A Web Project Evaluation checkmark
This section of the handbook is intended to be an example of website evaluation outlined in the section Evaluating Websites.  Please note:  The following web project lacks the content of a resource site because its purpose is to direct students to a variety of resources.

Our "Sun"-Sational Star is a WebQuest that was developed for 3rd-5th grade focusing on the areas of reading and science.  The activity was recommended by the WebQuest Example Matrix and was chosen for evaluation due to the fact that the solar system is taught in several grade levels at Northwest School, including 4th and 5th grades.  It appears that this Sun WebQuest will make a nice supplemental technology activity to the science curriculum.

The following evaluation is to see how well the site "stands up" to R. Harris's CARS Evaluation.

the letter CCredibility
  • The author is listed, and email is available.
  • Through a link to her personal webpage, it is given that the author is a classroom teacher and a technology education graduate student at UNLV.
  • There does not appear to be any spelling or grammatical errors.
    		•
    the letter AAccuracy
  • The author does not provide information on the sun.  Instead she sends the students to credible resource sites during the quest.
    		•
    the letter RReasonableness
  • For most of the tasks, the author sends students to a variety of sites.  She doesn't rely on only one resource.
    		•
    the letter SSupport
  • Although the author did not acknowledge the WebQuest site, she clearly has used the site as a reference.
  • Students are sent to credible sites.
    		•
    The following points were also considered during the evaluation.
    Design &
    Technology
  • The site is hosted by Geocities and cannot always be reached.
  • The site should be appealing to students due to the bright colors and graphics.
  • The backgrounds tend to be "wild."
  • The pages load slowly because of the number of graphics.
    		•
    WebQuest Elements
    1.  Introduction, 2.  Task, 
    3.  Resources, 4.  Process, 
    5.  Evaluation, 6.  Conclusion
  • The author includes the basic elements of the WebQuest model.
  • Each element is explained in a way students should understand.
    		•

    Our "Sun"-Sational Star is a well structured WebQuest that could be used effectively in a classroom except for one major problem:  the Geocities server has been down several times, making it impossible to view the site.  A teacher planning on using the quest should have a back-up lesson ready if problems occur.

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