WebQuest Usage in Democracy, Human Rights and Citizenship Education 

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to assess the performances of social studies teacher candidates in using WebQuest applications in Human Rights, Democracy and Citizenship Education. WebQuests are tools that are used to create constructivist learning environments for students by using web resources. WebQuests allow students to do internet research while minimizing the risk of getting lost on the net. The study employs five different WebQuests about human rights, democracy and citizenship prepared as part of a bigger research project. The five different WebQuests about sensitive social issues were completed by teacher candidates over the course of 12 weeks. The subjects of the study were 120 students allocated to four experiment groups at two state universities in Turkey. The students completed the WebQuests in groups. The assessment criteria for the WebQuests were incorporated as rubrics. According to rubric assessments, all teacher candidate groups displayed mid and low level performance. However, it is thought that the use of WebQuest as a web-based instructional tool in a constructivist approach in higher education may be helpful.