WEBQUEST TECHNOLOGY IN THE CREDIT-MODULAR EDUCATION SYSTEM: ENHANCING INDEPENDENT LEARNING IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Purpose: This study investigates the integration of WebQuest technology within the credit-modular education system to enhance students' independent learning competencies in higher education institutions. The research aims to determine whether the systematic application of WebQuest-based instructional tasks leads to measurable improvements in autonomous knowledge acquisition, critical thinking, and digital information literacy among undergraduate students. Methodology: A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design was employed involving 112 undergraduate students from two universities in Uzbekistan. Participants were assigned to experimental and control groups, with the experimental cohort completing structured WebQuest tasks integrated into their modular credit-based curricula over one academic semester. Data were collected using validated instruments measuring academic achievement, self-directed learning readiness, and digital engagement, supplemented by structured reflective journals and faculty interviews. Statistical analysis was conducted using independent samples t-tests and effect size measures (Cohen's d). Findings: The experimental group demonstrated significantly higher gains in independent learning readiness (p < 0.001, d = 0.87), critical information evaluation skills (p < 0.01), and academic performance (M = 78.4 vs. M = 69.1 in the control group). Qualitative data corroborated these outcomes, revealing increased motivation, collaborative engagement, and reflective thinking. Originality: This study offers the first empirically grounded investigation of WebQuest integration within a credit-modular educational framework in Central Asian higher education, providing a replicable instructional model with transferable implications for international Scopus-level discourse on e-learning and educational technology.