Your Place in the Surrounding WorldWebquest

by Alemtsahai Gared

Rationale

The generative terms, respectively, for the four cycles in my English 101 course are: “sovereignty,” “seeing,” (choice of hard case - “gender,” “identity,” “schooling,” “langauge,” etc.), and “reflection.”

In the first cycle, “sovereignty,” students work with an essay titled, “Loss of the Creature,” written by Walker Percy.

Percy’s essay discusses sovereignty (loss, gain, or rediscovering), and it provides an excellent segue into the next cycle, “seeing.”

Their engagement with sovereignty through an experience in their first paper helps them prepare for this second cycle.

Prior Preparation

This webquest would be apart of the second cycle in my course, “seeing.”

Students will have read chapter one of John Berger’s Ways of Seeing, also the title of the first chapter, before they embark on this webquest. Berger’s essay provides context for the webquest, which leads into their second paper.

Webquest

Your Place in the Surrounding World

Introduction

The webquest helps the students explore a different way of seeing - the difference is a matter of seeing it online, as opposed to physically being in a building.

The task is to choose a cluster of images (three clusters with three images in each), interpret the images, engage in audio recording, do a little research, and then submit a multi-step writing assignment.

Images

The cluster of images consists of mosques and churches.

Mosques: Niujie Mosque (Beijing, China), Djumaya Mosque (Plovdiv, Bulgaria), & Sheikh Zayed Mosque (Abu Dubai, UAE).

Churches: Cathedral of St. Canice (Kilkenny, Ireland), St. Peter’s Cathedral (Vatican City), & Christ Church Spitalfields (London, England).

Images and Interpretation

Interpreting images online is more restricting. The students aren’t physically present in the structure, so they can’t rely on their other senses: sound, smell, and touch. They can only use seeing to interpret.

Audio Recording

The rationale behind this step is that voicing their reactions to each structure can be a much more effective method of capturing their initial reactions.

They wouldn’t have to pause and think as they would if they were writing. This would be completely visceral.

Audacity

QuickTime™ and aH.264 decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

Research

Researching the structures will help students delve deep into the analysis of the structure.

My objective is they would unveil the delicate relationship of religion, history, and culture, and how they are displayed on these structures.

I would require them to take notes of their research.

Writing Assignment

They will complete a multi-step writing assignment that asks them to do prewriting, double-entry notebooks, paragraphs on interpretation, and research analysis.

This assignment is a great exercise that leads into the second paper.

Evaluation

The students will be evaluated by the audio recording of their reactions, research notes (not graded), and the writing assignment.

I want to see extended articulation of the affects of the structure, and the effects it has on the student. This is important because it will help students form a concept when they work with their second paper.