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A WebQuest Critique

The Best and Worst of Webquest

The two examples from WebQuest I thought were the best were "Grow School Greens" and "Where is my Hero?" These two I feel would be great for students to do. "Grow School Greens" involves togetherness with the class and the students also get to see their project progress as the vegetables grow. "Where is my Hero?" is a great activity to get students creative sides thinking but also includes learning. The students are able to collaborate outside the classroom and analyze people they choose to be theuir hero.  


The two WebQuests I found the worst were "We all Scream for Ice Cream" and "Ancient Egypt WebQuest." The ice cream activity to me does not seem very educational. They learn to make ice cream but what are they really learning? Also the site was somewhat confusing. The Egypt activity is not terrible but the creators probably could have taken a different approach to the idea. The site was very plain and boring which turns people away quickly. Also it seems like the project is very dry, there is not much room for kids to be creative in it.

The best sites mean to me that children are getting involved and learning. These activities are educational but allow students to show their creative side as well. The worst sites are the ones kids would not learn from. Either the activity is fun for students but they do not learn anything or the students learn but are very bored with the activity.
 

A Webquest About Webquests

The Top Ten Video

When it came to activities in my K-12 education it all depended on the teacher to what activities we did. Some teachers strictly taught lectures, others liked worksheets, but my favorite kind of teacher was the one who liked us to interact. So I was able to experience a few times when I did little activities like the one in this video. I had a class where at one point in the year the students were put into groups and had to teach a chapter to the class. I also did group projects where we researched, wrote papers, and created games to go with our topic. So needless to say I did have a few times where I did some fun activities but nothing to this extreme and not in fourth grade. I think that this activity addresses all the learning styles, even kinesthetic. The students are involved in so many different projects everyone’s learning style seems to be incorporated. The students give lectures/presentations, research, have discussion, do a test on their pets, and more.


I am not very surprised that most of this project was done without the use of textbooks. The students did not need books they could find any information they needed on computers and from experience with the animals. I think students have more fun when they are not having to research a book. They want to go out into the world and figure information out on their own and in a fun way. I would definitely consider teaching in a similar way. Some concerns I might have are some students not getting into the assignment and other students having to do extra work because someone is slacking off. Also children at the age do not know much about researching so that may be a barrier we need to work on.

My Blogging Thoughts

I liked keeping a blog this semester because I have never had a blog before. I think it is a great tool to teach teachers and future teachers especially in this technology savvy world. It is a way to stay connected with your students and their parents outside of the classroom. This is definitely a great way for teachers to be more effective with their students. Most likely students have computers at home and are on them a lot. So by communicating to them through a computer you may be able to show them ways computers can help them educationally. I’m not sure if I will continue posting to my blog. I may try to start a new blog in the future focused on my classroom. Throughout my blogging this semester I have learned more about networking. Blogging has helped me learn new ways to communicate to people via computer and internet. There is no limit to the ways people can communicate and blogging is just one of the many. There are also education sites that are designed for teachers and students to communicate. Also, I cannot forget about skyping people, the new way to talk on the computer but still be face to face.  

Wikipedia: Friend Not Foe

The class activity did not change my opinion much when it comes to the value of Wikipedia. I do not think we need to forbid students from using the sight just teach them how to use it properly. Students need to know Wikipedia is not a site you can cite information from but just a starting point site. You can search for your topic and see what information you can find. Then research that information. If I were to have my students use Wikipedia in my classroom I would first have a few lessons on how to use the site. I would probably try to explain the four points brought up in the article: familiarize yourself with the site, discuss the wiki concept with students, start small, and prepare for challenges. I believe these four discussions will help my students become knowledgeable on how to use Wikipedia.