The webquest I chose was one called “Break the Code.” In our group of 5 we made comments about different aspects of the webquest. The roles were the affiliator, the efficiency expert, the altitudinist, the technophile and the NSW syllabus adviser.
The affiliator has the job of making sure that the task requires or forces students to work together. The task outlined in the “Break the Code” webquest can easily be done by a student on their own. Thus the affiliator did not do their job in fulfilling their role in this task.
The efficiency expert values time. They like tasks that are small and still teach the concept well. It was commented that this project integrates matrix multiplication and inverses in an interesting context. Clear steps were given for students to follow. This task provided a deep understanding of matrix multiplication and inverses in a reasonably short amount of time.
The technophile values use of technology in the webquest. They value a well presented site with links to other useful sites and resources. This webquest lacked a good use of technology. It provided few links and only referred to general sites such as google. The page presentation was weak and could have been given as a handout with little change in affect.
The altitudinist values higher order thinking in the task. This webquest was very procedural a usual sign that higher order thinking is low in the task. However the task was challenging enough to require some higher order thinking from the students.
The NSW syllabus adviser makes sure that the webquest concentrates on knowledge that is only in the NSW syllabus. Matrices are not taught at all in NSW so naturally this webquest does not suit NSW students. However students from Victoria might benefit form this as they learn about matrices.
The webquest provided an interesting and fun activity. It would have been so much better if the above mentioned improvements were implemented.
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