Amy Lafontaine & Sherri Galasso ECUR 398

WebQuest Lesson Plan Feedback: Mike Olfert and Brad Boyko

Dear Mike & Brad,

Thank you for volunteering to hand in a lesson plan following our WebQuest workshop. We really
enjoyed reading your thoughts on how to utilize the WebQuest concept in your chosen curriculum.
We further appreciated your sincere attempt to incorporate cultural diversity into the Science 9
curriculum, and more specifically, the physical science unit. Please find our detailed comments
below.

Sincerely,
Amy and Sherri

• We didn’t find mention of the context of learning

• We weren’t sure how the students were going to be formatively assessed (e.g., rubric,
complete/incomplete, only descriptive feedback)
• You mentioned that the students would be journaling to reflect on their pairs/groups but we
were curious if the students would also be engaging in self-reflection of any kind? We found
it really interesting that there will be journaling in this unit. Great idea.
• We especially liked that you brought up ‘web safety’ with the students. In this regard, the
following website may be useful to the students before beginning their research:
URL: http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/games/jocool_jofool/kids.cfm
• In regards to your suggestions for LD/EAL/Gifted or talented students, we were wondering
if it might also be helpful to provide LD/EAL students with the assignments in advance or
some other slight modification? We also thought that this approach might be helpful since
not all classrooms will be equipped with a teaching assistant(s) or an intern.
• We were wondering about the time allotted for this lesson plan: 25 minutes may be too short
for the students to complete their research. Also, are the students writing down their findings
or are they printing the web pages containing the relevant information? If the students are
transcribing the information, the time may have to be extended to accommodate this process.
Moreover, it might be useful to extend the research time frame since we cannot assume that
all students will have access to a computer or Internet services outside of school to complete
the assignment if they do not get it done during class time.
• Will the students be having different roles in their dyads or triads? For example, one student
may prefer to be the transcriber and another the researcher.
• Will the teacher be showing the students an example search using the Internet.
• We attempted your WebQuest search ourselves and we had a difficult time finding
information on the FNMI perspective in terms of lightning. We discovered that First Nations
people would use snakes and lightning to represent ‘swiftness’ and according to the
Passamquoddy legend, lightning represents the smoke and fire from Thunderbird’s spirit
when he is smoking his pipe. Due to our own difficulties finding relevant sites, we thought it
might be useful for students to be given two or three websites to start their searches…or it
could just be us? As a side note we did find an interesting fact about lightning striking
people: men are struck four times more than women…maybe lightning is attracted to
testosterone? We thought that this might be another interesting WebQuest idea to address
Amy Lafontaine & Sherri Galasso ECUR 398

Outcome CE9.1, Indicator I.

• We also thought it might be beneficial to extend the time allotted for the debriefing/class
discussion, particularly in terms of reviewing the debate about whether traditional ecological
knowledge is science and the former acculturation of the FNMI peoples.
• There is no mention of explaining what a webquest is to the class before they begin the
activity. We were just wondering if this is something you planned to do?
• Overall, you have lots of interesting ideas for the discussion part of this lesson, and not
being able to cover it all due to time constraints would be unfortunate.

WebQuest Lesson Plan Feedback: Alex Tapisim

Dear Alex,

Thank you for volunteering to hand in a lesson plan following our WebQuest workshop. We really
enjoyed reading your thoughts on how to utilize the WebQuest concept in your chosen curriculum.
We further appreciated your sincere attempt to incorporate cultural diversity into the Science 10
curriculum, and more specifically, in terms of sustainability. We think that students would really
enjoy these concepts presented in this fashion. Please find our detailed comments below.

Sincerely,
Amy and Sherri

• We realize that the Science 10 curriculum is currently undergoing modifications and

therefore does not have a similar outlining of objectives/indicators as the new science
curriculums for grade nine, for example. However, we were unsure whether the CEL’s from
this older curriculum should be indicated in lieu or in combination with the indicators that
you gleaned from the key questions. Similarly, what is the learning context for this lesson?
• In reference to the above-mentioned limitations from working from older-formatted
curriculum, your dimensions of scientific literacy seemed a little unclear to us. Perhaps the
specific dimensions from the grade nine science curriculum may be applied to this
component of your lesson plan (it would be good practice, since grades 10-12 will soon have
this content in the curriculums soon).
• We were wondering about the specific manner in which you were going to assess students
(e.g., pass/fail; complete/incomplete; descriptive feedback; scoring criteria or rubric). If
there is scoring criteria, will students receive this in advance? Further will the students be
engaging in peer- or self-assessment since group work is involved?
• Furthermore, on the assessment topic, you mention groups handing in point form notes, but
later you say they are to hand in the point form notes, a paragraph outlining their
perspectives and a comparison paragraph. Is all of this being assessed then?
• We were curious about the debriefing that would occur once the students completed their
research - will the students be given time to share their findings with the other groups in the
class so that the entire class might learn more about cultural diversity and sustainability, in
addition to practicing their communication skills?
• We were wondering if the students would receive a handout outlining this WebQuest or
perhaps it would be posted online by the teacher? It is nice to include handouts in your
Amy Lafontaine & Sherri Galasso ECUR 398

lesson plan to avoid confusion as well. Either way, will the students be provided with some
suggested Internet sites or will they be required to find them on their own? Furthermore,
students may benefit from a ‘cybertour’ about on-line safety. As a possible option, students
can visit the following website before beginning their research:
URL: http://www.media-awareness.ca/3nglish/games/jocool_jofool/kids.cfm
• Along similar lines, will another adult (such as a librarian) be available to help students with
their research, and possibly, to ensure that the students appropriately use their time and
Internet use?
• Will alternative arrangements be considered for schools or students with limited access to
computers and/or the Internet?
• Is there a minimum number of websites that the students must visit to ensure that they are
provided with a range of perspectives on this topic?
• In regards to the issue of sustainability, will students have already examined this topic,
especially the North American perspective? Furthermore, since the topic is so vast, what
particular aspect of sustainability will the students be investigating – specific ecosystems or
organisms or abiotic and biotic factors?
• Will the students be able to select and study similar cultural perspectives? Are the students
examining present cultural perspectives or how man’s relationship with the environment has
changed over the centuries? That said, we really commend you with trying to have students
explore how their own personal values may influence their own choices and actions.
• How many students will be assigned/allotted to each group? Within these groups, will the
students have assigned roles or does each student in the group find one or two facts?
• In regards to exceptional students, you mentioned students that may have limited proficiency
with the Internet. We were curious about specific accommodations for LD/EAL/gifted
students?
• There is no mention of explaining what a webquest is to the class before they begin the
activity. We were just wondering if this is something you planned to do?
• Overall, we like the idea of utilizing the internet to incorporate various cultural perspectives
into Science. You have a great idea here.
Amy Lafontaine & Sherri Galasso ECUR 398

WebQuest Lesson Plan Feedback: Nicol Thiessen

Dear Nikki,

Thank you for volunteering to hand in a lesson plan following our WebQuest workshop. We really
enjoyed reading your thoughts on how to utilize the WebQuest concept in your chosen curriculum.
We further appreciated your sincere attempt to also incorporate a plurality of views in terms of
electronic devices into the Science 9 curriculum. We think that students would welcome the way in
which you enveloped your WebQuest within a playful scenario. Please find our detailed comments
below.

Sincerely,
Amy and Sherri

• In regards to the learning outcomes, we thought that maybe CE9.1 and CE9.3 might be
indicated
• We were unsure about the learning context of this lesson plan
• In regards to the assessment of the students, we were a little unsure about the breakdown of
the scores. For example, what constitutes the difference between a 4 and a 5? Will students
be receiving this breakdown prior to completing their research? If so, it might be most
beneficial for the students to have a clear outline of the marking criteria. Furthermore, will
the students be engaging in self- and peer-asssessment or will the teacher be the only one
providing feedback? In either case, it might be helpful to the students to view some
exemplars beforehand and provide them with a list of specific criteria (which may even be
created as a class) as to what needs to be included in their brochure. .
• We were wondering if the students would need magazines to search prospective electronic
devices or if the students might find more selection on-line. We are not sure how many
teachers may have access to such magazines.
• We were curious about the specific electronic devices: the indicators of the curriculum
emphasize the study of household electronic devices, while the lesson plan mentions that the
devices must be important. As such, are the students limited to devices that must be useful
or important to the home-user or to society, in general. It may be helpful to qualify the term
‘important’ for the students or provide a list of devices for students to choose from or give
them ideas.
• We were wondering if the students may benefit from a ‘cybertour’ about on-line safety?
Teachers might possibly have students visit the following website before beginning their
research: URL: http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/games/jocool_jofool/kids.cfm
• We were wondering if specific websites might be provided to the students as suggestions or
starting points. For example, for students investigating the potential health risks of each
device, the World Health Organization’s website may be particularly useful.
• Will alternative arrangements be considered for schools or students with limited access to
computers and/or the Internet?
• Will another adult (such as a librarian) be available to help students with their research, and
possibly, to ensure that the students appropriately use their time and Internet use?
• We are also wondering how much the students will know about this particular topic before
Amy Lafontaine & Sherri Galasso ECUR 398

they begin their WebQuests? The mechanisms of some electronic devices can be quite
challenging.
• We were also curious about your plans for exceptional students? There was no mention of
alternatives/accommodations for these students in your lesson plan.
• We really appreciate your attempt to make this an interactive and authentic learning
opportunity for the students, particularly within the backdrop of the fair trade show.
However, we were a little unsure of the purpose of the budget (the companies you have
created are very creative by the way). Is it to ensure that the class will be researching a range
of electronic devices, that is, expensive and inexpensive equipment/gadgets? We were a
little confused with the need of students to purchase one device for the means of
disassembling it. Perhaps students may find ‘plans’ or pictures of disassembled devices on-
line? Furthermore, is it ok if some groups have the same budget (which will be dependent on
class size)?
• There is no mention of explaining what a webquest is to the class before they begin the
activity. We were just wondering if this is something you planned to do?
• Overall, this is a wonderful idea. We think students will be quite engaged.