It is now more evident that teachers have begun to use the Internet as an instructional tool. When considering the pro’s and con’s of doing a Webquest in your classroom, many things come to mind. While there is a wide variety of benefits, there are also some quite substantial downfalls. Benefits may include among others that:
This technique helps introduce students to units by presenting necessary background and determining students' prior knowledge. WebQuests create opportunities to provide this background. This type of activity motivates students to learn concepts in the unit as it provides a point of reference for their understanding.
Students can learn from one another, and by interacting solidify the concepts of the lesson. A WebQuest is a way to develop cooperative learning opportunities and allows for interaction among the students. To complete the quest, students must work together and can use each other as resources to accomplish the objectives of the WebQuest. Though the Internet is often an individual experience, WebQuests provide the opportunity to make it a collective one.
As regards the cons of pre -researched material:
WebQuests retrieve facts, but do not encourage students to draw their own conclusions. They narrow the thinking to only what the teacher has researched and are not given the opportunity to further delve into the vast wealth of the internet.
The learners are also at the "mercies" of the teacher; which means if the teacher fails to accurately interpret the concept - and therefore give the wrong references - there will be total disaster!
It therefore follows that learners need to go a little bit more outside the pre-researched material; maintaining the context of the concept at hand and still, seeking guidance from the teacher develop an in depth understanding of the matters at hand and to assume a more informed position from which to handle the demands of the project.
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