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A WebQuest about WebQuests: Model Solution © Tobias Unger `08 (t.unger@staff.uni-marburg.de)

Group 1: Specific aspects of a WebQuest that are analyzed: TOPIC/INTRODUCTION/CONCLUSION

a) A Method to the Madness! Topic: Irony & Comedy (Styles) - A Historical Development

Summary: The students are supposed to analyze a number of examples of comedy including A Midsummer Night's Dream and contemporary TV-Shows. They are supposed to understand literary concepts of comedy (e.g. 'satire') by the help of online dictionaries or other related websites and apply these to the examples mentioned. Finally, the students are encouraged to write – in groups of 5 – an additional scene for A Midsummer Night's Dream that needs to include two sonnets (advice is given online), must follows the writing and layout guideline of a play, and makes use of comical devices discussed before. At the end, the final product must be performed in front of the class. The students are evaluated with respect to five aspects: Fit with Genre, Creativity, Clarity of Writing, Writing Mechanics, and Performance.

Statement: This WebQuest does motivate the students, because it catches their attention by using a quite authentic anchor: a very popular TV show (Friends). Thus, the students are becoming eager to analyze earlier forms of comedy in order to apply their knowledge to today's TV shows. Not only factual recall ('learn terms related to comedy') but also creative writing processes are embedded in the tasks. Finally, acting out once own written scene can be a lot of fun and might encourage and motivate the students additionally.

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b) Persuasive Techniques Topic: Discover Persuasive Techniques – Example: U.S. Presidential Election 2008

Summary: This WebQuests wants the students to look at the presidential election campaigns 2008 in order to discover persuasive tactics and writing techniques. In goups of 5 (jigsaw group), the students will need to conduct some research about (1 student conducts research on one candidate): Clinton, McCain, Obama, Ralph Nader & Green Party, Constitution & Libertarian Party. After this, all students that conducted research on one specific candidate get together (one-candidate-group) to discuss their results. After this, the students are introduced (by a large number of websites) to the topic 'bias in the media'. Making use of the conducted research about the candidates and bias in the media and making use of the discussion in the one-candidate-group, the jigsaw group gets back together to introduce each candidate to the rest of the group members. Finally, the students are supposed to write a persuasive letter for the school newspaper on the topic: Which candidate would have the most positive impact on our country and should, therefore, become president?

Statement: The chosen topic is obviously very up-to-date and should motivate at least the U.S. student. Unfortunately, the design of this WebQuests is quite demotivating. The tasks are not as well-defined as they should be - students might get confused which group they now have to work with and I personally think that the aspect 'bias in the media' should be more prominent within this WebQuest and its tasks. Additionally, too many different websites need to be consulted by the students, which might also be a demotivating factor. The evaluation page is quite elaborate but looks quite confusing. A better layout would probably be helpful. In my point of view, students should also perform a kind of talk in their classroom, in order to use persuasive techniques not only in a written assignment.

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c) Who Thought Of That? Topic: Research Facts on Different Mathematicians

Summary: This WebQuest will take a look at four female and four male mathematicians. The students are supposed to learn about their life and decide which they would rather be, male or female. The first task of all students is to perform an online scavenger hunt - which basically means, in this case, to answer 46 different questions about 8 different mathematicians (information can be gathered on various websites). After this, the students have to complete a handout where they have to fill in ('gather data of your own') certain facts about each mathematician and, by this, conclude which they like/respect the most. Finally, they have to write a one-page paper as to who they would rather be, a male or a female mathematician and a newspaper article or obituary.

Statement: This WebQuest is probably going to be quite demotivating for the students. The anchor (research facts on different mathematicians) does not stimulate any form of motivation and making a dicission if you rather would like to be a male of female mathematicians is quite obscur, because it will always be subjectively - and not according to the data collected - answered. The design is also quite demotivational (it is terrible) and too many questions (linking to large text-based websites) in the scavenger hunt will even increase the demotivating factor of this WebQuest. Furthermore, the students always work on their own and the information presented and tasks assigned just allow factual recall and no higher level thinking; quite behavioristic, quite boring.

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d) Poetry of War Topic: Poetry: Express War Experiences

Summary: Finding solace in poetry, numerous veterans expressed their feelings through this medium. The students are supposed to find two poems that create a mental image of what war was like and use these examples to learn how a poet can create emotionaly driven visual imagery. the students are supposed to draw three colored pictures (+desciption) to each poem that visualizes the scenery. Finally, the students will need to create their own poem (which is factual and emotional) making use of 'historical websites' to gain information.

Statement: This example is quite two-faced. On the one hand, the students are supposed to be very creative (drawing, writing), the design of the websites, with its pcitures, is quite nice, and the introductory-part catches the students attention by being very emotionally catchy. Hence, these are very motivating factors. On the other hand, the students will always work on their own, their creative drawing and writing process is limited to paper-format and we (and the students) do not know what is going to happen with the final product - the poems. Has to be handed in, is it going to be presented in front of the class ...? We just do not know. A nice idea could have been to have the students draw again pictures for the students-poem. Hence, these aspects are quite demotivating. Nevertheless, in my opinion this WebQuest could be successful, because it introduces a topic - poetry, which is usually not that popular - in a new form that might be quite motivating.

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e) Plants WebQuest Topic: Growing Plants - What to do, What to consider!

Summary: The kids are supposed to help aliens from Mars to grow plants within the next twelve days. They are supposed to teach them the best way to grow plants by creating a journal that should include 8 different aspects that need to be considered (e.g. Describe the four major components of soil). Groups of 4 are supposed to conduct research and write journal entries on those 8 different topics within four days. Next to the provided online links, the students are encouraged to use other textbooks, magazine articles, but not other websites.

Statement: Keeping in mind that this WebQuest was developped for the 4th and 5th grade, the task and the WebQuest in general will probably be quite motivating for kids. The topic is quite authentic and making use of an alien-anchor is probably - in this case - a fun aspect. Thus, the journal entries will probably be quite nice and maybe even fun to read (and write). The design appeard - on the first sight - a bit strange, but considering it to be used by 4th graders, it will serve the purpose (especially the animated gif). Making use of textbook and magazine articles was a good idea, because the web-sites linked to, although designed for kids, are not as easy do browse through (I could only access 3 of them anyhow). In general, I do believe that this WebQuest will work out and does motivate the kids a lot.

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A final model-list about motivating factors in WebQuests (Group 1):

• Topic needs to be interesting (e.g. Persuading People)

• Topic/Resources should be up-to-date (e.g. Persuasive Techniques)

• Anchor used that students can relate to (e.g. 'TV show Friends')

• Anchor used emotionally touches students (e.g. 'War Poetry')

• Students are supposed to be creative (e.g. draw pictures, write journal)

• Group and individual work is encouraged (e.g. jigsaw group)

• Final output is somehow presented or made use of in some other form (e.g. letter, newspaper, acting things out)

• Design of WebQuest needs to be motivating, interesting, and not just boring (e.g. pictures used, nice colors used, nice layout)

Best to Worst (VERY subjective – but a general tendency):

1. Poetry of War 2. A Method to the Madness! 3. Plants WebQuest 4. Persuasive Techniques 5. Who Thought Of That?

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Group 2:

Specific aspects of a WebQuest that are analyzed: TASK/PRESENTATION

f) The New Shadow Topic: Fantasy Quest based on J. R. R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings

Summary: The quest (process) includes 7 different tasks that need to be accomplished. In 5 different groups, each group has to choose and conduct a research on a different Middle Earth cultural group (e.g. Hobbits) - always corresponding to the Lord of the Ring. The groups split up so that a council can be set up, including one representative of each Middle Earth cultural group and debate about which member of each cultural group should be chosen for the quest. Part three of the 7 tasks is to choose which quest (there are 10) should be selected, whereas each quest can only be selected once. Now the coucil has to research the components of the quest and prepare a presentation to the inhabitants of Middle Earth (the whole class) wherein each character of your council responds to this emergency. Task 4 lets the council groups come together again to conduct research (and document it) on 5 different experts of the fantasy genre. Finally, each member of the groups needs to think about (and write an essay about) what he (and the other members of the group) can contribute to solving the quest they are on. The council then should meet again and discuss the differnt solving approaches and work out on major group approach. Then, the students need to prepare a presentation for the class that includes all of the required items from their quest and how it will be solved.

Statement: This WebQuest activates the student in numerous ways. Independent research and creative writing parts as well as group discussion and presentations are all involved. This is achieved by a very complex working process that might need a lot of extra help from the teacher. Switching back and forth from independent to collaboratve assignments might be a bit confusing in this example, although the general idea seems to be great. To complete the whole quest, a lot of time is needed!

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g) ESOL Learners Topic: Reading a Newspaper Article Effectively

Summary: The WebQuest starts with the quote: "A major way we communicate with the rest of the world is by reading the newspaper." Hence, it tries to explain how newspaper articles can be understood better. First, the basic structure of a newspaper article should be analyzed in order to allow the student to think about strategies in scanning a newspaper for interesting stories. The second task is to analyze articles with respect to content, author, reader, and other needed criteria. Furthermore, the students are supposed to practice and searach for needed vocabulary. Last, the students will take a closer look at specific article and analyze them using afore mentioned learned strategies.

Statement: Also the author of this WebQuest found some quite interesting links, the tasks the students have to go through are more or less dull and boring. There is no collaborative nor creative work; the only thing the students have to do is read articles and learn new words. Without any kind of creative or collaborative approach (besides: we are also only talking about text, not multimedia) this WebQuest could also have been conducted without the Internet - read newspaper, collect unfamiliar words, learn new words.

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h) Awesome Comics Topic: Save a Comic Label by Creating a new Comic

Summary: The students are supposed to develop a new comic hero/heroine and write and draw a sample comic. In order to develop a new hero, the students are supposed to conduct some research about a popular comic hero (find facts: background and history, strengths and weaknesses, other characters, main villain) by themselves. In group, the students should then discuss, what makes an original and interesting character. Right after this, the students are supposed to design their own hero (draw a picture and think about and include facts (see above)); some helpful links are provided. Although I am not sure, I guess the students are now still working in groups (sample results are created by about 4 students together) on creating their own sample comic.

Statement: A really good example in how to get your students to be creative. Obviously, the topic (comics) is quite suitable for this approach. Especially uploading the final work will get the students motivated and eager to produce a nice sample comic that everybody then can look at. Collaborative work is also a very important factor. What seems problematic is that I am not sure who is going to be responsible for which part of the final project; hence, a very creative student could do all the work while the rest is sitting next to him. Nevertheless, this WebQuest does provide a great opportunity to work collaboratively and creatively.

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i) The Last Spin Topic: Teenage street Gangs and how They Solve Problems

Summary: In this WebQuest, students are supposed to gather information about teenage street gangs, how these gangs solve problems (what are some violent and non violent ways to solve problems) and how parents, friends and schools can help. In order to tackle these questions, the students are taking up the role of a reporter to cover a story ('Danny committed suicide') from four angles, whereas each member of a group of 4 analyzes the problem from one perspective (guidelines are provided). The students have to write individual reports only taking their specific reporter-viewpoint into account. After that, the team will collaborate and write a report that combines the separate reports into one clear picture of what happened to Danny. Finally, the group needs to give an oral (and multimedia) presentation.

Statement: Analyzing a story from multiple perspectives is quite interesting; especially, because all students can relate to the main topic in some kind of way. Collaborative and creative tasks are assigned in order to provide a good textual basis for the final presentation. Accompanying the oral presentation by a multimedia presentation might be not a good idea, because the creative work done by the students is purely textual - hence, they should concentrate on presenting it in this kind of format (e.g. as a newspaper article). I had the feeling that the author of this WebQuest just wanted to squeeze in some more new media approach; I am sure that probably most of the students did not make use of this optional task of making use of multimedia in their presentation.

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j) Organization of American States Topic: Representing an American Nation in Front of the General Assembly

Summary: The students step into the role of a leader of an American nation (randomly assigned) who has to present the major issues that the nation has to face to 'the General Assembly', seeking guidance from the delegates and leaders of other American nations. The students are supposed to outline the three most important issues their nation must face in order to ensure continued success with political, economic, social and humanitarian development and to pose potential solutions to deal with these problems. The first task of the students is to conduct a research on the basic facts on their nation (only using provided links). Their findings are supposed to be presented in a student-blog (the blog should be written from the point of view as the nation’s leader). All students must, furthermore, respond to at least two other blogs in the role of their nation they represent (offering suggestions about how their nation would deal with one of the issues mentioned in the blog).

Statement: The idea of assigning different countries to different students who take up the role as the country's leader is great. Same holds for conducting individual research and using blogs for posts and comments. Obviously, the student has to be a bit creative to write the post and the comment. However, the concept does not involve any king of collaborative work. And I would also consider the creative work they have to do (to put oneself into the position of a nation’s leader and write a short paper) not as a very very creative one...!

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A final list about activating factors in WebQuests (Group 2):

• individual work should be included (e.g. conducting research)

• group work is very important (e.g. discussions)

• every member of the group should have an individual task to complete/to bring into the discussion (e.g. as in ‘The New Shadow’)

• creative work enables the student to work on a final product (e.g. draw, write, set up)

• use and present the results somehow (e.g. newspaper article)

Best to Worst (VERY subjective – but a general tendency):

1. Awesome Comics 2. The New Shadow 3. The Last Spin 4. Organization of American States 5. ESOL Learners

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Group 3:

Specific aspect of a WebQuest that is analyzed: EVALUATION

k) Marx and Nietzsche Topic: An Analysis of Philosophy

Summary: The Webquest wants the students to organize and participate in a debate concerning the ideas of Friedrich Nietzsche and Karl Marx in order to learn about one philosopher through their own eyes (to 'to discovering the answer to the question, What is Knowledge?'). Devided into groups, the students first have to research both Karl Marx and Fredrick Nietzsche (ideals/philosophies, works, influences on society). After that each group is split up into 2 subgroups (1a Marx; 1b Nietzsche). The subgroups have to create a questionnaire, consisting of 10 question that they would ask the other subgroup's assigned philosopher. Finally, each group (1a + 1b) get together to debate about the collected questions (1 subgroups asks a question, the other answers).

Statement: First of all, the students are not creative (except writing down questions) at all and collaborative group work is also not very well embedded. The students are evalulated according to Understanding of Philosophies, Contribution to webquest completion, Debate, and After-debate discussion. There is no clear clue, how the final grade will be set up (which part is more important and how is each part graded (from 1 to 4?)). The last 2 are understandable and pretty good to evaluate. However, I do not know how the first 2 can be qualitavely evaluated by the teacher. Nevertheless, the evaluation covers the basic steps the students have to achieve in this WebQuest. The 'teacher page' present no extra information about why this WebQuest was set up and what it is good for. It gives one sentence answers to questions that seem to be very important and interesting for those who look at this WebQuest (the learners, standards, process, and resources).

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l) What Caused the Civil War? Topic: The Civil War and ist Roots

Summary: The students are supposed to conduct some research about the events that led up to the battle at 'Fort Sumter' and decide what the true cause of the Civil War was. Hence, In they should learn about different opinions and understand the situations that resulted in the American Civil War. The students are supposed to work in groups of 5, consult resources and debate about their findings and the different opinions (topic for each memer of a group: opinion of the North, opinion of the South, events that led up to the war, opinion of the North during the war, opinion of the South during the war). Finally, each group has to create a Power Point presentation or a video taped re-enactment of the different scenes that they feel support your findings; both need to be at least 7 and no longer than 10 minutes. In addition, each student needs to turn in a paper that is at least two pages in length (about the student's findings).

Statement: The students are evaluated in various categories (Research, Paper submitted that described newly formed opinion, Power Point or Video Tape Presentation, Understanding the opinion of the South, Understanding the opinion of the North, Creativity, Punctuality/Participation). The scores for each of those 7 categories can vary between 5 points (beginning) to 20 points (exemplary); a total of 140 points??? Problematic is that each category seems to be as important as the others. In my opinion specific aspects could be fused together (e.g. Research, Understanding the opinion of the South, and Understanding the opinion of the North). This larger category should be as important as the final paper and the final presentation (in which creativity plays a crucial role). The teacher page again only gives some brief information about who the learners are (which grade), what they should learn (causes of the Civil War), and about the time needed for this WebQuest.

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m) The Salem Witch Trials Topic: Salem Witch Trials

Summary: The task of the students - working in goups of 4 - is to research the victims, one victim per student, of the Salem Witch TriCotton Matherals (Bridget Bishop, Rebecca Nurse, John Proctor, and Giles Corey), with a focus on why they were accused. Additionally, they should find information about the time period, the people, and the statistics of the Salem Witch Trials. Each groups has to create a handout, a Power Point presentation, and a quiz focusing on bibliographical information about each victim. Resources are included, but the students are allowed to use other sites ("but be sure to check for content and accuracy").

Statement: There is no 'Evaluation' page. Hence, it remains totally unclear how the students and their work will be graded and what exactly is being graded. Although there is a 'teacher page' the information found there is very short and does not tell us anything about including this project in-class, what is needed, how long this WebQuest may take, etc.

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n) A Lesson in Civil Disobedience Topic: Standing up for One’s Own Opinion

Summary: This WebQuest puts the student in the position of standing up for one's own opinion in front of a group (here: the school committee). Working individually, the students are supposed to analyze one technique of civil disobedience throughout history (peaceful rallies/sit-ins, speeches/essays/poems/songs, boycotts) and, making use of their findings, write an individual strategy for addressing the problem anchor problem (the school want to know very private things of their students). In groups of 3, students are encouraged to create a definition of Civil Disobedience based on the entire group’s research and make use of it in order to plan their own civil disobedience concerning the anchor problem. Finally, they have to creatively present their findings (5-8 minutes).

Statement: The 'evaluation' page is very detailed and clearly structured. The students will clearly know how each task (and the specific demands of the tasks) will be graded. Each part is assigned specific criteria and maximum points that can be achieved. However, the analysis varies with respect to the 3 different tasks, which is, in my opinion, a bit confusing. The teacher page presents a lot of additional information for the teacher. Standards are described in detail and the process of the WebQeust is again laid out with additional information to be taken into consideration.

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o) Ice Age Topic: Climate Change

Summary: In this WebQuest, the students are supposed to investigate whether or not there will be another ice age. Their job is to present evidence for and against an ice age ensuing, and if one does ensue what is expected to happen and how long until ice begins to re-advance. There are four groups conducting research on one of the following topics: scientific evidence for another ice age, scientific evidence against another ice age, what will happen if another ice age ensues, how long it will take for advancing ice and changing climate to disturb our way of life. Each group is supposed to make use of various links with respect to their unique topic. Finally, each group needs to present their findings to the class (including visuals, overheads, charts, and/or posters) and organize their presentation/information with an outline, concept map or a flow chart.

Statement: Research Time Utilization, Participation in Project, Accuracy of Information During Project and Clarity of Presentation are the aspects that are evaluated (either being poor, good, or excellent). This is obviously quite straightforward but also rather undifferentiated since some major aspects of are not being evaluated (e.g. creativity and design of presentation). Furthermore, not every aspect is as important as the other (e.g. Research Time Utilization versus Participation in Project) and should therefore be graded differently. Furthermore, only the group is evaluated and not the individual contribution to the final output. The 'teacher page' (here: Instructors' Notes) gives some information of how to proceed when conducting this WebQuest, but does not give any necessary information of what should be learned (what, how, and why).

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A final list about the ‘Evaluation page’ in WebQuests (Group 3):

• it should be clear how the students will be evaluated (there need to be an evaluation page)

• the page needs to be clearly structured

• every task of the students needs to be evaluated assigning different aspects/criteria for each task

• if possible, specific aspects/criteria can be grouped together – if they are connected to each other – in order to not have too many different aspects

• group work and individual work need to be evaluated (also they need to be evaluated differently)

• a clear and differentiated assessment of all the different tasks is necessary

• a general scoring scheme should always be adhered to (not varying from task to task)

• it should be clear how many points/which grade is assigned for the completion of each task and the whole WebQuest and how the final grade is set up of all the different sub-grades

A final list about the ‘Teacher page’ in WebQuests (Group 3):

• since a WebQuest is accessible

• online, a 'teacher page' should be included to give advice to those who want to make use of the WebQuest

• it should give information about the following points

o WebQuest designed for grade XY

o prior knowledge that is important

o what is supposed to be achieved by the tasks (with respect to school or governmental guidelines, learning aspects, contextual aspects)

o a more detailed explanation of the general procedure

o additional sources that might help the teacher in his preparation

o a model solution

Best to Worst (VERY subjective – but a general tendency):

1. A Lesson in Civil Disobedience 2. What Caused the Civil War? 3. Marx and Nietzsche 4. Ice Age 5. The Salem Witch Trials

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Group 4:

Specific aspect of a WebQuest that is analyzed: LEARNING-HIGHER LEVEL THINKING

p) Gallery of Art-i-Facts Topic: Brief World Histroy

Summary: The students are supposed to work in teams of 3 in order to plan an art gallery for a museum. They are supposed to explore the art of a region and design a gallery that explores a human theme such as love, struggle, family and nature (art of non-Western cultures, influences such as history, culture and geography, common aspects of being human in all cultures). Thus, a list of of art pieces they are considering purchasing for their museum should be set up. After this, the students work individually by conducting research taking on the role of a historian, geographer or financial analyst. Now, the findings have to be used in order to clarify which pieces of art should be displayed regarding to historical, geographical and financial issues. The reassembled art gallery has to be presented (in some kind of form) to the class.

Statement: This WebQuest represents a very good example of how to get students active, motivated, and enable higher-level thinking, since the students have to work on one topic from various perspectives (as individuals - which pieces they like, and taking up a specific role). Thus, they do not only learn something about world history, but also about art, museums, geography, and financial issues. This kind of interdisciplinary learning helps them to apply cross-thinking to other topics coming up in their future lives.

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q) Feudal Times in Global 9 Topic: Investigate Life during the Middle Ages in Europe

Summary: In this WebQuest, the students are supposed to create three journal entries, describing life in position of a fictive person in the Middle Age in society (activities he/she does in a typical day, his/her responsibilities in society, privileges or limitations, the typical dress of that person/status, two questions the students would like to ask this person). In order to gather information, the students are supposed to spend 3 school lessons in the school's library. If they still need extra sources, some links are provided. The students' final project must include their subjects name, the three journal entries, a picture of clothing the person may have worn and two questions that the students would have if they could go back in time to ask him something about his/her life.

Statement: Leaving aside that this WebQuest and its tasks are pretty dull and boring and could also have been done without the Internet (since most of the time is spend in the library), it does not facilitate any form of higher-level thinking. Obviously, the students are supposed to write creative journal entries, but this is also a form of factual recall that should be avoided or at least should not take up the whole learning process. The students work alone and not in groups, no interdisciplinary or multicultural aspect is included. The WebQuest is not problem-based at all and even the individual writing process is guided and controlled by the specific tasks of the WebQuest. The final project is not presented or in any other form distributed to the rest of the class, which does not help to make the use of this WebQuest in-class a success.

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r) Conflict Yellowstone Wolves Topic: Yellowstone National Park Wolves - A Conflict

Summary: In the Yellowstone National Park, wolves were reintroduced to their natural habitat in 1973. However, in 1997, a U.S. District Judge ruled that all the wolves and their offspring must be removed. The students are asked to analyze the Rocky Mountain Gray Wolf problem and draw their own conclusion to the question, if wolves in Yellowstone National Park should be removed. In groups of 3 to 6, the following research points need to be investigated: wolf behavior, the Yellowstone Wolf Reintroduction Program, the current problem from different perspectives. Finally, the students are asked to develop a solution and report it to the world (by writing an editorial). Each member of the group is responsible for consulting selected web pages and informing the other group members about the information he gathered.

Statement: The big thing about this WebQuest is the emotional factor involved. Students will be drawn into a quite emotional conflict concerning animal rights and farmer fears (authentic!). They are asked to tackle the conflict (problem-based!) from various perspectives (multiple perspectives!) in order to develop their own idea (constructive!) of who is right or wrong and what can be done in order to solve the conflict at the National Park (situated!). This is a quite constructivistic approach; however, creativity is left aside - except writing an editorial at the end of the WebQuest (individually or as a group?) and a more interdisciplinary approach or task would also be helpful. Nevertheless, this WebQuest can serve as a good example for higher-level thinking/learning.

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s) The Gilded Age Topic: Documenting Industrialization in America

Summary: The students are taking up the role as a member of a film production studio that has recently been hired to produce a documentary about the Gilded Age of American history (the industrialization of the late 1800's). The documentary is supposed to highlight technological innovation, big business, urbanization, immigration, and reaction to the period (each group is assigned one of these segments). Each group is supposed to access the web page for their specific segment; each group member the web page for their specific role assigned (Lead Historian, Media Specialist, PowerPoint Engineer, Segment Producer). Furthermore, each group has to prepare a study guide and script to use for the narration in their documentary and work on a final PowerPoint presentation. At the end, the whole class has to preview the assembled documentary, using the study guides in order to informally assess the effectiveness of the documentary segments.

Statement: The students have to take on various roles within each group and are responsible for certain aspects of the final presentation. Their research findings need to be well written and elaborate and the presentation following certain media guidelines. Nevertheless, with respect to higher-learning thinking, the students just have to gather information and rearrange it for their presentation (factual recall). Since the group is just working on one specific segment (which is a good approach, tough), they just gather information from one perspective. Hence, the tasks are not problem-based (what is the major problem), but fact-based (what is it about).

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t) Extra, Extra… Read All About It Topic: The Great Gatsby

Summary: A special edition on the Great Gatsby as to be created as soon as possible. It is the job of the students (and the group they are in) to write the articles and design the layout for the publication (group members splitt up into: Arts and Entertainment Reporter, Biographer, English Professor #1, English Professor #2, Layout Designer & Copy Editor). Each group member is assigned specific writing tasks that are collected and are supposed to be bound at a local copying center (each section of the publication must have at least two graphics). Finally, each group has to give a short presentation on their project.

Statement: Obviously a very creative idea and a creative process the students have to cope with (writing or designing). It will for sure be a great way to complete a teaching unit about the Great Gatsby. Nevertheless, higher-lever thinking is not encouraged by the tasks that have to be completed. The tasks are not problem-based but simply rely on collecting information and writing articles about a specific topic.

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A final list about the ‘Higher-Level Thinking’ in WebQuests (Group 4):

• make use of creative processes

• include an interdisciplinary approach

• make use of a multicultural perspective

• use authentic problems

• have the student discover a problem, not just facts

• information presented from multiple viewpoints/perspectives

• information found needs to be applied on new problems

Best to Worst (VERY subjective – but a general tendency):

1. Gallery of Art-i-Facts 2. Conflict Yellowstone Wolves 3. The Gilded Age 4. Extra, Extra… Read All About It 5. Feudal Times in Global 9

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Group 5:

Specific aspect of a WebQuest that is analyzed: DESIGN

u) CurriculumQuest Topic: Integrate the Internet into the Curriculum

Summary: The task of the teachers (here: students) is to complete four missions in a team (assuming the roles of a learner and an educator): the learner will look for interesting, stimulating and fun to use web sites; the educator will look for web sites that are curriculum driven and educationally sound. The teachers are supposed to learn the basics of using the Internet, how to use search engines, and how to evaluate an educational web site. The first mission is to discuss with each other what the teachers know about the Internet and then get a brief introduction to it using some tutorials online. In mission 2, they will learn how to evaluate an educational web site (making use of an evaluation rubric). Now, they have to look at four search engines and try to find web sites - making use of the engines - that would be appropriate to use when teaching specific subjects (making use of another evaluation rubric). Finally, the teachers are asked to create a lesson plan (plan assignments, group work, etc.) making use of some form of the Internet ('how you will teach the subject using the web site').

Statement: The design of this WebQuest is horrible. Leaving aside the banner ads on the right side, the background image used is quite disturbing and makes the text harder to read. The whole quest (each aspect) is embedded within one site with large spaces between each aspect of the WebQuest (apparently, it was designed for a smaller resolution so that only one aspect of the quest would be displayed at a time). A clear structure would have been nice; at least you can jump back and forth with the embedded anchor-links.

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v) Composing a WebQuest WebQuest Topic: Design and Create a WebQuest for Georgia Middle Schools

Summary: The teachers (here: students) need to design and create a WebQuest for Georgia middle schools in order to actively engage their students in learning. Each group member takes on a specific role and specific tasks and processes to take care off (The Architect, The Taskmaster, The Evaluator, The Researcher). The first task the group has to conduct is to complete a WebQuest about WebQuests (the one put together by Bernie Dodge). Next, the group needs to decide on a topic for their own WebQuest including the objectives that they want their students to reach. Finally, each member of the group needs to contribute - according to his assigned role - information, ideas, concepts, etc. in order to set up the WebQuest.

Statement: The design of this WebQuest is again horrible. Leaving aside the banner ads on the right side, it is not structured at all, you constantly need to scroll up and down, the font used is horrible and its dark blue color does not make it better (red headlines are an absolutely don't). The complete layout is disturbing and hard to follow; you get lost quite easily. The pictures used are nice, but that is about it.

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w) Who’s Who in Human Learning Topic: Introducing Theories of Human Learning

Summary: Students are supposed to gather information about a variety of learning theories (Behaviorism, Social Cognitive Theory, Information Processing Theory, Cognitivism, Constructivism, Conceptual Change Theory) and are supposed to extend the list of resources by conducting an own research. They are asked to identify three theorist who they believe have made important contributions to the field of learning and post their nominees in a provided online forum. Additionally, they should look at the nominees posted by their classmates and conduct some research about these once again. In a group, the students need to decide on 3 nominations, post the results once again in the online forum.

Statement: The WebQuest is clearly structured and the colors used are 'okay'. The 'process' part should have been split into various sub-pages; there is a lot of text and links (which, by the way, exceed the 'text' column.

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x) Shakespeare Survival Guide Topic: Putting up a Production of Romeo and Juliet

Summary: The students are supposed to individually research an aspect of Shakespearean theater and performance, and, in a group, prepare a scene for each act of Romeo and Juliet. Furthermore, they are asked to take a picture of their group doing a tableau of each scene and write and publish a group guide about everything they know to put on a production of Romeo and Juliet. The groups are assigned specific roles (Linguist, Acting Coach, Set Designer, Costume Designer, Producer Publisher Editor) with specific assignments (and resources to be consulted).

Statement: The design of the WebQuest leans on Early Modern English images and coloring; this obviously serves the purpose/task and gives this page a genuine design. The pictures used contribute to this idea. The text colors (and varying fonts) used are quite unsatisfactory (especially on the 'resources' page). Very disturbing is the picture used in the 'introduction: the text displayed above it is not readable and the text formatting on all pages should have been consistent.

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y) Typography Topic: The Evolution of Type Design

Summary: The student are asked to tale a historical look back at the evolution of type design from the perspective of four key practitioners (Claude Garamond, William Caslon, Giambattista Bodoni, Eric Gill). Students will be placed in teams of four, with each individual being assigned one of these practitioners. They are supposed to create a portrait, a collaborative Web site, an self-promoting article about the person in question, and a project journal/manual. Finally, each group has to present their information gathered in form of a web site. The web site will be shown as a presentation to the class with the group members ready to field questions and discuss various aspects of the project.

Statement: This WebQuest has a consistent layout and design, is clearly structured, and the colors (and the font) used do not disturb the reading process. It is well designed and serves as a great example.

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A final list about the ‘Design’ in WebQuests (Group 5):

• they need to be clearly structured (a page for each aspect of the WebQuest)

• font needs to be consistent and should not be too eccentric/unusual, not too small and not too big

• font color should be used consistently (never 'red'; links are assigned a different color) and should make the text readable

• text/links should not exceed a certain column or wrap at the end of the column

• there should be no banner ads

• a background color is okay, an image or weird graphics not

• using pictures is great, but they need to be suitable (in general and with respect to the content)

• in general: which colors used is VERY important (consistency, need to harmonise with each other and make the learner curious/motivated)

• the overall design should motivate the student (should be genuine, unique, refer to the topic, etc.)

Best to Worst (VERY subjective – but a general tendency):

1. Typography 2. Shakespeare Survival Guide 3. Who’s Who in Human Learning 4. Composing a WebQuest WebQuest 5. CurriculumQuest

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A Complete Example: Career of Your Dreams Topic: Applying at a University (as an ESL student)

Summary: ESL students (first language is one other than English) have sometimes specific problems when applying for a university (although their ACT and the SAT scores a good). In a group, the students are asked to prepare an e-portfolio that needs to include an explanation of their choice of college ('Which university will you choose?' - and why), the steps that they need to take to be admitted ('Steps to University Admission' - what needs to be considered), an outline of likely expenses, explaining how they intend to take care of tuition, room and board, and other study-related costs ('Show Me the Money!' - what are your own financial resources), college application essay for the college of their choice ('Writing The College Application Essay'), and evidence of preparation for an interview at their college ('Acing the College Interview'). Additionally, it must incorporate for each of these some reflections of the group on the research, the process, and critical thinking that they went through (what it meant to them, what they have learnt).

Statement 1 (Motivating Aspects): Obviously, the WebQuest deals with a very authentic, interesting and important aspect for every US student and especially for ESL students (because the choice and admission to a university will be very important for their future lives). The individual and group tasks provide a good possibility to get to know one's own ideas, hopes and problems and share these with the other group members (and help them with their problems, too). The anchor topic is thus interesting, motivational, and emotionally touching. There are a lot of different tasks to complete with each of the different sections (this WebQuest will probably take 3 to 4 weeks), this might be in the beginning quite de-motivating to see such an amount of information and tasks to complete. The design of the WebQuest is not as motivating as it should be, only one color for the menu on the left side is used. Some pictures, however, make some pages look more attractive.

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Statement 2 (Creative/Activating Aspects): With respect to creative and activating factors, the students are asked to be quite creative and imaginary: taking on the role of a pre-selected identity, writing summaries and reflections, talking about their findings with the other group members, conduct brainstormings, and acting out the interview. Individual as well as group activities are taking turns. Furthermore, a final presentation of the results and findings is also implemented (e-Portfolio). How this portfolio is made use of or presented to the class remains unclear.

Statement 3 (Evaluating/Teacher Aspects): The students are evaluated according to 5 aspects: university selection, admission process, finances, admission essay, and the interview (not (!) the e-Portfolio). The evaluation page is clearly structured and the students get immediately aware of what to do and how to do it best. It is not differentiated between individual and group work and each of the above mentioned aspects seems to be as important as the others (although some aspects seem - to me - more important than others). Furthermore, not every single task is evaluated - which, obviously, is correct, since the students have to conduct numerous tasks. The question remains - which probably cannot be answered at all - if a high scoring result in this WebQuest would also mean that the students are now better suited for or qualified to apply at their favorite university. With respect to the 'teacher page', it is clearly stated whom this WebQuest addresses (a course on Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL)) and the level of the students (high-intermediate/ advanced English proficiency). The WebQuest is leaned on the TESOL standards for effective ESL instruction for pre K-12 in the US and learning objectives are defined (to use English to communicate in social settings, to use English to achieve academically in all content areas, and to use English in socially and culturally appropriate ways). Furthermore, specific considerations and variations are also mentioned which gives other teachers the opportunity to apply this WebQuest in their own class. Hence, the 'teacher page' is quite helpful and offers detailed and further information.

Statement 4 (Higher-Level Thinking Aspects): The topic of this WebQuest is quite authentic, it covers various interdisciplinary topics (finances, oral presentation, written application, etc.) and - do to the students being ESL students - some form of multicultural aspect will - naturally - be included. Obviously, the topic and the tasks are problem-based and relate to the students individually. With respect to multiple perspectives it is to state that there are different viewpoints the students have to deal with and that applying at a university always includes various tasks and approaches that have to be considered. Furthermore, resources from various different universities around the US are made use of in order to compare the different demands or standards. However, 'factual recall' is a prominent factor in this WebQuest - which makes, for this kind of topic, sense. A more problem-based approach (with respect to discovering themselves what is important and what needs to be considered) would, nevertheless, have been well appreciated.

Statement 5 (Design Aspects): There is not much to say - leaving aside the banner ad on the right side - about the design of this WebQuest (except that it is quite plain). It is clearly structured, the font used (its color, etc.) is good and the randomly used pictures are okay. The overall design, however, is not as motivating to the students as it can be. Although consistent, it is not genuine/unique at all (probably a template was used).