Introduction
The Olympic Games are considered to be the most important and prestigious sports event. People from all around the world watch the Games, which symbolize the enjoyment of universal sport, the cheer of athletes' efforts and the human excellence. But do we really know how, when, where and why the Olympics started?
In this WebQuest, we will travel back in time and we will track the origin of the Games, their true values, events and traditions.
Question: What is the origin of the Olympic Games?
Context: ESL
Level: Advanced (C2)
Teacher: Katerina Stammou
Task
Throughout this WebQuest you will be exposed to a variety of sources from which you will retrieve all the necessary information about the Ancient Olympic Games. Using this information you will be asked to complete a number of tasks which will ultimately lead to your final product, a long piece of writing (1200 words), followed by a Power Point presentation about the Origin of the Olympic Games.
Process
In order to complete this WebQuest about the Origin of Olympic Games, you need to follow the following steps.
1) Work in two pairs.
2)Read the articles on the following websites and watch the documentary from the link below. Keep notes about important information. There are a number of questions in Handout 2, which will help you focus on key elements.
About the history, the traditions, the place, the athletes, the worship of Gods, the truce:
http://dide.mag.sch.gr/grfa/Olympiaki_paideia/kathigites.pdf
http://www.ancient.eu/Olympic_Games/
http://www.olympic.org/ancient-olympic-games?tab=history
http://www.olympic.org/ancient-olympic-games?tab=mythology
http://www.olympic.org/ancient-olympic-games?tab=the-athlete
http://www.olympic.org/ancient-olympic-games?tab=the-sports-events
http://ancientolympicgames.org/games/
http://www.olympia-greece.org/ancient-olympics1.html
http://www.olympia-greece.org/mw.html
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/athens_games/history.htm
http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/athens_games/principles.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/ancient_greeks/the_olympic_…
http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Olympics/
http://www.history.com/topics/olympic-games
About the different sports:
https://www.britishmuseum.org/PDF/british_museum_olympic_games.pdf
http://www.olympia-greece.org/contests.html
The videos/ documentaries about the Ancient Olympic Games:
2) Once you have located all the necessary information, you need to cooperate in order to create a concept map. Using the website about the creation of concept maps (http://www.bubbl.us/ ) , put all the information in a logical order. We have created concept maps many times, so you already know how to do this. In case you find it intimidating, I have created a model for you in Handout 3, which will help you create your own.
3) The two teams meet together and compare their concept maps. You can add or delete information. All together, you are asked to create a Power Point presentation. The concept maps will be a great help for you. In your Power Point presentation you can add pictures, videos, sound files in order to make your presentation interesting and engaging. In case you are not familiar with the creation of a Power Point presentation, there some tutorials which can be of great help.
Here are the videos with the tutorial:
4) You have to write a long piece of writing. An essay which will analyze the issue of "The origin of the Olympic Games". Use all the knowledge you have acquired so far! In order to write the essay, you need to divide the paragraphs, so that each member is appointed a specific section to write. Then, the four of you will meet, or if you are acquainted with using the technology, use your personal emails, facebook, twitter or even the Web 2.0 tools to assemble the essay. Once you adapt, delete or add information, reread your article and decide upon the title.
5) And finally, the big time has arrived! You need to print and distribute the article to the audience (your parents, your teacher and fellow teachers) and start your presentation. You can have your presentation either in your emails or in a USB stick. You will use the teacher's computer. Be prepared to answer any questions!
Good Luck!
Evaluation
Once you finished your tasks, it would be a good idea to take a look at this table which is an evaluation chart. How do you think you did? How did your classmates do? There are a number of criteria listed below. Try to be honest about yourselves, your efforts and final products. Your teacher will also express her opinion about your performance at the end and there will be a conversation about the effectiveness and success of the whole project.
In this page, there is a table which concerns the Power Point presentation and the final article. In your handouts (handout 4) there are some questions which deal with the creation of the concept map. These questions are also part of the evaluation, so do not forget to complete it.
| 4 - Excellent (Exceeds the required results) | 3 - Very Good (Meets the required results | 2 - Almost Good (Not the expected outcome) | 1 - Below Average (Not reaching the expected results) | |
| Information Accuracy | The information included in the final products was accurate and detailed, reflecting learners engagement to the task and thorough research. | The information included in the final products was accurate and sufficient, indicating learners' good research. | The information used had some instances of inaccuracies and imporatnt points were missing. | The information was most of the time inaccurate and quite insufficient. You did not research enough. |
| Knowledge Acquired | You have read the resources and researched even more. Moreover, you have used the information critically, effectively and have synthesized it in an excellent way. | You have read all the given resources. You have used the information appropriately and synthesized them effectively. | You have not read all the resources and the information you used is inadequate, showing little knowledge. | You show that you did not acquire knowledge, which means that you have not researched and the points used are mere copies. |
| Task Completion | The tasks were successfully completed and you did even more than expected. The overall peformance was excellent. | The tasks were successfully completed and you did what you were expected to do. The overall performance was very good. | The tasks were completed but you could have tried harder for a better result. The overall perfomance was adequate. | The tasks were either not completed at all or did not meet the demands. The overall performance was unsatisfactory and needed more effort. |
| Cooperation with classmates | Worked very well and creatively with fellow classmates, being critical about the different opinions but also open-minded as far as accepting other people's ideas and thoughts. There were no instances of problems and misunderstandings, so the teacher did not intervene. Each person contributed to the team's effort and final product. | Worked generally well with fellow classmates, being most of the time critical about the different opinions but also open-minded as far as accepting other people's ideas and thoughts. There were some instances of problems and misunderstandings, so there was minor teacher intervention. Each person contributed to a certain extend to the team's effort and final product. | Worked not so well, as there was little critical ability and acceptance of different ideas and thoughts. There were problems and misunderstandings which rendered the teacher's intervention necessary at times. All members of the team did not contribute the to the same extend to the team's effort and final product. | Many difficulties in cooperation with classmates, resulting in many problems and misunderstandings. The teacher's intervention was constant and without it the members of the team were not able to communicate and complete the required tasks. |
| Fluency in Presentation | The presentation was really effective and interesting with flowing and well-structured speech. You presented the topic with confidence and showed that you researched and mastered the relevant information. The presentation was logically structured, helping the audience to fully understand the topic discussed and had advance vocabulary and grammatical features. | The presentation was very good with elaborate descriptions. The learners included many details of the information they researched, showing relevant possession of knowledge on the topic. The presentation was good enough, adequately guiding the audience to understand the topic discussed. The overall use of vocabulary and grammatical features was appropriate of the learners' level. | The presentation was quite simple and learners did not show fluency. You used information from the resources, but it was evident that the information was not effectively exploited. The presentation was not coherent, ideas were not flowing and that had a limiting effect in the audience's understanding on the topic. | The presentation was not good and you had to read the points from the Power Point or their notes, showing no fluency. The ideas were not coherent and that lead the audience's lack of interest and understanding. You copied and pasted the information which was indicative of your insufficient research and limited knowledge on the topic. |
| Essay writing | The text is written in a clear and grammatically correct way. The ideas are flowing smoothly and there are appropriate ways/structures to connect ideas. You present a critical point of view of the topic discussed and use effective logical structure and arguments, helping the readers to completely understand the topic and the underlying ideas. The overall communicative effect of the text is excellent. | The text is written in a well-structured and generally, grammatically correct way. The ideas are presented in a very systematic way, presenting arguments and details. There is connection among the ideas with the use of appropriate linking words, guiding the reader and helping him understand the topic and the ideas in a great degree. The overall communicative effect is very good. | The text is not well-structured or clear and there are many grammatical problems. The ideas are written in a randon way, having little connection to each other. So, very few linking words are used and this does not lead the readers, creating misunderstandings and problems in comprehension of the topic discussed. The overall communicative effect is not the desired one. | The text is an accummulation of a series of words and sentences with no logical sequence or any sort of linkage. There are many serious grammatical problems and lack of advance structures. The reader cannot really understand the topic of the essay or distinguish any arguments. The overall communicative effect is way below average and not successful. |
Conclusion
You have successfully completed a very demanding and thorough research on the origin of the Olympic Games. That means that you have cooperated effectively with your classmates in order to create a concept map, a Power Point presentation and the final written product, a long piece of writing which included all the necessary information about the Ancient Olympic Games. Apart from this successful outcome, you have gained insight and valuable information for this globally appreciated sports event.
I hope this project was interesting and motivating for you!