Webquests: A tool to develop thinking skills

1. Webquests: A tool to develop thinking skills Lucía Ramírez Anglo Colombian School - Bogotá

2. How is this workshop organised? • Introduction (10 min) • What is a Webquest (20 min) • Look for examples (20 min) • Design your Webquest (1 hour) • Plenary (10 min)

3. KWL CHART

4. WQ AND THINKING SKILLS WHY USE IT? WHAT IS IT? WEBQUEST TEACHER’S ROLE ITS STRUCTURE TYPES WHICH TOPICS CAN BE USED? STUDENTS’ ROLE

5. Tell me and I’ll forget. Show me and I might remember. Involve me and I’ll understand. -Author Unknown

6. What is a Webquest? "A WebQuest is an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the internet…" (Dodge, 1995, cited by March, 2008) "A WebQuest is a scaffolded learning structure that uses links to essential resources on the World Wide Web and an authentic task to motivate students’ investigation of a central, open-ended question, development of individual expertise and participation in a final group process that attempts to transform newly acquired information into a more sophisticated understanding. The best WebQuests do this in a way that inspires students to see richer thematic relationships, facilitate a contribution to the real world of learning and reflect on their own metacognitive processes." "WebQuest," as defined by Tom March, circa 2003

7. "A WebQuest is a scaffolded learning structure…“ Scaffoldingteacher modeling cognitive processes, so students can reach higher-order thinking How to scaffold?Provide... resource links a compelling problem or task templates for student products guidance on cognitive and social skills …that uses links to essential resources on the World Wide Web…“ Essential resources take advantage of the Web’s ability to present resources that might be interactive, media-rich, contemporaneous, contextualized, or of varied perspectives.

8. "…and an authentic task to motivate students’ investigation…“ Does the activity get students’ Attention? Is it Relevant to their needs, interests or motives? Does the task inspire learners’ Confidence in achieving success? Would completing the activity leave students with a sense of Satisfaction at their accomplishment? Questions written by March (2008) based on Keller’s ARCS Motivational Design (March, 2008) "…of a central, open-ended question,…“ Questions allow accessing prior knowledge. Through questions a more robust understanding can be assimilated. They lead students to "posing contradictions, presenting new information, asking questions, encouraging research, and/or engaging students in inquiries designed to challenge current concepts" (Brooks & Brooks, 1999).

9. … development of individual expertise …“ According to Tomlinson (2000) teachers can differentiate: Content Process Products Learning environment WebQuests support differentiation of content and process and allow teachers to vary final products, so not all of the students do exactly the same. "… and participation in a final group process that attempts to transform newly acquired information into a more sophisticated understanding.“ After building up expertise, there must be an application of it. The final group task should engage students to use the acquired information and expertise in a new way, thus constructing a deeper understanding.

10. "The best WebQuests do this in a way that inspires students to see richer thematic relationships, facilitate a contribution to the real world of learning and reflect on their own metacognitive processes." 3 Rs of WebQuests:" "Is it Real, Rich and Relevant? Interdisciplinary relationships. Contextualizing the topic with what makes it worth learning. Authentic tasks - authentic assessment Metacognition: students are aware of their own thinking patterns  independent use of these strategies

11. Why use a Webquest? • Makes use of primary, up-to-date materials • Stimulates learners with an interesting do-able task • Focuses learners’ attention on outcomes • Promotes collaborative work • Improves research skills • Allows interdisciplinary work • Develops thinking skills

12. Structure of a Webquest Introduction sets the stage and provides some background information. Task that is doable and interesting. Information sources needed to complete the task. They do not necessarily come from the World Wide Web. Process description of the steps to accomplish the task. Conclusion that brings closure to the quest, reminds the learners about what they've learned, and perhaps encourages them to extend the experience into other domains. Evaluation includes the rubric to assess the task.

13. Types of Webquests • WebQuests can be either short-term or longer-term • Short-term (1-3 lessons) where the goal is to allow for knowledge acquisition and integration • Longer-term (1 week – 1 month) where the goal is to extend and refine knowledge

14. The role of teacher and students • Teacher  Facilitator of the process • Students  Active participants

15. What kinds of topics lend themselves to Webquests? • WebQuests can’t be used to teach factual pieces of information. • WebQuests can help students meet standards focused on critical-thinking and analysis skills • They may be particularly useful for social studies and science. • By using multimedia, WebQuests also help with multiple intelligence work.

17. CRITICAL THINKING • Students should be taught to think logically, analyze and compare, question and evaluate. Skills taught in isolation do little more than prepare students for tests of isolated skills (Spache and Spache, 1986).

18. "Critical thinking is the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skilfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. In its exemplary form, it is based on universal intellectual values that transcend subject matter divisions: clarity, accuracy, precision, consistency, relevance, sound evidence, good reasons, depth, breadth, and fairness..." A statement by Michael Scriven & Richard Paul {presented at the 8th Annual International Conference on Critical Thinking and Education Reform, Summer 1987}.

19. How can we teach critical thinking? • By using graphic organisers (e.g. Venn diagrams, Flow charts, KWL charts, Concept maps, Tree charts, etc.) • By stating the processes to be developed, e.g. compare, write a summary, analyse, etc. • By scaffolding

20. What does critical thinking involve? • Comparing: Identifying and articulating similarities and differences between things. • Classifying: Grouping things into definable categories on the basis of their attributes. • Inducing: Inferring unknown generalizations or principles from observations or analysis. • Deducing: Inferring unstated consequences and conditions from given principles and generalizations. • Analyzing errors: Identifying and articulating errors in one's own or others' thinking. • Constructing support: Constructing a system of support or proof for an assertion. • Abstraction: Identifying and articulating the underlying theme or general pattern of information. • Analyzing perspectives: Identifying and articulating personal perspectives about issues.

21. References Air War College (n/d). Creativity & thinking skills. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/awc-thkg.htm#cog Dabbagh, N (n/d). Concept Mapping as a Mindtool for Critical Thinking. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://www.thestep.gr/trainmor/dat/%7B52fb953f-3495-4396-a847-7be1adf6d20d%7D/article.pdf Dodge, B. (1998). WebQuests: A Strategy for Scaffolding Higher Level Learning. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://webquest.sdsu.edu/necc98.htm Dodge, B. (2002). WebQuest Taskonomy: A Taxonomy for tasks. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://webquest.sdsu.edu/taskonomy.html Dodge, B. (2007). What is a Webquest. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://webquest.org/index.php Educational Broadcasting Corporation (2004). Workshop: Webquests. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/webquests/index.html

22. References Foundation for Critical Thinking (2008). Critical Thinking: Where to begin. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://www.criticalthinking.org/starting/index.cfm Graphic.org (N/d). Graphic organizers. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://www.graphic.org/goindex.html Learning Theories Knowledgebase (2008, November). ARCS Model of Motivational Design (Keller) at Learning-Theories.com. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://www.learning-theories.com/kellers-arcs-model-of-motivational-design.html March, T. (2008). What Webquests are (Really). Retrieved November 16th 2008 from http://bestwebquests.com/what_webquests_are.asp Tomlinson (2000). What is differentiated instruction? Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://www.readingrockets.org/article/263 Zheng, R., Stucky, B., McAlack, M., Menchana, M. & Stoddart, S. (n/d). WebQuest Learning as Perceived by Higher-Education Learners. Retrieved November 16th, 2008 from http://www.u.arizona.edu/~sakoi/webquest%20learning%20as%20perceived%20by%20higer-education%20learners.pdf