After a long day of study, I opted to do an evaluation of a WebQuest of something not for my class, but something that has interested me independently of my class (OK maybe something I could use or adapt to my class someday), the Beat Generation. Luckily, after a quick search, I was able to find WebQuest: The Beat Movement. Let the good times roll! For the sake of simplicity, I opted to place the areas of evaluation in bold with my responses below them in plain text.
Synopsis of the WebQuest including its intended audience, its educational goals, and the curriculum standards addressed if stated.
This WebQuest is a study of the Beat Generation of the 1950s along with how those writers and the topics which they discussed are still relevant today. It's written for English Language Arts classes from grades 9-12. While no content standards were explicitly mentioned, there are several which could easily apply to this lesson.
What pedagogical strategies are employed in the WebQuest and are they effective? Is there use of metaphor? Are they using inductive or deductive strategies? Is there scaffolding? What other strategies do you see?
This WebQuest makes use of both inductive and deductive instruction by introducing students briefly to the Beat Generation and some of it's major figures (Ginsberg, Kerouac, Burroughs), then giving students free reign to explore various authors and works of that time period. In the end, students will be responsible for a literary analysis of a major, a biographical sketch of its author along with a collaborative performance of an original work inspired by the piece.
In what ways is the WebQuest taking advantage of technology? In what ways is it 'change without difference'? Could this WebQuest be done just as well by photocopying pages and handing them out to students?
Many of the resources required to complete the task are digital (Youtube videos), along with the tools needed to complete the performance aspect of the assignment, but also relies heavily on hand-outs previously given and can be exported to a Word or Pdf format. In short, while it could work by photocopying pages, it work not work nearly as well.
Technically, does it work? Does it have bugs or flaws such as broken links or images? Is the material out of date? Does it credit its sources?
Everything seems sound and all the links work. Citations could be clearer, especially for the pictures.
How would you improve the WebQuest?
I would like to have seen more resources on the content itself. The tutorial videos dealt only with the software they'd be using.
On a side note, after some research, I found a complete documentary on the Beat Generation here.
Congratulations! You have found one of the better written WebQuests posted on the WWW. In a way you didn’t wander too far away from your ELA roots with this selection=8-) Songwriting is a form of poetry. Even if you were a history/social studies teacher, I would have thought it a relevant pick due to the emphasis on cultural events reported by way of music.
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