WebQuest
 by Sandy Greene
7th Grade Language Arts
Pickens County Middle School

"The faces of the Cambodian children haunted me long after I stopped working on the Thai-Khmer border. I had done so terribly little for them, when so much more remained to be done. I felt frustrated, sad, helpless, angry. More important, I also found that I missed them--these tough, tender refugee kids. And so I wrote about them, to try and tell them how I admired them, and missed them." -- Minfong Ho

Introduction | Task | Resources | Process | Evaluation | Presentation Rubrics | Conclusion

Introduction: The Clay Marble was written describing the life and struggles of a twelve-year-old girl and her family in war-torn Cambodia. "Here is a moving and sensitive account told by someone who worked at camps on the Thai-Cambodian border. It is the story of families torn from their homes but bound by a love and determination that even war could not destroy." --Parents Magazine

Task: The early 1980's in war-torn Cambodia created great struggle for the people left behind. You will become part of a team of agents enlisted to provide information for a health organization trying to provide help for the families in the refugee camps. Your team will research the Cambodian people, their customs, living conditions, family struggles and political upheaval of the time.

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Process:   Your project will be divided into three areas:   Forming Teams Research Presentation

 

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Forming Teams Your team will be made up of four experts in Cambodian life. You must research the topic and complete a series of tasks. The success of your proposal to the health organization will be determined by your ability to work together as a team. After reviewing the roles, please identify the role each member of your team has selected. Team roles must be approved by your teacher.

Political Reporter

Social Worker

Historian

Culture and Arts

Political Reporter: Your job is to research the current political situation in Cambodia and report your findings. You should research the Wars in Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge. It is your job to find the facts about the current political unrest if any found there and present in the form of a news story for publication. You may also include pictures and other related current events found in current Cambodian newspapers online. Your team is expected to write a news story each and prepare a newspaper from Microsoft Publisher or other publishing software for presentation. For information about writing news stories click here.

Social Worker: Your job is to research the current living conditions of the people, especially the lives of those in the refugee camps. Find out what it really means to live in a refugee camp. This would include food, water, shelter, health care, medicine, sanitary conditions and other related topics. Your team is expected to prepare a Powerpoint presentation or series of posters to present the information collected. Your presentation must include at least 10 slides or posters and all members must participate in the presentation.

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Historian: Your job is to research the rich history of the Cambodian people. Find the map and flag of the country and research the kings and rulers of the people. Create a timeline of the rulers of Cambodia and be able to discuss changes in the ruling powers. Prepare a map and flag for display.   Culture and Arts: Your group will be expected to research the customs and culture of the Cambodian people. Find out the costumes worn and their purposes, the types of artwork and dance, and household items of daily life. Find music and pictures of daily family life and find out about the types of work that must be done. Prepare a Powerpoint presentation or posters with pictures describing the above information and dress one of your team members in native costume.

Resources:    The resources section will give you a variety of topics with links to help you with your search. Be sure to cite all references. A link is provided to help you cite properly. Internet sources must be included in all citations.

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Political Reporter	Social Worker	Historian	Culture and Arts
General Information Khmer Rouge Current News Royal Embassy Other Information Phnom Penh More Info Asia Observer Cambodia Post Cambodia - A Country Study	How a camp is set up Life in a refugee camp Nong Chan Picture Refugee camps More Information Refugee Camp Presentation Language and Literacy for Refugees Cambodia - A Country Study One Person's View of Khao I Dang Camp A Family's Story	History and Pictures Angkor Wat Photographs Map Rulers and Dictators Angkor Wat Virtual Tourof Sculpture of Angkor Wat Thumbnail History Cambodia - A Country Study	Folk Religion Religion Performing Arts Music History Dance  Costumes and Dress Music More Music Virtual Tour of Sculpture of Angkor Wat

Political Reporter	Social Worker	Historian	Culture and Arts
Political Structure Khmer Rouge General Information Current News News story Royal Embassy Lifestyles Other Information Phnom Penh More Info Asia Observer Cambodia Post	Life in a refugee camp Games Refugee admission to US More Information Refugee Camp Presentation Lifestyles Life during the war	Historical Timeline History Map King Sihanouk Rulers and Dictators Angkor History Angkor Wat More Angkor Wat Virtual Tourof Sculpture of Angkor Wat Historical Places	Cambodian Lifestyle and the Arts  Folktales Music Holidays Culture Virtual Tour of Sculpture of Angkor Wat Dance History of Dance Dance, Spirit of Cambodia

 

Sites which include pictures:   http://www.mekong.net/cambodia/photos.htm http://www.cambodia.org/photos/index.html

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Evaluation: You will be receiving both an individual and group grade on this project.

Individual Evaluation Your individual grade will be based on teacher evaluation. In addition, individual grades will be given for meeting deadlines along the way.

Group Evaluation Your group grade will be determined from the applicable rubric and from teacher observations. Click to see the rubric.

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Presentation Rubrics:

Posters

PowerPoint Presentation

Newspapers

Oral Presentations

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Poster Rubric:

Content 25 points	Accuracy 20 points	Quality 35 points	Creativity 20 points
Title matches topic 5pts Illustrations or pictures match topic 5pts Message relates to topic 5pts Sources listed on the back of poster (at least 5) 10pts	No spelling errors 5 pts Evidence of editing 5 pts Grammatically correct 5 pts Sources are correctly cited 5 pts	Attractive Product 5 pts Good use of color 5 pts Follows principles of design (balance, flow, accuracy) 5 pts Title can be read from 5 ft away 5 pts Legible and clear 5 pts Typed information 5 pts	Unique ideas expressed 10 pts Poster is different from other posters 10 pts

  

Powerpoint Presentation Rubric:

 

Content 20 pts.	Logic 25 pts.	Accuracy 35 pts.	Quality 12 pts.	Creativity 8 pts.
Title matches topic 3pts Slides match topic: if you use graphics and sounds they must relate to the topic 10pts Message relates to topic 7pts	Information related to your job is realistic and uses specific data found in your research 18pts Point of view is explained clearly 7pts	Information presented is accurate 15pts No spelling errors 5pts Evidence of editing 5pts Grammatically correct 5pts Sources are correctly cited 5pts	Attractive Product 2pts Good use of design on slides 2pts Legible and clear 3pts Images and sounds make ideas clearer and do not distract audience from the message 5pts	Unique ideas expressed 4pts Presentation is different from other presentations 4pts

 

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Newspapers Rubric:

 

Articles - 100 total points	Meets
Lead Paragraph - 10 pts	Solid journalistic form that engages the reader; starts with a strong, interesting sentence to get the reader engaged; includes the who, what, when, where, why and how as appropriate
Body of Article - 45 pts	Extended and elaborated on essential questions in well-developed paragraphs covering all 5 w's with sufficient details; has exceptional amount of accurate information
Language Conventions - 10 pts	No errors in grammar, spelling or punctuation; sophisticated structure
Headlines - 5 pts	Informative, relevant, and attention getting
Bylines - 5 pts	With all articles
Cite References - 10 pts	All references are cited; has extensive resources, documentation with comprehensive notes, drafts, and correct citations
Appearance - 10 pts	Newspaper-like, neat, organized, professional appearance (Microsoft Publisher)
Illustrations - 5pts	Accurate and authentic illustration that extends the written information

 

 

Oral Presentation Rubric:

Content 32 pts	Logic 36 pts	Accuracy 18 pts	Quality 10 pts	Creativity 4 pts
Presentation relates to your visual aid (product) 2pts Point of view is supported by facts 6pts Presentation follows assignment 3pts Ideas are fully explained and well developed 10pts All group members are involved in presentation with active roles 5pts	Point of view is realistic and uses specific data found in your research 16pts Point of view is explained clearly (audience should be able to understand your point of view and thought process) 14pts Point of view is specific to topic and follows assignment 6pts	Information presented is accurate to time and place 18pts	Good speech techniques including the following: Students are audible (able to be heard) 4pts Students exhibit confidence in their delivery and message 3pts Students maintain consistent eye contact with audience 3pts	Unique ideas expressed 2pts Presentation is different from other presentations 2 pts

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Conclusion: Through an in-depth look at the people of Cambodia, the students will gain a greater understanding of life in a country going through significant political struggle, look at the lives of the general population and determine some of their struggles and their joys. The students will be able to identify everyday lifestyles of the people and look at the information from different perspectives. Presentations will be a culmination of the information gathered with the point of view of the team presented.

Introduction | Task | Resources | Process | Evaluation | Presentation Rubrics | Conclusion