WebQuest.org

    This blog is intended to inform you about the website WebQuest.org. I have mixed feelings about this site. My first concern is that it seems a little dated. The newest dates I could find were from 2017 and 2015. It also did not look very appealing. On the other hand, it appeared to have some good information for anyone looking into webquests and some good links. After reading the information on this site, I realized I did not know exactly what a webquest was. Essentially, a webquest is an assignment given where the majority of the information is found online.

Support for reading in the content areas
    I believe that webquests are very helpful with reading in the content area. It allows the students to use new literacies and learn to navigate them. Our students are pretty good at reading a text message but not so good at looking for specific information online. Students also struggle knowing if the site is legit or not. WebQuests are a good way to practice those skills while reading.

Ease of navigation
    At first glance the website is laid out well. There is a short summary on who can benefit from the site on the top. Then goes into what a WebQuest is. On the left side there are a series of tabs that can take you to different places. However, the tabs are a little confusing and misleading as to what you can find and one does not work at all. One tab allows you to search for webquests that have been shared by typing in a few key words. This tab is very useful and pulled up a number of quests for the different topics I searched.

Availability of classroom resources
    As I mentioned above a number of quests came up when I was searching for different topics, so I believe the resources are decent. Each quest had an introduction, task, process, conclusion, and evaluation. Many of them were also designed for groups which is pretty cool. It also had the grade level, content, and reading level with each quest. As I teacher I would revisit this site for potential assignments!

Usability for intended audience: students, parents, teachers, or a combination
    For teachers I think this could be a great resource. I would not put students on this site and allow them to choose their own. I may choose a few and let them decide from there. The link for the quest could easily be put in Google Classroom or sent in an email. As a parent this site could potentially be helpful if they are aware their child is struggling in a particular area. However, I would not recommend it. Some of the quests go way beyond what the SOL covers and the parents would likely not know which ones were good or not.

    Overall, I think for a teacher resource this site is decent. I intend to look back over it for quests in the upcoming year. I would not use it as a final resort and I will definitely look over the whole quest and ensure it is what I am looking for.

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