The Use of WebQuest in Language Teaching

At this time, i would like to give a brief explanation about webquest and the use of WebQuest and language teaching. I am sure most of you have heard about WebQuest before, and have been familiar with this. For everyone who are curious and interested what is actually WebQuest and the functions, here are the the short explanation about it.

What is WebQuest?

First, we discuss about the definition of WebQuest. According to Dodge (1995), WebQuest is inquiry-oriented activity which some or all of the info that learners with comes from resources on the internet. So, in using WebQuest in language teaching, teachers integrate technology into curriculum and make it beneficial for students. In Teaching English, technology is integrated to the 4 skills, listening, speaking, reading and writing. As a result, teachers provide good teaching with web.

Where did the WebQuest come from?

Now, I would like to tell a brief history of Web Quest. The idea of WebQuest was originally Bernie Dodge’s idea. He is a professor San Diego State University. He came up with this idea after he prepared a task (WebQuest) for pre service teacher and it went so well that he decided to do it.

3R In WebQuest

In using webquest in language teaching, teacher should aware of 3, they are

Real                 : Are students looking at a question or topic that concerns people in the real world?

Rich                 : Does the WebQuest introduce students to interesting roles that encourage students to problem solve? Does the WebQuest engage students in rich discussion (March, 2000

Relevant          : Does the WebQuest allow students to find themselves, their concerns, or their interest in the scenarios given to them (March, 2000)?

Benefits of Using WebQuest in Language Teaching

There are several benefit that students gain from the use of wequest in the classroom.

§  Increase student motivation

§  Cooperative learning

§  Authentic tasks

§  Address real world problems or issues

§  Timely sources

§  Single discipline or interdisciplinary

§  Higher-order thinking skills

§  Develop thinking skills

§  Use many resources.

§  Encourage students to explore new ideas and ways to present these idea.

§  Match the students and their needs

Six elements of WebQuest

There is controversy about the element of WebQuest. Some say there are 5 elements of WebQuest. Now, I will discuss six elements of WebQuest.

·           Introduction

It introduces an activity to students and raise their interest. It should orient the learner to what is going to happen. Also it should grab learners and make them want to continue.

·           Task

Provides a goal and focus for student/s. Describes what the student/s will have completed by the end of the assignment (product, presentation, etc.).

·           Process

In the process, teacher describes and identifies steps students will go through to accomplish the task, including resources they will need and learning advice. In other words, it clearly describes steps. After that teacher lets the learners know the process to go through to accomplish task. Teacher can also provide help, comment, and advice.

·            Information Resources

Teacher list selected websites for learners. Also teacher may use external and internal links. Besides, teacher may include non- Web resources: books, worksheet, video, etc.

·           Evaluation

The measure is really needed in the evaluation. The measure must fit to the goal and objectives. Actually, there is one appropriate evaluation that is using evaluation rubrics which is often best for authentic assessment.

·           Conclusion

The last is conclusion. Teacher summarizes and reminds learners what they learned and accomplished by completing the WebQuest and encourage them to extend their thinking. So, it is a reflection, review and rethinking to both teacher and students.