Useful WebQuest Resources

The resources on this page are designed to be useful to teacher educators and staff developers who are putting together a course or workshop about WebQuests. There's a lot to choose from!

Concepts & Definitions

	Some Thoughts about WebQuests - The 1995 paper that started it all. A version of this was published inThe Distance Educator edited by Fred Saba.
	Project, Problem, and Inquiry-based Learning - A nice summary and set of links by Annette Lamb distinguishing among these three important lesson types.
	Constructivism - A useful set of bookmarks by Martin Ryder at the University of Colorado at Denver.
	Women of Web 2.0 Show #31 - An hour-long conversation about the origins of WebQuests, the present state and the future evolution of the model. June, 2007.
	Education World Wireside Chat - Why were WebQuests developed? Why should teachers use them? What does the future hold for educational technology? WebQuest creator Bernie Dodge answers those questions and more.
	Thirteen Ed Online Concept to Classroom: WebQuests - Definitions, video interviews, examples and rationale.
	WebQuest: Aprendendo na Internet. Archive of the excellent portal that was organized by the University of São Paulo School of the Future and edited by Jarbas Novelino Barato. Still the best resource out there in Brazilian Portuguese.
	A WebQuest about WebQuests - An exercise that's useful for introducing the concept to educators. Working in teams they examine five WebQuests from four different points of view. There are several versions for different grade levels. Write us if you'd like a version tailored to meet your needs. Elementary \| 6-8 \| 6-12 \| HS English \| HS Math/Science \| HS Humanities

Implementation Reports

Encouraging the Use of Technology in the Classroom: The WebQuest Connection
This article tracks the evolution of a cooperative effort between children and teachers in a local school district and university students enrolled in a secondary reading methods course.

WebQuests in Geography - Explores the relationship between ICT and student learning in geography. In particular, it proposes the use of WebQuests. WebQuests are enquiry-oriented activities whereby learners work collaboratively and draw most of their information from the World Wide Web. They focus on learners using information rather than looking for it and aim to make the most of online education.

WebQuest Development

	WebQuest 101 - A series of short videos developed by SDSU Professor T. J. Kopcha. Part 1: What is a WebQuest? \| Part 2: How to Make a WebQuest \| Part 3: Intro to QuestGarden \| Part 4: Designing the Process
	Search Techniques - A critical aspect of WebQuest design is knowing how to find good resources on the Web. Three guides are available: Step Zero: Before you Search, Four Nets for Better Searching,andSpecialized Search Engines.
	Finding Resources - The most time-consuming part of creating a WebQuest is finding great links. Try our new search engine that combs through dozens of kid-friendly sources simultaneously.
	WebQuest Design Process - A bird's eye view of the major steps in pulling a WebQuest together.
	Overcoming Obstacles to Quicker WebQuest Production - NECC 2005 presentation describing what makes it so hard and introducing QuestGarden as an attempt at a solution. Slides and a webcast are available.
	Adapting Existing WebQuests - Why start from scratch? A flowchart showing the steps in finding and changing an existing lesson.
	Design Patterns and Templates for WebQuest Development - Want to be thoroughly up to date? These 26 design patterns, each with their own template. If you can find a pattern that fits your needs. you'll cut your development time in half!
	The WebQuest Taskonomy: A Taxonomy of Tasks - Describes 12 categories for describing what you ask learners to do, 11 of which can lead to higher level thinking.
	WebQuest Process Checklist - A list for self- or peer-review of the Process portion of your WebQuest.
	WebQuest Process Guides - A series of short guides that you can link to or download and adapt. Each is designed to scaffold a specific cognitive or interpersonal activity.
	Fine Points - Describes 14 little things you can do to improve the aesthetics and professionalism of your WebQuest (or any) pages.
	A Rubric for Evaluating WebQuests - Is your WebQuest as good as it could be? This rubric allows you to score it along eight dimensions to see where it might be improved.
	Rubrics for Evaluating Student Performance - An exercise by Nancy Pickett with templates and example rubrics.
	FOCUS: Five Rules for Writing Great WebQuests. From Learning & Leading with Technology, May, 2001.

Complete Workshops

	Internet Expeditions: Creating WebQuest Learning Environments by Annette Lamb. Explore four ways to build a WebQuest learning environment including using existing resources, adapting or modifying a webquest, create a new webquest, or co-producing materials.
	T-Spider.Net - A website developed by David Young (U of Colorado at Denver) to help teachers create WebQuests collaboratively with middle school & high school students.
	Teaching with WebQuests - An online graduate course designed by Bernie and June Dodge and delivered by Teacher Education Institute.
	Map-a-Course - Dr. Michael F. Ruffini, teaches Instructional Technology at Mansfield University of Pennsylvania, and has developed a one page eMap to explore WebQuests.