questions to the students. These questions will get students really thinking about the topic ahead.
  • Comparative Democracy The introduction to this WebQuest captures the readers attention by placing them in the role of a revolutionary who has just overthrown an oppressive government.
  • beowolf I thought this was a really good introduction it compares good and evil to beowolf and grendel it talks about yin and yang and I think introduces the task very well.

  • Webquest with a weak Introduction to compare to those above:

  • To Kill a Mockingbird- The introduction does not pull the reader in. There is no story posed, and instead the author states what the students will learn from the Webquest without
  • The Migration of a Monarch ButterflyThe introduction is very effective on an age-appropriate level in getting students thinking about what it is they'll be studying in the webquest.
and hint of what they are going to do. The introduction is more befitting of the conclusion.

Task-Role Choice

WebQuests with a strong Task, especially in giving students a choice of roles
  • Innovation and Progression: The Zeitgeist of the 1970The strength in this WebQuest is in the task-role section. Each student gets the choice of which of the five artists he or she wants to become. Presenting choices like this allow each group to come together while still representing each member individually. The choices made at this point in the project affect the rest of the project to come.
  • Reconstructing the Yellow WallpaperThis WebQuest has strong task-role choice because the student gets to make many choices throughout this project. First, the student gets to choose their perspective from a list of four characters in the story. Then each student in the group writes from a different person’s angle on the story. This project allows students to explore a story thoroughly by getting to see so many different angles that were not originally presented in the book.
  • Buying your first home This webquest has a great story, and none more realistic! What a great idea for a webquest!
  • A New Twist on an Old TaleThis WebQuest had a st rong task in the sense that it allowed that students a choice in how they wanted to go about it. There is a lot of freedom in the creation of the "Cinderella story" based book on Ancient Greek, but there is also enough structure so that the students can do a nice job.
  • The Art of Communication:Women's Plight to Be Heard
  • Tailing the Samurai's Tale: This WebQuest is very strong in terms of giving the student's a choice of what to do. There are several items that the students can choose to research for this project. The Students could research Samurai Weapons, The Value of Art and Beauty, along with others

Weak Task-Role Choice

Webquests with weak task-roles, that can be used to compare with webquests that have strong task-roles.
  • Poetry of WarThis webquest has a task that does not give a specific audience and it does not really put students into a real world goal. Without these pieces the task seems mundane and just like another school project.
  • In Search of the "Monster" in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein This webquest doesn't provide an audience or a real world goal. It's too bad, because the questions it asks students to consider are compelling and important to understanding the novel, but it would make a better in-class discussion than it does a webquest.



Task-Product Choice

WebQuests with a strong Task, especially in giving students a choice of final products
This webquest is a great example. It gives a very thorough
process which gives the students a sense of structure.
  • The Diary of Anne Frank Ignore everything about this webquest other than the product choice. There is a diverse selection from which students can choose.
  • The Giver Webquest is an amazing webquest and adds to the fact that it is about an amazing book! There are three different product choices that allow the student to demonstrate their knowledge about the book in the best way they know how.

Task-Story

WebQuests with a strong Task section, especially in the way the scenario engages the reader into the WebQuest
  • Music Theme Park The story behind this webquest really engages the learner. If I had this project back when I took music, I would of done a lot better than I did.
  • The Write Stuff This webquest is great for teaching writing. Although the task section is brief, it is directly to the point and it is clear what the student is expected to do.
  • PandemicQuest This webquest is so cool! The task is interesting and engaging. It can be used for both a health class or a history class.
  • The Crucible web quest This webquest has a lot in it. It evokes a lot of emotion. The story trickles in but it is there and throughout the rest of the directions it makes clearer what the role and the audience is.
  • Discovering Ancient Greece This Webquest continues the story as it lists the step by step process of the project. It stays in character and makes the project and its steps fun, and so it does not seem like work but keeps kids engaged after pulling them in with the introduction.
  • Chocolate Chip Cookies: To Eat or Not to Eat? - This is an example of a WebQuest with a great task. The instructions are very clear, it is fun, creative, and interesting. All WebQuests should have a task like this which really makes the students want to try it out.
  • European Exploration this WebQuest has an entertaining task story that would catch a history student's interest and it has A LOT of information about vast array of different explorers.
  • Progressive Era WebQuest this webquest got me excited about the project and it did not sound like "schoolwork." The product for this webquest sounded like it would be a fun and creative way to use the information about The Progressive era.
  • How Should We Remember Vietnam? is an excellent WebQuest and can really get the students thinking about the past and present by tying Vietnam into the wars in the Middle East.
  • Never Again! - Again? is an amazing WebQuest that will teach the students the horrors of genocide.
  • Globalization is not just a class at UMF. It is a real thing and needs to be examined closely. This WebQuest will help students realize that the world is slowly caving in upon itself.

Weak Task-Story

Webquests with weak task-stories, that can be used to compare with webquests that have strong task-stories.
  • Littlerock 9 This webquest is basically just a webpage with some links to get information.
  • Ancient AztecsThis webquest is weak and basically shows links in order to get an answers to questions about the Ancient Aztecs.
  • French Revolution This WebQuest has a very weak task because the task does not relate to the real-world and does not set up an audience/role.
  • The Roaring Twenties This webquest has a weak task that doe not create any kind of story relating to the real world or creating an audience or role. It is one sentence that tells the students what they should have learned by the time they complete the webquest.


Process

WebQuests with an especially strong Process section
This webquest offers the student different roles to choose from, then gives detailed step by step directions, and finally gives the different roles a long list of different resources.
  • Echoes of a Dream Within this WebQuest the process is very strong because it gives students an organized presentation of the expectations for each of the assignments. Options are provided for the readers. It is a well formatted process.
  • Daily Quantities in our LivesThis process is particularly strong because of the way that the steps are organized. The procedure is broken down step-by-step clearly stating what should be accomplished at each point. Another positive aspect of this process section is that there are examples and links for most of the steps so the students know exactly where they should be heading with their work.
  • My Dream House- This webquest has a strong well formatted process section and is very easy for students to follow.
  • Children of the Holocaust This had a strong process because it was thorough and organized. It was very clear to the student, or anyone else doing the WebQuest, what they were expected to do and how to do the best possible job.
  • Trigonometry WebQuest - This WebQuest has a strong process page that has external links embedded in the text of the step-by-step process for students to follow to assist them in their work.
  • A WebQuest About WebQuests - This is a good resource to have when creating your first webquest or when you just need a refresher on the objectives of a webquest. I was also very impressed by the timer in the process section to keep people on track.
  • "Back in Time" A Historical WebQuest - This webquest features a process where students get to pick a job to be part of a team of time travelers. They can either be Project Director, the Sound Technician, or the Graphics Coordinator. This would probably work well with different types of learners. The process was also clear, offered students a few options and listed the questions that would need to be addressed in the writing they'd have to do and the resources were readily available in the process section.
  • Greek Mythology Tabloid This WebQuest is a good example of the creative product type. Not only does it have a very creative task and process, it also allows students to make a very creative product. It seems like a successful example that students will have fun with and enjoy doing. Although the background was lacking, the meat of the WebQuest was great, and so I think that it can be useful for teachers.
  • Teacher, Have You Thought About Me?: MI Webquest: This webquest does well all over, however the resources portion really stuck out. Not only did it contain multiple links on what Multiple Intelligences, but it also gave a link on how to evaluate a website (which is always helpful for students) and also a link on how to effectively write a persuasive piece, which was the final project.
  • "Masters of the Universe" Webquest This webquest has a fun and interesting process that provides a lot of source materials with a lot of video, not just pictures!
  • A Nation Divided This WebQuest had a great process. It was clear and well formed and it gave students a choice as to what they wanted to research, even though the final outcome was the same.
  • Biotech, Inc. This WebQuest has a neat process that assigns four different roles within a group and lots of different resources for each role. It also has a rubric for each role within the group and a good explanation for what each person has to do.
  • Civil War Time Capsule - This WebQuest's process allows for a number of choices for students. Teams of four will be given five possible options to choose from. Teams will also have choices on what artifacts to search for in regards to the capsule. The WebQuest provides clear step-by-step results with a number of resources provided.
  • The Real Game of Life Although the process is lengthy and wordy it gives a lot of good detail.

Webquest with a weak process to compare to those above:
  • To Be Or Not To Be: What an excellent question. Unfortunately this WebQuest does not answer that question. This WebQuest is about Algebra. The process gives some options but they are not very detailed. It is unclear of what the end product should be and the steps for the process are a little unclear as well.
  • Quadratic Formula Fun This process could easily just be a worksheet given to the students; there is no real world task involved with this process. The name of the WebQuest does not make the process sound like any fun.


Evaluation

WebQuests with especially strong Evaluations.
  • Nascar Challenge This is a perfect example of how to evaluate a WebQuest. This site breaks it down into three sections which is really helpful to students on what needs to be done.
  • Extra! Extra! This example is a great example because it gives readers a great step-by-step directed evaluation. It is very difficult for students not to know what the expectations are for the WebQuest.
  • Voices of the Holocaust This website is a great example of an evaluation section. The project requires both an individual and a group grade, and each is given a thorough rubric to follow. In addition, there is a good explanation of the grading system.
  • Day at the Museum This WebQuest has a great Evaluation section. It provides checklists in each of the boxes to give the student and teacher a better idea of how the student is doing in each area. It is also created so that the teacher, student, and a peer can grade the project. It is also very detailed and specific.
  • Geometry WebQuest- This WebQuest has a solid evaluation page. It lists what the key components that they will be graded on and provides a detailed rubric.
  • Lord of The Flies Webquest This webquest has a very detailed evaluation, but rather than using a rubric, they use percentages.
  • King Tut Was it Murder? - This is a solid evaluation section. A rubric is provided so that students know exactly how they are getting scored.
  • Atomic History Webquest While the rest of this Webquest is not so good, it provides both a product and a presentation rubric for the students, with a link to a separate page to both of them. This makes the rubrics easy to print off, and clear for the students.
  • The Galapagos-Islands Suspended in Time- The evaluation is clear and the rubric will help guide students in the development of their product.

Weak Evaluation

WebQuests with an especially weak Evaluation.
  • Music Theme Park - This WebQuest seems creative and really solid, until you get to the evaluation. It is even listed a a good example in the story component above. But the evaluation consists of a list of questions that can be answered with a simple "yes" or "no" and since it is just a list, there isn't even a rubric!
  • Magical Fairytale Moments -This WebQuest
has a very weak evaluation. It is a single rubric with three categories. The descriptions are very generic, and not that detailed, and there is no self-evaluation rubric.
  • Roller Coaster Designer - This QebQuest was otherwise strong except an unusually large percentage was put on a drawing (80 points).
  • Talking to Parents about Sex - This WebQuest had little for evaluation. The main source of evaluation came from other sources and generic rubrics. There was no personalized rubric or set of instructions for the Quest.

Conclusion

(Don't forget the work you did in class evaluating conclusions. Feel free to use the evaluation page from that activity to help you evaluate a strong conclusion.)
WebQuests with a strong Conclusion
  • The Art of Communication:Women's Plight to Be Heard This is an example of a strong conclusion because it makes you want to continue researching the topic even after the webquest is completed. It isn't mundane or boring. It allows students to make connections between what they have learned and apply it to real life situations. It certainly implies that readers research beyond the WebQuest itself.
  • The Baffling Baby Mix-Up This WebQuest has such a great conclusion! It reviews what was learned, makes connections to the real world, and it even provides additional links for students to learn more!
  • Space Race This is an example of an awesome conclusion because the creator reviews all of the aspects of the project that the students accomplished. However, instead of reviewing the aspects as results of a project that students did, the creator addresses the students as if they are actually scientists who accomplished this real life task. It motivates students to take what they learned and apply it to the real world.
  • Life and Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King - This conclusion is strong because it asks students to think further about what they just researched. It also asks them to share with their classmates their thoughts, which encourages further discussion.
  • My Trip Around the World Adventure The conclusion for this WebQuest asks students to reflect on their project without doing additional work. They are asked to think about what they learned about themselves and they are encouraged to continue exploring the world.
  • Time for Change This webquest has an excellent conclusion. The conclusion wraps up the entire task in a non-repetitive or hokey way. The conclusion encourages students to continue to do further work and to continue to work toward their goals and/or set new goals.
  • A Seperate Peace: A Teenager Experiences World War II

    This WebQuest was an example of a good conclusion because it briefly explained what the students had to do and praises them for their accomplishments without being too preachy.

WebQuests with a weak conclusion:
  • STI Risks This is example of a weak conclusion because it doesn't wrap up the webquest. Instead it gives a hotline number.
  • One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - This conclusion doesn't really incorporate anything else to it. I especailly don't like the phrase "I hope you developed" or "I hope you have learned." A conclusion should restate what they learned and tie in possibilities for greater or more indepth learning.
  • Things Fall Apart: Understanding Context through Expert Interviews - The conclusion is boring and doesn't ask students to take the information any further. The WebQuest was supposed to be an introduction to the novel Things Fall Apart and the WebQuest author concludes with, "You're now going to be reading the book." There's no creativity and I can't see how students could get excited about reading the novel.
  • Edgar Allen Poe : This is a WebQuest that does a good job giving examples of comparing the literature of Poe and either three authors before his time or three authors after his death. Students are given a multitude of resources to adequately research the authors they have chosen to compare to Poe.
  • Time Travels with Forest Gump - This is an example of a WebQuest that is fun interesting, and very clear on the instructions. I was so excited about this WebQuest untill I realized it has no conclusion. It is such a let down to do all the work and build a WebQuest up only to have it end abruptly.
  • The American Revolution:Was it worth it? This WebQuest is weak because it does not give any conclusion. The Webquest just ends with an unclear rubric. It is disappointing because it could be a good WebQuest if it had a conclusion and a clear evaluation process.
  • Geometry This conclusion only provides a recap of what they students know they did during the process (developed a model and analyzed them). It is lacking any sense of posing ideas for students to think about for further understanding.
  • Test Taking Skills This conclusion has errors and is just plain awful. It doesn't give a conclusion for the web quest at all.

Website Design/ Title

Although the title and layout of a WebQuest are not as important as the task, process, or conclusion they still play an important role. Students decide whether or not a WebQuest is going to be interesting or not the minuet they read the title and look at the design. If the title is not catchy they your students are not going to be interested no matter what.
  • King Tutankhamun: Was It Murder? - This is an example of a WebQuest with a great title and a very creative layout. Without even reading the task or the process I already knew that this was going to be an intereting WebQuest and it really got me hooked. ----
  • Chasing Carlos and Cristina Cruz This webquest had a great title because it left you thinking about what you would be accomplishing. It was a great webquest all around, it would really engage students and required them to use their Spanish in a creative way.
  • Breaking News... Reporting From the Edge of Disaster This webquest has a very catchy title. It makes you stop and think about what you could be reporting on, letting your mind wander. Everyone loves breaking news, that is what got me
  • The Journey of a Water Molecule- This WebQuest has interesting graphics that go along with the story and just make it less bland.
  • Mission Impossible: Shakespeare's Secret Formula This webquest has a fantastic title that makes you curious about what Shakespeare's Secret Formula is. The title gets you intrigued and wanting to know more. The introduction puts you into the role of an agent trying to discover what the secret formula is.

Webquests with weak design/title
  • The Gold Rush the design of this webquest almost does not deserve to be called a webquest. It looks like an online worksheet.
  • Is the Earth the Only Planet? This web quest is all on one pge and has miinimal link.
  • The Berlin Wall The entire page is in black and white with nothing to catch the eye. It is just very bland.


Helpful Tips for creating WebQuests:
  • It can be hard to figure out where to start when trying to create a WebQuest. This link can shed some light onto what they are, how to make them effective, and why they are important.
  • When making a webquest you really want to make sure that you include all of the parts and they are clearly labeled. If parts are left out like the evaluation in Power of Persuasion or the conclusion in Poetry of War then it can leave students in the dark about what expectations they are suppose to meet and or what they were suppose to take away from the webquest. If parts are not clearly labeled then your students will be wasting time trying to find them, this is especially true when it comes to the resources.