Webquest.org

This week in class we stepped into the role of students in small groups browsing the learning projects offered on Webquest.org. These project-based, problem-based, and/or inquiry-based lessons are categorized by grade and integrated subjects but involve no lecture or textbook: all the information the students need to successfully complete the lesson comes from the Web. The students with a common interest form groups, divide tasks or research topics, and experience navigating the Web to find the information they need and use other technological tools (software, etc.) to create a final project. The goal here is to go beyond lecture and rote regurgitation of facts to "learn it when you need it." Today's students want to be involved in deciding what they want to learn about, work with others to learn it, and demonstrate what they have learned in relevant, "real-life" projects. We all know that there is a difference between filling-in a worksheet about erosion and actually getting dirty and wet with an erosion model or experiencing an erosional riverbank site. Each Webquest lesson includes an introduction, task, process, resources (websites that provide the needed information), evaluation rubric, teacher page, and additional "just for fun" exploration.

For the first few minutes we were to browse the available lessons based on our selected grade level and subject. I searched the listings for literature and early elementary (1st grade). One lesson, based on the picture book "Stellaluna" by Janell Cannon: the task is to write a letter telling Stellaluna reasons why she should be proud to be a bat. The student researches the amazing facts about megabats and synthesize that information in a way that the fruit bat Stellaluna will find pride in herself and her heritage. I chose to discard this lesson as a suggestion for my group, however, because the supplied links to researching megabats led to unavailabe websites: as a student I was quickly frustrated that I couldn't find what I needed in the time allotted.

My partner and I selected a Webquest lesson about ancient Egypt, and although we couldn't timewarp ourselves there, we were able to jump around on the Web finding textual information and visuals available to us from the British Museum and other sites. Our task, as creators of a travel brochure, was to convince Flibberwiggle Martians to visit ancient Egypt because of our reports on a variety of highlights. I volunteered to research the geographical features and the pharoahs, find out ways to excite a tourist from Mars to want to select my destination over others, and present it incorporated in a brochure with my partner's topics too. I used the Internet to find information and illustrations about how the pharoahs were both political and religious leaders of both the fertile Black Lands and mineral-rich barren desert Red Lands of ancient Egypt. This lesson for me involved geography, history, science, and creative and informational writing. But it also involved groupwork dynamics, Web navigation, time management, and oral presentation. I was struck by the variety of projects discussed by other groups; I really liked the chart evaluating possible state insects for Nevada?/Arizona? project. These projects incorporate several integrated curriculum subjects in a cooperative group setting using technology and giving the students control over their learning in a "real-life" scenario.

So often we hear about teachers feeling hampered by No Child Left Behind; "I wish I had time to let my students explore creative learning projects but we have just too much to cover," some say. The video clip we watched in class from Edutopia showcased several examples of students taking ownership in their learning in ways that are relevant and educational: the students using geometry to create kites, other students researching cystic fibrosis because they wanted to understand their peer's health situation better, and other students sitting at the edge of a pond taking water samples and charting the results as part of a larger project (she talked enthusiastically about how the pond was her classroom). Children are passionate about learning until that passion is extinguished by endless worksheet packets. I am hopeful that there is time in the day to incorporate project-based learning within NCLB goals and constraints. Last week I completed my kindergarten practicum and this week I jump headfirst into 5th grade. Will I find us experiencing these kinds of higher-level cognition lessons there? I certainly hope so!