“an inquiry-oriented activity in which most or all of the information used by learners is drawn from the Web. WebQuests are designed to use learners’ time well, to focus on using information rather than looking for it, and to support learners’ thinking at levels of analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.”*

*Dodge, B. (2001). FOCUS: Five rules for writing great WebQuests. Learning and Leading with Technology. 28(8), 6.

Use a WebQuest to encourage problem solving and creative thinking.

A WebQuest is based on ideas of inquiry and constructivism, and frequently Incorporates cooperative and collaborative learning where students are assigned specific roles.

A good topic for a WebQuest is one that is large, complex, or in dispute such as current events, social issues, or environmental issues. A topic that evokes variety of interpretations works well with the WebQuest format.

• Introduction
  
  • Provides background information
    
  • Gives students role to play
    
  • Provides overview of learning goals
• Task
  
  • Description of what students have to accomplish
    
  • Presents main research question
• Process--a description of steps learners go through to accomplish the task
• Resources--frequengly embedded within process section, and may include
  
  • Web Sites
    
  • Print resources
    
  • Videos
    
  • Audio tapes
• Evaluation
  
  • Usually in the form of a rubric
    
  • Should be tied to the task
• Conclusion
  
  • Allows for student reflection
    
  • Includes summation by teacher

• Phonemic Awareness WebQuest—A WebQuest designed for a Reading Methods class to explore the various views of beginning reading instruction.
  
• Matrix of Examples on the WebQuest Page (contains numerous examples categorized by subject area and grade level, K-adult)
• Look Who's Footing the Bill--An Introductory WebQuest on Democracy and the National Debt

• The WebQuest Page. (2001). Retrieved November 11, 2001 from http://edweb.sdsu.edu/webquest/webquest.html.
  
• Dodge, B.J. (2001). FOCUS: Five rules for writing a great WebQuest. Learning and Leading with Technology, 28(8), 6-9, 58. Retrieved November 11, 2001 from http://www.iste.org/L&L/archive/vol28/no8/featuredarticle/dodge/index.html.
  
• March, T (1998). The WebQuest Design Process: Exploring the Possibilities. Retrieved June 30, 2001 from Ozline: http://www.ozline.com/webquests/design1.html.