Essential Question

Essential Question: How does the media influence our perception of the government and politics?  More specifically, what role does the media play in political campaigns and how does this impact how our country is governed?

Standard: SS.10.C.2
      analyze multiple media sources and their influence on public opinion and policy issues.

Selected Webquest:
https://sites.google.com/site/boordwebquest/

	Beginning	Developing	Accomplished	Score
Overall Aesthetics (This refers to the WebQuest page itself, not the external resources linked to it.)
Overall Visual Appeal	0 points There are few or no graphic elements. No variation in layout or typography. OR Color is garish and/or typographic variations are overused and legibility suffers. Background interferes with the readability.	2 points Graphic elements sometimes, but not always, contribute to the understanding of concepts, ideas and relationships. There is some variation in type size, color, and layout.	4 points Appropriate and thematic  graphic elements are used to make  visual connections that contribute to  the understanding of concepts, ideas  and relationships. Differences in type  size and/or color are used well and  consistently.  See Fine Points Checklist.	3.5: The webquest uses visual images to relate to the content, but the Webquest does have a few pages that could use additions to further interest the students.
Navigation & Flow	0 points Getting through the lesson is confusing and unconventional. Pages can't be found easily and/or the way back isn't clear.	2 points There are a few places where the learner can get lost and not know where to go next.	4 points Navigation is seamless. It is always clear to the learner what all the pieces are and how to get to them.	4: The site flows very smooth and outlines each step in the process.
Mechanical Aspects	0 points There are more than 5 broken links, misplaced or missing images, badly sized tables, misspellings and/or grammatical errors.	1 point There are some broken links, misplaced or missing images, badly sized tables, misspellings and/or grammatical errors.	2 points No mechanical problems noted.  See Fine Points Checklist.	1.5: One of the links do not work but it is because it is an archived article from the Washington Post
Introduction
Motivational Effectiveness of Introduction	0 points The introduction is purely factual, with no appeal to relevance or social importance OR The scenario posed is transparently bogus and doesn't respect the media literacy of today's learners.	1 point The introduction relates somewhat to the learner's interests and/or describes a compelling question or problem.	2 points The introduction draws the reader into the lesson by relating to the learner's interests or goals and/or engagingly describing a compelling question or problem.	2: The introduction informs the student that they will first become a critic of famous campaign ads and then have their own opportunity to make an ad.
Cognitive Effectiveness of the Introduction	0 points The introduction doesn't prepare the reader for what is to come, or build on what the learner already knows.	1 point The introduction makes some reference to learner's prior knowledge and previews to some extent what the lesson is about.	2 points The introduction builds on learner's prior knowledge and effectively prepares the learner by foreshadowing what the lesson is about.	2: The introduction shows the student what needs to be done, why it's important and what will be expected by the end of the Webquest
Task (The task is the end result of student efforts... not the steps involved in getting there.)
Connection of Task to Standards	0 points The task is not related to standards.	2 point The task is referenced to standards but is not clearly connected to what students must know and be able to do to achieve proficiency of those standards.	4 points The task is referenced to standards and is clearly connected to what students must know and be able to do to achieve proficiency of those standards.	4: The task is model after an Ohio K-12 Benchmark in Social Studies and builds upon student knowledge to increase their understand of the media's impact on presidential campaigns.
Cognitive Level of the Task	0 points Task requires simply comprehending or retelling of information found on web pages and answering factual questions.	3 points Task is doable but is limited in its significance to students' lives. The task requires analysis of information and/or putting together information from several sources.	6 points Task is doable and engaging, and elicits thinking that goes beyond rote comprehension. The task requires synthesis of multiple sources of information, and/or taking a position, and/or going beyond the data given and making a generalization or creative product. See WebQuest Taskonomy.	6: The task is feasible, and incorporates student discussion that will allow for various viewpoints to be presented that would not be presented otherwise.
Process (The process is the step-by-step description of how students will accomplish the task.)
Clarity of Process	0 points Process is not clearly stated. Students would not know exactly what they were supposed to do just from reading this.	2 points Some directions are given, but there is missing information. Students might be confused.	4 points Every step is clearly stated. Most students would know exactly where they are at each step of the process and know what to do next.	4: The Webquest is very easy to follow and execute
Scaffolding of Process	0 points The process lacks strategies and organizational tools needed for students to gain the knowledge needed to complete the task. Activities are of little significance to one another and/or to the accomplishment of the task.	3 points Strategies and organizational tools embedded in the process are insufficient to ensure that all students will gain the knowledge needed to complete the task. Some of the activities do not relate specifically to the accomplishment of the task.	6 points The process provides students coming in at different entry levels with strategies and organizational tools to access and gain the knowledge needed to complete the task. Activities are clearly related and designed to take the students from basic knowledge to higher level thinking. Checks for understanding are built in to assess whether students are getting it. See: Process Guides A Taxonomy of Information Patterns Language Arts Standards and Technology WebQuest Enhancement Tools Reception, Transformation & Production Scaffolds	6: The Webquest begins with the students reviewing previous campaign ads to understand the process and then proceeds to the more complex task of having to design their own ad.
Richness of Process	0 points Few steps, no separate roles assigned.	1 points Some separate tasks or roles assigned. More complex activities required.	2 points Different roles are assigned to help students understand different perspectives and/or share responsibility in accomplishing the task.	2: Students first serve as critics; followed by producers, directors, and actors of their own ad.
Resources (Note: you should evaluate all resources linked to the page, even if they are in sections other than the Process block. Also note that books, video and other off-line resources can and should be used where appropriate.)
Relevance & Quantity of Resources	0 points Resources provided are not sufficient for students to accomplish the task. OR There are too many resources for learners to look at in a reasonable time.	2 point There is some connection between the resources and the information needed for students to accomplish the task. Some resources don't add anything new.	4 points There is a clear and meaningful connection between all the resources and the information needed for students to accomplish the task. Every resource carries its weight.	4: All of the resources help the student carry out the required task.
Quality of Resources	0 points Links are mundane. They lead to information that could be found in a classroom encyclopedia.	2 points Some links carry information not ordinarily found in a classroom.	4 points Links make excellent use of the Web's timeliness and colorfulness. Varied resources provide enough meaningful information for students to think deeply.	4: The links direct the student to historical campaign ads of interest that the students would not be able to locate in an encyclopedia or textbook.
Evaluation
Clarity of Evaluation Criteria	0 points Criteria for success are not described.	3 points Criteria for success are at least partially described.	6 points Criteria for success are clearly stated in the form of a rubric. Criteria include qualitative as well as quantitative descriptors. The evaluation instrument clearly measures what students must know and be able to do to accomplish the task. See Creating a Rubric.	6: The Webquest includes a detailed rubric similar to this rubric.
Total Score				49/50

This Webquest would be a highly successful tool in the classroom as it has a quality design and promotes the classroom standards required by the state.  After completing the WebQuest, the students should be able to answer the essential question of how the media impacts political campaigns.  Students should be able to conclude that without a strong marketing and media campaign that it is highly unlikely that a president would get elected in today's age.  Therefore showing that the media has a direct impact on how our country is governed and by who that it is governed.

Personally, I would make an attempt to incorporate this WebQuest in my classroom if I taught a 11th-12th grade Government course due to its tendency to have a student think at a higher order of thinking through research, group discussion, collaboration, and finally reflection to fully understand the impact that the media has and what goes into running a political campaign.