Essential Question:
How do discoveries of new lands made by explorers impact the world and in what ways?
Learners:
These learners are in the 11th grade, which are between the ages of 16-17 years old. These students are both male and female from various ethnicities/races and learning styles/different learning abilities. There are five students who have Individualized Education Programs (IEPs): three have specified learning disabilities, one has ADHD, and one is on the Austistic Spectrum. For the three students that have learning disabilities and one with ADHD, they have reading and writing goals stated in their IEPs. These students will have a sound recording of my voice reading the tasks and the other sections on this WebQuest.
There are some common student misconceptions about this material. One common misconceptions is that Christopher Columbus thought that the world was round and everyone else thought it was flat. Another is that Christopher Columbus was the only explorer that discovered the New World, but he actually discovered the Bahamas. Because students believe that Christopher Columbus discovered America, they do not associate other explorers making discoveries in America.
Students generally understand that these explorers were looking for other lands and different products to trade and wanting to claim the new lands for their home country. They were looking for alternative paths to reach to certain regions, particularly South and East Asia, more quickly.
Refereces for this section:
http://vlib.iue.it/carrie/reference/worldhistory/sections/17discov.html
wpicarellattu.wikispaces.com/file/view/SocialStudiesLessonPlan-1.docx (copy then paste the url into the search bar)
Goals:
These goals are Pennsylvania state and Common Core standards cited from the Pennsylvania Standards Aligned System website. (http://www.pdesas.org/)
PA state standards - History 9-12
8.1.12.B: Evaluate the interpretation of historical events and sources, considering the use of fact versus opinion, multiple perspectives, and cause and effect relationships.
8.1.12.C: Analyze, synthesize, and integrate historical data, creating a product that supports and appropriately illustrates inferences and conclusions drawn from research. (Reference RWSL Standard 1.8.11 Research)
8.4.12.A: Evaluate the role groups and individuals played in the social, political, cultural, and economic development throughout world history.
7.1.12.A: Use geographic tools to analyze information about the interaction between people, places, and the environment.
PA Core: History and Social Studies 9-12
CC.8.6.11-12.A: Write arguments focused on discipline-specific content.
Introduce precise, knowledgeable claim(s), establish the significance of the claim(s), distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and create an organization that logically sequences the claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence.
Develop claim(s) and counterclaims fairly and thoroughly, supplying the most relevant data and evidence for each while pointing out the strengths and limitations of both claim(s) and counterclaims in a discipline-appropriate form that anticipates the audience’s knowledge level, concerns, values, and possible biases.
Use words, phrases, and clauses as well as varied syntax to link the major sections of the text, create cohesion, and clarify the relationships between claim(s) and reasons, between reasons and evidence, and between claim(s) and counterclaims.
Establish and maintain a formal style and objective tone while attending to the norms and conventions of the discipline in which they are writing.
Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from or supports the argument presented.
CC.8.6.11-12.C: Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
CC.8.6.11-12.E: Use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or shared writing products in response to ongoing feedback, including new arguments or information.
CC.8.6.11-12.H: Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
Objectives:
1.) With the given websites, the students will be able to identify at least one region their explorer discovered.
2.) With the given websites, the students will be able to identify at least two reasons why their explorer explored the particular region(s) they did.
3.) With the given websites, the students will be able to identify how their explorer’s discoveries impacted their home countries.
4.) With the given websites, the students will be able to develop their belief on the greatest impact their explorer’s discoveries on the world.
5.) With the given websites, the students will be able to locate the voyage and location of discovery on a map.
Time and Organization:
This webquest should take the students about five to six days to complete. The students need to follow the steps of the process. The students should take one to two days to complete the research sheet, two to three days to complete the outline and essay, and 15-20 minutes to complete the National Geographic Interactive MapMaker activity.
Habits of Mind:
Thinking and communicating with clarity
“If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called
research, would it?”
Albert Einstein
The point of research is to learn more about a particular subject that you had little or no knowledge in. You are seeking more information by reading and experimenting. If you knew what you were looking for, it would not be research, but a review. The students will need to read the information on the websites and decide what they think is the greatest impact of their exploration on the world.
Thinking Interdependently
“To keep your resolve, surround yourself with those who want you to
succeed. The brain cannot do its job of protecting the body
without contact with other people.”
Robert Ornstein and David Sobel in “The Healing Brain”
The students need to think together to complete the assignment. The students need to be able to divide the work equally and use each other to answer all the questions. These students need to choose a partner that they will be able to work with and complete the assignment without getting distracted and/or arguing with. The students need to use their time effectively. Also the students will need to think and work together to decide what they think is the greatest impact of their explorer’s discoveries on the world.
Reference for this section:
http://www.habitsofmindinternational.com/store/Resources.html
Differentiated Instruction:
Differentiated instruction is used in this webquest and is beneficial to many different students. For all students, with and without special needs, it help them become self-independent learners not dependent on teachers to deliver instruction. Students can work at their own pace and it gives them more time to review information. Students can work on the assignment whenever they want any time of day. It helps students develop a better sense of group work where they are dependent on each other to get their work done. Of the web resoures I provided, I gave mostly resources that required reading, but I also provided one source that was a video that provided the same information as the reading sources. This is meant for students who are more visual learners.
Webquest Rationale:
There are various reasons for having students complete webquests. WebQuests are an effective means of conducting independent work and a creative way to use media as a means of instruction. They are a powerful tool for differentiation by they give students an opportunity to make choices on their based on ability and interest levels. Webquests address assessment through use of rubrics. They also help students develop critical thinking skills and brings about creativity in the area of problem-solving. They are a practical means for students to practice their 21st Century skills using technology.
References for this section:
Beck, L. (2008). WebQuests, Wikis, and Wilderness. The Interpreter, 4(3),16- 17. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.navigator-esu.passhe.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=4e207edb-c45c-4ca8-bf35-66bc1ff12cc8%40sessionmgr115&vid=3&hid=124
Mangelson,J.& Castek,J.(2008). Engaging students with webquests. Book Links,17(6), 46-47. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.navigator-esu.passhe.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=c4392248-e1fd-4f17-9fc2-c8546075eab8%40sessionmgr115&vid=4&hid=124
Osman, Kamisah. (January 2014). Evaluation of webquest in biology Teachers’ Perception. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education, 15(1). Retrieved from https://esu.desire2learn.com/content/enforced1/1735310-15381.201510/G-WebquestIntro/WebquestReading/Wequest-Bio-2014.pdf
Schwiezer, H.,& Kosow, B.(2007). WebQuests: Tools for Differentiation. Gifted Child Today, 30 (1), 29-35. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.navigator-esu.passhe.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=27e51c7e-07f1-4825-9a0f-01d24da3ba16%40sessionmgr115&vid=4&hid=124
Vidoni, K. L., & Maddux, C. D. (2002). WebQuests: Can they be used to improve critical thinking skills in students? Computers In The Schools, 19(1/2), 101. Retrieved from
WebQuest Reflection:
I feel that this webquest is very well planned and has many great resources in it. I took a lot of time to make sure the resources were good and can help the students answer the assessment questions. I learned very much about technology in this webquest. I learned how to use webquest creation sites such as createwebquest.com and how to properly prepare one. I learned how to use audio recording site such as audioboom.com and soundcloud.com to create audio reading to help my students who struggle with reading. While using these audio recording sites, it help me proofread my written text and made it sound better. I also learned how to create Google Docs word documents. I learned how to make it available for my students without them having to use my username and password to enter. This was a challenge task, but I felt I completed it with my best effort and it can be done.