Nortwestern Visayan Colleges

Kalibo, Aklan

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Learning to read is a vital part of basic education. Reading skill is one of the five

skills beside listening, speaking, writing and viewing that need to established among

individual. It is also the access to the other disciplines. It has been said that reading is the

primary avenue to knowledge (Stem and Gould, 1995). It is the cornerstone of education

and the foundation of lifelong learning. It unlocks the unknown and carries the reader to

new discoveries and learning. It provides the person with different knowledge which he

may use in his daily living.

Hence, in the life of every child, reading is very significant tool to use to discover

basic knowledge about the world he lives in. Reading is not just however, a natural thing

that originates with in the child. It is a set of skills that gradually develops as the child is

subjected to formal education by the school as the responsible institution for the child`s

formal education.

A child who fails to develop his reading skills at a certain level of his education

finds reading boring, and difficult to achieve (Mondero, 1995). If children are not

independent readers on their Language 1 (L1), it is unlikely that they will be able to be

successful in the middle grades and beyond and most likely they rarely able to “catch up”

with their peers. This occurrence of learning failure makes a child inattentive, irritable and
 Nortwestern Visayan Colleges
Kalibo, Aklan

passive. Therefore, his failure in this area hinders him to achieve academically in other

content subjects. This may even lead to negative attitudes towards schooling.

To meet the mandate by former President Aquino # 5 states that “Every Child a

Reader” by Grade 1. At the core of our children`s non-reading is the inability to read

properly. By the end of the next administration (SY 2015-2016), every child passing pre-

school MUST be a reader by Grade 1, MTB-MLE is the government`s banner program for

education a salient part of the implementation of the K to 12 Basic Education Program. Its

significant is underscored by the passing of Republic Act 10523, otherwise known as the

“Enhance Basic Education Act of 2013. Learners begin their education in the language

they understand best – their mother tongue (Akeanon).

And for the effective implementation of the MTB-MLE, it is suggested that the

two-track method be used, that is the primer track to focus on accuracy and the story track

to focus on meaning. Learning via the two-track method to gain proficiency in literacy as

well as comprehend academic content and gain curriculum mastery, creative and critical

thinking skills for decisive decision-making. “The most effective approaches to developing

initial reading skills are those that combine extensive and varied exposure to meaningful

prints (Story Track) with explicit and systematic instruction in phonemic awareness and

letter-sound correspondence (Primer Track) (Jim Cummins, No.1)

To be an effective reading teacher in grade 1, and as one of the authors of the

primer track in Akeanon, I just want to share and prove the effectiveness of our writeups

in teaching reading and writing among grade 1 pupils.

 Nortwestern Visayan Colleges
Kalibo, Aklan

Theoretical Framework

This study is anchored on the theory that Language education programs help

students build fluency and confidence in speaking, listening, reading and writing in their

own language (Akeanon) as well as other languages they are expected to learn in school.

Effective language education programs focus on both meaning and accuracy in all four

components, from the very beginning.

Emphasis on meaning Emphasis on accuracy

(Focus on whole texts)
Listening Students listen in order to
understand and respond to
what they hear.
Speaking They speak in order to
communicate their
thoughts and ideas to
others.
Reading They read for enjoyment
and to understand and use
new ideas and information
Writing They write in order to
communicate their
thoughts and ideas.
(Focus on parts of the
language)
They recognize and
distinguish sounds,
syllables, words and
sentences.
They use correct
vocabulary, pronunciation
and grammar.
They recognize parts of
words (letters, syllables,
tone marks, etc.),
sentences and paragraphs,
and can sound them out.
They form letters properly
and neatly, spell words
correctly, and use correct
grammar.

The Two-Track approach to teaching reading and writing in MTB-MLE (Akeanon)

emphasis “meaning” known as “Story Track” (understanding whole texts) and “accuracy”
 Nortwestern Visayan Colleges
Kalibo, Aklan

known as “Primer Track” (learning word identification strategies). Since activities in both

tracks include some meaning and some accuracy, the distinction is on the focus of the

activities in each one.

MEANING TRACK ACCURACY TRACK

Shared reading Picture and key word

Experience story Big box

Listening story and library time Sentence-making

Creative writing Spelling and handwriting

Conceptual Framework

The conceptual framework of this study was based on the randomized pretest-

posttest control group design by Frankael and Wallen (2006) cited by Legarde (2015) using

matched subjects, where two groups of subjects will be used and measured or observed

twice. This design is shown below:

Experimental Group Mr O1 X O2
__________________________

Control Group Mr O1 C O2

Where:

Mr = Random assignment with match pairing

O1 = Pretest
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Kalibo, Aklan

O2 = Posttest

X = Experimental Group/Using Two-Track Method

C = Control Group/Using the Traditional Way of Teaching Reading and

Writing

Figure 1 showed that 60 pupils were randomly selected from the population and

were matched-paired based from their MTB-MLE grade in the previous grading period.

One group was assigned as the control group and the other as the experimental group.

Before the beginning of the experimentation, each group was administered pretest. After

then, two-track method was introduced to the experimental group while the control group

was introduced to the traditional way of teaching reading and writing. After the duration

of experiment, a posttest was conducted. The results of the two posttest was compared and

it was then compared to their pretest. Comparing their results, the difference in the posttest,

level of performance using the two-track method in reading and writing and the traditional

way of teaching reading and writing was determined.

compare

Using
Traditional way
Posttest
Control of Teaching
Pretest Reading &
group
matched Writing

paired of compare
the study Experimental Pretest Using Two
group Trach Approach
in Teaching
Reading Writing Posttest

compare
Figure 1. The Schematic Diagram of the Study
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Kalibo, Aklan

Statement of the Problem

This study dealt on the use of the two-track method in teaching reading and writing

as an approach for the improvement of reading and writing performance of grade 1 pupils.

It aimed to answer the following questions:

1. What is the level of reading and writing performance of pupils in the posttest

using the two-track method?

2. What is the level of reading and writing performance of pupils in the posttest

using the traditional way?

3. Is there a significant difference between the posttest of reading and writing

performance of pupils using the two-track method and pupils using the

traditional way?

4. Is there a significant difference between the pretest - posttest of pupils using the

two-track method and traditional way in the reading and writing performance?

Hypothesis of the Study

Based on the statements of the problems formulated, the following hypotheses were

made:

1. There is no significant difference between the pretest-posttest using the two-

track method and traditional way in the reading and writing performance.

2. There is no significant relationship between the reading and writing

performance of Grade 1 pupils using the two-track method and the traditional

way.
 Nortwestern Visayan Colleges
Kalibo, Aklan

Significance of the Study

The results of this study are significant to:

Department of Education. Learning via the two-track method gain proficiency

in literacy as well comprehend academic content and gain curriculum mastery, creative and

critical thinking skill for decisive decision-making.

School Heads. This study motivates the school heads to help teachers improve

their skills and potentials by letting her/his teachers attend trainings, seminars on making

big books, small books and other Support Instructional Materials (SIMs) to be use in this

method.

Grade 1/Reading Teachers. This study gives more information on how to

become proficient and innovative Grade 1 or Reading Teacher in order to answer the

mandate that says “Every Child a Reader” by Grade 1.

Pupils. They experience enjoyment while listening to the stories suited to their

own culture, speak with understanding to communicate knowledge, read for meaning and

understanding, write to communicate knowledge, decode texts by recognizing letters,

syllables, tone marks, syntax, grammar, form letters, words, sentences, paragraph, spell

words accurately.

Future Researchers. Findings of this study may serve as a good reference for

future researchers to conduct investigations related to this study.

Researcher. I want to know as one of the authors of stories use in the story track

and the primer lesson (LM and TG) in Akeanon if how really effective is the method to my

Grade 1 pupils and to others.

 Nortwestern Visayan Colleges
Kalibo, Aklan

Scope and Limitations of the Study

This study focused on the effects of using two-track in teaching reading and writing

for Grade 1. The research participants in this study were the 60 Grade 1 pupils from Altavas

Elementary School of which, 30 were randomly assigned in the experimental group and

another 30 were randomly assigned to control group. This study covered all the reading

activities in the second quarter which started on August 12, 2019 to October 18, 2019.

There were the two-tract method in reading and writing that had been introduced

to the experimental group and the traditional way for control group.

To determined the level of reading and writing performance of Grade 1 pupils, the

criteria stipulated in DepEd Order No. 31 series 2012 under assessment and rating of

learning outcomes was used. Inferential statistics such as test and analysis of variance was

used in analyzing the data.

Definition of Terms

To have better understanding the concepts used in this study, the following terms

are defined operationally.

Two-Track Method. The two-track approach to teaching reading and writing

emphasizes “meaning”1 (understanding whole texts) and “accuracy”2 (learning word

identification strategies). Since activities in both tracks include some meaning and some

accuracy, the distinction is on the focus of the activities in each one.

Traditional Way of Teaching Reading and Writing. Emphasizes that

the teacher must teach sounds and letters in isolation, then from words and sentences, and
 Nortwestern Visayan Colleges
Kalibo, Aklan

finally read a book. Learners recognize the word and then pronounce it when accompanied

or not accompanied by pictures.

Story Track/ Meaning Track. Focus on whole text.

Primer Track/ Accuracy Track. Focus on the part of the language.

Reading and Writing Performance. In this study, it refers to the scores obtained

by the experimental and control, during the posttest as the outcome of the study.

Support Instructional Materials (SIMs). In this study, they are referred to

culturally relevant learning materials (big box, big books, small books) used as aids in the

teaching learning process to produce better learning outcomes.