Class 9

This post is intended to address our last project component, a Webquest, which, you'll be working on during this class. Some of this blog post is a reiteration of information posted last week. Remember that once you've published your Zunal Webquest (on their site) it will remain on there for eternity (who knows how long that will be?), where they can be exported later as various file formats for distribution to your students.

Today:

• please prepare to copy your Powerpoint Presentations on my flash drive
• please work on your Webquests and try to bring them to completion
• please be prepared to export your finalized Webquest as a PDF that I can collect (TBD)
• please take an evaluation form with you when you leave in order to spend the time required to comment on the class in a thoughtful way (We discussed this last week. Please return them to Kelley Davis prior to our last class)

Please address the various parts of the Webquest by following the guidelines provided in each section. You are only required to do those in a way that pertains to or makes yours effective to your students. Precision and clarity should be most important; not wordiness.

I will be moving around to each of you today in turn to help you with any of the above.  

At the same time I also need to collect your Powerpoint Presentations during class. I did receive some via email during the last couple of days, but had spotted success opening them.

As I come around today, I'll collect them on a flash drive. We can quickly go through them, if you wish, before they get posted this weekend.

This is all leading to a culmination of your work that I want to publish for you in one place on the Web. All of your work should unite with your movies in the same location, so that you could either access it yourself during a lesson presentation, or you could direct your students to do so.

It will take a considerable amount of time to organize and post to the Web all of your work, so please try to complete your Webquest during class today or at least by Friday afternoon (really). That will give me the weekend to post all (64 total) of the pieces of your units.

The Webquest should complement and complete your integrated learning unit. With that in mind, I'd like to direct you to a number of sites that contain, either tutorials, or examples of Webquests, including Zunals. You'll have most of Class 9 to work on these. Just take a a look at what follows and begin thinking about what you'd like to do and set yourself up with an Zunal account. Use your complete email address for your username.

Class 8 Review Material:

Definition of WebQuests from The Zunal site:

Professor Bernie Dodge of San Diego State University defines a WebQuest as an inquiry-oriented activity that uses resources on the World Wide Web. WebQuests pull together the most effective instructional practices into one integrated student activity. These Web-based projects use World Wide Web sites to help students develop problem-solving and decision-making skills. WebQuests are interesting and motivating to teachers and students. An effective WebQuest develops critical thinking skills and often includes a cooperative learning component. Students learn as they search for information using the Web, following a prescribed format that focuses on problem solving and authentic assessment. A well-written WebQuest requires students to go beyond simple fact finding. It asks them to analyze a variety of resources and use their creativity and critical-thinking skills to solve a problem. WebQuests help students analyze, synthesize, and evaluate information.

WebQuests.org 

Matrix of Sample Zunal WebQuests   http://www.zunal.com/index-matrix.php

Zunal Webquest Guidelines   http://www.zunal.com/help-about-whatiswebquest.php

Zunal Webquest Tutorial and Workshop   http://zunal.com/site.php?s=1

Tech Insights and Zunal Webquests   http://www.wiu.edu/coehs/techinsights/blog/?p=983