My Webquest: http://www.wix.com/erbenlegend009/webquesthistory
When choosing to use a webquest for classroom content, it is important to understand its structure and then decide if it is credible/useful for the students.
1) An Insect's Perspective (Science & Literacy 2): The introduction of this webquest has little information about the subject, making it hard for students to understand what they need to know. The introduction is one sentence about bugs. The task is also poor because it does not have a description of what exactly the students are expected to do and how to do it. The task is also not challenging the students' intellegence on insects by simply asking, "how would you convince someone to not exterminate you" because that can easily be answered. The process itself sounds easy to comprehend yet time consuming for 2nd graders. However, if the time limit was minimized I believe the project could be successful. Lastly, the rubric is confusing and complicated for 2nd graders. For example, the rubric states "no gramatic errors and correct spelling" but the students are just now learning how to spell and create sentences in the 1st and 2nd grade so teachers should be helpful in their writing and not deduct points for it. Overall, I would not use this webquest because of its poor introduction, tasks, process, and evaluation.
2) The Four Seasons (Science 2): The introduction gives a simple, brief explanation of what the students will be learning and what their responsibilities are for their project. The tasks are easy to understand and the students can learn alot from their groups' specific season. The process of this webquest has a lot of steps to it, however it is fairly easy to understand each instruction listed. Lastly, the evaluation is neatly organized and easy for the students to understand. I think that this is a great beginner level webquest which can be used effectively because of its overall clearity of directions and it's fun to learn about seasons in the 2nd grade.
3) Who Really Owes the Rosetta Stone (science 6): The introduction is too short and unorganized to fully understand and the information is not credible. The task is literally a sentence long and does not explain the steps of the tasks thoroughly. The process is not evident or visual within the webquest and the evaluation is merely based on the teacher reviewing the project and voting based on the "fate" of the rosetta stone. I would definitely reccommend improving this webquest because it does not seem to have a challenging task, full detail on the process, nor a valid evauluation from the teacher.
4) Review of Algebra I (Math 8): The introduction is precise and clear on what the subject pertains to and the tasks are organized based on lesson content. The process is a short 5 steps and made to help the student not only learn the material, but practice the equations and methods in order to improve their skills. The evaulation of this webquest could use some improvement because the rubric is not expecting a lot from the students' and their work. Overall, this webquest is helpful and could be used for several subjects in 8th grade math.
