ABSTRACT
This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the online research writeshop to incoming Grade 9 Science, Technology and Engineering (STE) students in one of the public high schools in the Philippines. The helpfulness of the writeshop and the students’ level of enthusiasm were also examined. Both pre-experimental research design and survey method were utilized. There were 40 participants who answered the various writeshop activities via Google classroom, messenger app and e-mail. Video conference, constructive feedbacks and suggestions about their output were provided by the teacher. A validated teacher-made instrument which served as pretest and posttest was used to measure their academic performance in making a research plan, while a survey questionnaire was utilized to determine their level of enthusiasm and the writeshop’s helpfulness. Results of the study revealed a significant increase in the academic performance of the participants after the intervention. Furthermore, majority of students rated the online research writeshop as very helpful and made them very enthusiastic in conducting research. The findings suggest the utilization of the online learning as an alternative modality in research class especially during the pandemic crisis.
Keywords: online research writeshop; research plan; helpfulness; enthusiasm
INTRODUCTION
In accordance with the K to 12 Curriculum of the Special Science Program in Research, one of the requirements of the Grade 9 Science, Technology and Engineering (STE) students is to create a research plan of their proposed study. The said plan, which describes the steps that will be followed in the conduct of the study from problem identification to data analysis, will serve as the blueprint on how the study will be undertaken in order to meet the objectives. Since it requires the necessary skills to justify why a problem in the community needs to be addressed, the related literature that would furnish a conceptual basis for the research topic, the formulation of research objectives and hypothesis, the intensive methodology and the proper citation of references, students find it difficult to accomplish the task which affects their academic performance and the eventual conduct of the science investigatory project. Thus, creating an innovative learning tool to help develop their technical writing skill is necessary. Since the global threat of the Corona Virus Disease-19 (COVID-19) does not allow a face-to-face (F2F) interaction, distance learning through online research writeshop was conducted. According to Palvia et al (2018), online education in its various modes has been growing steadily worldwide due to the confluence of new technologies, global adoption of the internet, and intensifying demand for a workforce trained periodically for the ever evolving digital economy. Distance online learning is also being offered by the Department of Education (DepEd) as one of the alternative learning modalities in the Philippines for the incoming school year 2020-2021. In this action research, the online distance learning was made possible through Google classroom, messenger and video conference where the teacher would streamline the various writeshop activities to the participants, communicate with them and provide constructive feedback on their outputs. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the online research writeshop in making a research plan through the academic performance of the incoming the Grade 9 STE students of Negros Occidental High School and to determine the writeshop’s helpfulness to the participants and their level of enthusiasm.
METHODOLOGY
One-group pretest-posttest design was utilized wherein the effectiveness of the online research writeshop was determined by comparing the pretest and posttest scores of 40 incoming Grade 9 STE students. Non-probability convenient sampling was employed where the selection of participants was based on their availability and internet accessibility. Participants were also required to ask permission form their parents before joining the writeshop which lasted for 15 days.
A teacher-made test was utilized to measure students’ knowledge and understanding of the research plan. This test served as both pretest and posttest. The test was composed of 20-item questions based on the table of specifications of the K to 12 Grade 9 research, particularly on the topic of research plan. The instruments were subjected to juror validation to establish its validity. The instrument was considered valid based on the evaluation of the experts as it met the DepEd Test Validity criteria. The level of enthusiasm and the writeshop’s helpfulness were also measured using a survey questionnaire constructed by the researcher which was also subjected to juror validation to establish its validity using the criteria set forth by Good and Scates. The writeshop activities were likewise designed and validated.
The activities for each subtopic were sent through Google classroom, e-mail or messenger app. The participants were provided two to three days to accomplish every activity. They were provided with a constructive feedback about their output before they can proceed to the next activity. Included in the activities where Problem Identification which allowed the participants to identify the specific problem shown on the picture and formulate their research topic based on the problem identified; formulate their own research topic based on its relevance, feasibility and novelty; and conduct preliminary research on the topic that they had chosen by identifying ten related resources; Review of Related Literature (RRL) which required the analysis of the literature review of the research works found in the given links and the searching for relevant print and online sources for their chosen research topic; Formulation of Research Objectives and Hypothesis which allowed them to write down an issue, problem, their intervention, general/specific objectives and hypothesis; Writing Methodology which they looked for a copy of a scientific study related to their research topic from a reputable scholarly journal and formulated their own procedure; Citing References which taught them on how to cite references using the APA and Chicago style; and lastly, Making a Research Plan as their final output.
Orientation and other vital information regarding the study were thoroughly conducted in the Facebook group. These include the methods to be used and the importance of the outcome of the research. Furthermore, the information obtained was kept confidential, as such, codes were assigned instead of their real names. Pretest and posttest results were not graded and do not affect students’ formal academic performance in class. An electronic consent letter serving as waiver was sent to the parents of the students in order to seek approval for the participation of their son/daughter in the study.
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