high tech tools). With this combination of skills, students become directors and managers of their learning process, guided and mentored by a skilled teacher.
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
The students have the idea that learning Biology especially at secondary level is a pile of memorization that could absorb more of their time compare to other subjects. Students have the opportunity to make connections and develop a big picture concepts rather than just memorizing many facts. These could happen through searching and finding out effective strategies that could stimulate the ability of the students. Improving the learning of the students is not just on one area of studying but also through other strategies that could help students inculcate greater depth of understanding. A good learning strategy is very essential to both students and teachers because both of them has chances to develop a better understanding and encourages an excellent learning among them. Strategies are most effective when they are applied in positive, supportive environments where there is recognition of the emotional, social and physical needs of students and where individual strengths are recognized, nurtured, and developed. A lot of teaching strategies being used by many teachers is just to impart knowledge to many students. To learn problem solving is to learn how to learn. The most convenient approach with regard to reaching this aim in teaching and learning environments is the problem-based learning taken part in active learning. The basis of problembased learning is rooted in Dewey’s “learning by doing and experiencing” principle. The problem-based learning is an active learning which enables the student to become aware of and determine his/her problem solving ability and learning needs, to learn to learn, to be able to make knowledge operative and to perform group works “in the face of real life problems”.
2 It was therefore quite imperative to look for those active learning teaching approaches, which could make the teaching of Biology more useful, interesting and meaningful. The researcher therefor intended to see the effects of problem-based active learning in Biology on students’ academic achievement, attitude and conceptual understanding in the selected schools in Iligan City. We do live in interesting time ― students can now access massive amounts of information that was unheard-of a decade ago, and there are more than enough problems to choose from in a range of disciplines. It is vitally important that current and future generations of students experience a problem-based learning approach and engage in constructive solution-seeking activities. The bar has been raised as the 21st century gathers momentum and more than ever, higher-order thinking skills, self-regulated learning habits, and problem-solving skills are necessary for all students. Providing students with opportunities to develop and refine these skills will take the efforts of many individuals.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
This study aims to investigate the effects of problem-based active learning in Biology education on students’ achievement, attitude and concept learning. This study purposed to answer the following questions:
1. What are the multimedia resources on Genetics adopted based on the following criteria: a) Introduction b) Content c) Technical Aspects 2. How are the problem-solving activities on Genetics developed? 2.1 What are the learning competencies on Genetics included in the problem-solving activities?
3 2.2 What are the ratings, comments and suggestions of: a) the content evaluators b) science education evaluators 2.3 What are the ratings in the Readability Tests? a) Flesch Kincaid b) Cloze test 3. Is there a significant difference on the students’ performance in the pretest and posttest achievement test? 4. What is the quality of output? 5. What are the perceptions of the students to the: 5.1 problem-based active learning 5.2 video presentation 5.3 problem-solving activities 5.4 topic
1.3 Hypothesis
In order to find out the worth of the variable, the null hypothesis is formulated.
Ho:
There is no significant difference on the students’ performance in the pretest and posttest achievement test.
1.4 Significance of the Study
The adoption of PBL in public education is a complicated undertaking. Most state-funded elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools are constrained by a state-mandated curriculum and an expectation that they will produce a uniform
4 product. High-stakes standardized testing tends to support instructional approaches that teach to the test. These approaches focus primarily on memorization through drill and practice, and rehearsal using practice tests. The instructional day is divided into specific blocks if time and organized around subjects. There is not much room in this structure for teachers or students to immerse themselves in an engaging problem. However, there are many efforts underway to work around the constraints of traditional classrooms that could change the learning processes into a different way for the benefit of the students. Moreover, some of the people in the education sector provide enrichment activities for the proper facilitative approach to PBL. Also, some of the teachers do not know the effect of PBL in the learning process of the students. The schools’ administrators only emphasized to give activities on the students for the new curriculum to be well-implemented. Researches showed that there is a great effect on some aspects of the learning process of the students when introduced to PBL. That is why this approach is still on the mainstream of our education because of the great contributions that it provided. Since, PBL is proven to have great contribution in the learning process the researcher wants to know the effects of problem-based active learning in Biology on students’ achievement, attitude and conceptual understanding. The results of this research are valuable to the students who are recipients of innovation in the teaching-learning process. The students’ acquisition and understanding of the important concepts in Biology (specifically Genetics) will be facilitated through the use of PBL. Life-long learning skills will also be developed as they engaged in various activities integrated in PBL. Moreover, this provides them the opportunity to learn how to work well and collaborate with others as they experience challenging tasks which may be a great way for them to be in confidence and have teamwork and it will enhance their communication skills especially communicating with other people. The result of this study would likewise bring positive impact to the teachers by testing their teaching strategies (PBL and traditional style of teaching) if those
5 are appropriate to use in the classroom in any level of students. Also, this will give them idea on what style they can use to assess the students’ achievement. Furthermore, the results of the study will motivate the schools’ administrators to focus and give more attention to a particular approach that will give significant change, from low to high, to the students’ achievement in Biology.
1.5 Conceptual/Theoretical Framework
The old school model of passively learning facts and reciting them out of context is no longer sufficient to preapre students to survive in today’s world. Solving highly complex problems requires that students have both fundamental skills (reading, writing, and math) and 21st century skills (teamwork, problem solving, research gathering, time management, information synthesizing, utilizing high tech tools). With this combination of skills, students become directors and managers of their learning process, guided and mentored by a skilled teacher. These 21st century skills include: (1) personal and social responsibility; (2) planning, critical thinking, reasoning, and creativity; (3) strong communication skills, both for interpersonal and presentation needs; (4) cross-cultural understanding; (5) visualizing and decision making; and (6) knowing how and when to use technology and choosing the mosy appropriate tool for the task. By bringing real-life context and technology to the curriculum through PBL approach, students are encouraged to become independent workers, critical thinkers, and lifelong learners. Teachers can communicate with administrators, exchange ideas with other teachers and subject-area experts, and communicate with parents, all the while breaking down invisible barriers such as isolation of the classroom, fear of embarking on an unfamiliar process, and lack of assurance of success. PBL is not just a way of learning; it’s a way of working together. If students learn to take responsibility for their own learning, they will form the basis for the way they will work others in their adult lives.
6 Lee Shulman, president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, has observed, “Teaching has been an activity undertaken behind closed doors between moderately consenting particiapnts.” PBL promotes lifelong learning because: (a) PBL and the use of technology enable students, teachers, and administrators to reach out beyond the school building; (b) students become engaged builders of a new knowledge base and become active, lifelong learners; and (c) PBL teaches children to taake control of their learning, the first step as lifelong learners. It is known that children have various learning styles. They build their knowledge on varying backgrounds and experiences. It is also recognized that children hav a broader range of capabilities than they have been permitted to show in regular classrooms with the traditional text-based focus. PBL addresses these differences, because students must use all modalities in the process of researching and solving a problem, then communicating the solutions. When children are interested in what they are doing and are able to use their areas of strength, they achieve at a higher level.
Figure 1. Conceptual Framework
As such the researcher will assess the effects of the chosen modalities of learning using the problem-based active learning. This PBL will be accomodated in the area of high school Biology (i.e., genetics). The first box (input) is represented
7 as the baseline of the research as to what are the intents of this paper. The second part (process) presented three different flows to illustrate the three major actions to be taken for the intents to be achieved. The last box (output) presented the outcomes and results if the process will be properly addressed. The philosophy behind Problem-Based Learning is that knowledge and skills are acquired through a progressive sequence of contextual problems, together with learning materials and the suppport of the instructor. Its core lies in collaboration, as well as in personal reflection, as one of its main objectives is to foster independent and lifelong learners, where, however, teamwork substantially affects the quality of the work generated. As a form of active learning, Problem-Based Learning encourages knowledge construction and integrates school learning with real life dynamics, where learners learn how to develop flexible knowledge, and effective problemsolving skills, acquire intrinsic motivation, exchange ideas and collaborate. Through collaboration, learners are able to identify what they already know, what they need to know, as well as the way and the source of information they need to successfully reach to the solution of the problem. Instructors facilitate learning, by supporting, guiding and monitoring their learner’s progress, building their confidence, encouraging them to actively participate and stretching their comprehension. This method gives learners the opportunity to master their problem-solving, thinking, teamwork, communication, time management, research and computing skills. PBL is governed by four (4) principles namely: (a) Through active learning―learners can control their own learning, as well as submit and answer their own questions; (b) Through integrated learning―knowledge, understanding and skills go hand in hand, whole classroom/book knowledge is linked to the real world, and the prblem is the focus; (c) Through cumulative learning―knowledge is acquired gradually, and topics are revisited in progressively greater depth. Over time, problems become more difficult, and the nature of the challenge is more complex; (d) Through learning for understanding―the process is the lesson itself
8 and is more important that the facts delivered. Personal reflection is mandatory, knowledge is put to the test and feedback is essential. The framework is mainly anchored to two terms that are basically the baseline of this study―Inquiry and Constructivism. Constructivism as we define it is a learning theory with the central idea that human learning is constructed, that learners build new knowledge on the foundation of previous learning. Students come to learning situations with knowledge gained from previous experience, and that prior knowledge influences what new or modified knowledge they will construct from new learning experiences. Scientific inquiry and a constructivistbased approach overlap to a great extent because inquiry encourages students to construct their own knowledge, building on what they know.
1.6 Scope and Limitations of the Study
The following are the scope and limitations of the study.
The study is limited to selected Grade 9 students in Kiwalan National High School and Dalipuga National High School as the schools are geographically near the researcher. The topic included in the study is on “Genetics: The Study of Inherited Traits”. Based on an informal interview with in-service teachers teaching Biology for many years among the topic in Biology, genetics is the most difficult since the students’ achievement have always been declining.
9 1.7 Definition of Terms
The following terms are the standard and operational definitions, respectively.
Attitude It is defined as the mental outlook as a person. (Thesaurus.com, 2015) For this purpose, it is defined as the perception of the students towards the topic, the activities, and the educational videos.
Conceptual Understanding It is a phrase used extensively in educational literature, yet one that may not be completely understood by many K+12 teachers. (Louisianabelieves.com, 2015) In this study, it is defined as the significant difference between the pretest and posttest.
In-service Teachers Being a full-time secondary teacher. In this study, they are one of the respondents that would answer some questions with regards to the approach being introduced. Performance It is the manner in which or the efficiency with which something reacts or fulfills its intended purpose. (Dictionary.com, 2015) For this purpose, performance is the significant difference of the pretest and posttest of the students.
Post-test It is an achievement test administered after a course of instruction. (Dictionary.com, 2015)
10 In this study, post-test is given right after the intervention and the result of this test will be correlated to the previous type of test.
Pre-service Teachers These are student teachers who are still accepting trainings before they have undertaken any teaching. In this study, they are one of the respondents that would answer some questions with regards to the approach being introduced.
Pre-test It is a test given to determine if students are sufficiently prepared to begin a new course of study. (Dictionary.com, 2015) In this study, pre-test is given before the start of the intervention and the result of this test will be correlated to the next type of test.
Prior Knowledge It
is
a
knowledge
that
stems
from
previous
experience.
(YourDictionary.com, 2015) For this purpose, the term is operationally defined as the knowledge on a specific topic on Genetics that can be used as a baseline in identifying and answering the problems of this study.
Problem-Based Learning It is an instructional (and curricular) learner-centered approach that empowers learners to conduct research, integrate theory and practice, and apply knowledge and skills to develop a viable solution to a defined problem. (Savery, 2006) In this study, it refers to the approach which will be introduced to determine the performance of the students.
11 Skills It is defined as an ability or a talent to do something. (Thesaurus.com, 2015) In this study, it is defined as the ability on problem solving.
