ABSTRACT
The dissertation investigates the predictors of Science achievement among Grade 9 students in Medina District, Philippines, for the academic year 2022-2023. The paper addresses the factors influencing Science learning, the level of students' Science achievement, predictors of Science achievement, teacher perceptions on Science teaching support, school preparations for enhancing Science achievement, and proposed improvements based on the findings. Utilizing mixed methods, quantitative data from a survey questionnaire and qualitative insights from Focus Group Discussions and interviews were collected. The study reveals that student motivation, instructional resources, and parental support significantly influence Science achievement. The study's key findings reveal that while students show interest in Science discussions and teachers are well-prepared, there is room for improvement in encouraging students to ask questions and providing adequate laboratory facilities. The majority of students are described as competent with room for improvement in their Science achievement. The perceptions of teachers on Science teaching support indicate that attending seminars and training keeps them updated on instructional methods. However, there are concerns regarding the availability of resources and facilities. Overall, the study sheds light on providing valuable insights for educational practitioners to enhance the quality of Science education and elevate academic performance.
Keywords: Science achievement, Grade 9 students, predictors, mixed methods research, student motivation, teacher characteristics, pedagogy, learning environment, instructional resources, parental support, level of achievement, PISA examination, qualitative and quantitative approaches, focus group discussion, unstructured interviews, teacher perceptions, challenges, preparations, action plan, academic achievement
INTRODUCTION
The global importance of science and technology which dominates every society requires an educational system that provides a venue for the development of scientific knowledge and skills. Evidently, the rapid development of this field of knowledge through scientific inventions and discoveries poses a challenge to educational institutions to contribute their part in this growing demand for scientific inquiry (Imam et al.,2014).
In the Philippines, the study of science is mandatory at all levels of education and the state is mandated to give priority to science and technology. However, the Philippine Educational system is beseeched with challenges even with the tremendous planning and efforts of DepEd as mandated in the K to 12 program. Before the pandemic, there were already worrying signs of an education crisis. The most widely disseminated news about the crisis came from a report of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2018 which showed that Filipino students ranked the lowest among 79 countries in Mathematics, Science, and Reading. In Math and Science, Filipino 15-year-old students obtained 353 points and 357 points, respectively, against the 489 OECD average for both categories. The OECD 2018 PISA Country Note for the Philippines stated that fifteen-year-old students in the Philippines scored lower in reading, mathematics, and science than those in most of the countries and economies that participated in PISA 2018 where the Philippines ranked second from the bottom.
The challenge for science teachers has always been the constant derivation of innovative materials and methods to make science more relevant. According to Rogayan and Dollette (2019), science education in the Philippines alone is already fronting a lot of challenges including the curricular approach brought by globalization, industry 4.0, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) integration, and the full implementation of the K to 12 curricula. The K to 12 science curriculum stresses that science and innovation should put in common human issues. In terms of quality of education, particularly in science education, the country is lagging behind in other countries.
In 2018, the World Economic Forum reports that the Philippines ranked 55th out of 137 participating countries in terms of higher education and ranked 76th out of 137 countries in the quality of math and science education. Science teachers are challenged to be more innovative and creative for higher student achievement and favorable attitudes at the same time (Gernale, Duad, & Arañes, 2015). It was observed that some teachers in science still preferred the traditional way of teaching the subject, making them less effective teachers (Candrasekaran, 2014). Teachers see the conventional method to be the only best teaching method in science. The teachers in the traditional method tend to be the sole purveyor of knowledge and ask students to work individually. This results in boredom because of the lack of engaging tasks, challenging activities, and creative works to be accomplished by the learners.
On April 20, 2022, the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) conducted by the Institute of Education and Sciences (IES), the Statistics, Research, and Evaluation arm of the United States Department of Education chose Medina National Comprehensive High School to be one of the two schools in Region X to participate in the assessment. PISA is conducted by the IES to measure the reading, mathematics, and science literacy of 15-year-old students. It is an international assessment that emphasizes the functional skills that the students have acquired as they near the end of high school education. Further, the PISA results present the correlation between a student's socioeconomic status and indicators like school environment, discipline, attendance, grade repetition, and resources.
The results of the PISA examination for Medina Comprehensive National High School is alarming. These results give a signal for a need to examine what really are the factors affecting Science achievement among students, particularly in Grade 9. The study will serve as a response to the core objective of science education in the Philippines which is to develop scientifically-literate learners and to better understand what impedes the students from learning Science. It is therefore the purpose of this study to determine the factors serving as predictors of the Science achievement of the students and eventually plan an intervention to improve students’ science achievement in particular and quality science education in general.
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