Introduction
Special education is a set of instructions and guidance created to fit the unique needs of disabled children. Its concept was introduced in the mid-20th century and gained increasing traction by special education laws enacted. Through this WebQuest, students will acquire a broader knowledge of special education and its legislation through the websites provided.
Task
Students will work individually to research special education laws through the websites provided, although other official and credible websites are allowed. They will take the hypothetical role of an interviewer at "SPED2000 Tunes" podcast. Their job is to create an interview outline for a lawmaker who enacted a special education law. Their outline should include an introduction, at least seven questions about the law to ask the lawmaker, and an outro.
Process
Optional: Listen to a short podcast to familiarize yourself with how a common podcast operates.
1. Research special education laws and choose one to focus on.
2. Create an introduction to introduce a lawmaker that worked with that specific law and ask relevant questions about the lawmaker's current life and career.
3. Create a list of at least seven questions about the law. They should be about the lawmaker's experience enacting this law, their opinion of the law, how the law affected the history of special education, etc.
4. Create an outro section and a way to tie-up the podcast. Also a sign-off or goodbye.
5. Done! You have now completed a podcast interview outline.
Resources:
https://www.uagc.edu/blog/what-is-special-education#:~:text=The%20idea%….
https://www.wrightslaw.com/law/art/history.spec.ed.law.htm
https://noahwebstereducationalfoundation.org/history-of-special-education/
https://usflis.libguides.com/c.php?g=1309520&p=9680055
https://www.advocacyinstitute.org/resources/SpedLegHistory.shtml
https://www.pwsausa.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Module-1-prereading-HistoryofSpecialEducation.pdf
https://www.umassglobal.edu/news-and-events/blog/special-education-laws
https://www.findlaw.com/education/special-education-and-disabilities/special-education-laws.html
https://www.cerebralpalsy.org/information/education/legislation
https://sites.ed.gov/idea/IDEA-History
Evaluation
Excellent: 5, Good: 4, Meets Requirements: 3, Poor: 2 or less, Possible Points: 20
Questions: Excellent - All questions are relevant to the lawmaker and the special education law and go above and beyond what is expected. Good - Questions are relevant and deep. Meets Requirements - Questions are relevant. Poor - Not all or none of the questions are relevant to the topic.
Organization: Excellent - The outline is exceptionally organized and easy to follow along with. Good - The outline is easy to follow along with and an easy read. Meets Requirements - The outline is adequately organized. Poor - The outline is hard to follow along with.
Realistic: Excellent - Let's make it a real podcast now! Good - Seems like a legit, good podcast. Meets Requirements - Sounds somewhat like it could be turned into a real podcast. Poor - Doesn't seem like it could be made into a podcast.
Creative: Excellent - Overall extremely unique/creative with the assignment. Good - Pretty unique and creative with some aspects. Meets Requirements - Different than other peers assignments. Poor - No creativity or uniqueness.
Conclusion
A WebQuest is a different kind of format for students to learn information. This assignment creates guided research for students on special education legislation and promotes learning in a more independent way. Making a fake podcast allows for creativity! Hopefully this assignment will allow students to learn more about the laws of special education in a fun, independent, and creative way!