CHAPTER IV

PRESENTATION, ANALYSES AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

All gathered data in this research are presented,

analyzed and interpreted in this chapter. The data are first

presented through textual discussions, followed by the

table.

Self Pre-assessment of Grade 10 students’ Assertiveness

in Science as a Whole and in terms of Communications,
Conflict, Resistance to Influence
and Coping to Criticism

Table 1 shows the mean scores of the self pre-

assessment of Grade 10 students’ assertiveness in Science in

terms of communication, conflict, resistance to influence

and coping to criticism. The data showed that these means

ranged from 2.54 to 3.47. As a whole, the results got a

grand mean of (3.05) which was verbally interpreted as

“Slightly Assertive”,

The highest mean score of 3.47 was for the category of

communication and resistance to influence interpreted as

“Moderately Assertive”, followed by conflict (M = 2.70) and

coping with criticisms (M = 2.54) which were both

interpreted as “Slightly Assertive”.

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The result implies that the students are more assertive

in communication. They could express their own opinion, make

sure that everyone is participating in the group discussion,

do not want to be pleased by anybody, respect the opinion of

others and do not hesitate to share their ideas. Further, in

resistance to influence, they were able to manage not to be

pressured in doing task, not to refuse responsibility in

performing task, readily admit their mistakes about their

wrong ideas, tried to understand their group mates if they

are not in favor about their prior knowledge and preferred

to listen than argue on their thoughts.

This result was confirmed by Ames (2008) that people

who are assertive have characteristics such; emotionality of

speech, expressiveness of speech, potential to oppose and

counter others suggestions, accepting praises, and impulsive

in own actions and refusal.

Furthermore, Peneva (2013) also said that assertiveness

is the ability to express one’s point of views, feelings,

thoughts and needs while keeping the rights of other people

in mind. An assertive individual has the capacity to stop

and think what is in his or her best interest as well as the

interest of others.
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Table 1.
Self Pre-assessment of Grade 10 students’
assertiveness in Science in a single group as a
whole and in terms of communications, conflict,
resistance to influence and coping to criticism
Self Pre-assessment
Categories of Mean Verbal Interpretation
Assertiveness
Communication 3.47 Moderately Assertive
Conflict 2.70 Slightly Assertive
Resistance to Influence 3.47 Moderately Assertive
Coping with Criticisms 2.54 Fairly Assertive
Grand Mean 3.05 Slightly Assertive

Likewise, Firstein (2010) mentioned that assertiveness

enables a person to maintain self-respect, clearly

communicate and pursue their needs, and defend their rights

and personal space without abusing or dominating others. It

confirms one’s right to be in the world and put forward

needs, desires, ideas, and feelings.

Peer Pre-assessment of Grade 10 students’ Assertiveness

in Science as a Whole and in terms of Communications,
Conflict, Resistance to Influence
and Coping to Criticism

The mean scores of the peer pre-assessment of Grade 10

students’ assertiveness in Science in terms of

communication, conflict, resistance to influence and coping

to criticism was reflected on table 2. As shown in the

table, the mean ranged from 2.54 to 3.49. As a whole, the

 39

grand mean (2.94) acquired a “Slightly Assertive”

interpretation.

The highest mean score (3.49) was for the category of

communication with a verbal interpretation of “Moderately

assertive”, followed by resistance to influence (M = 3.14)

which is “Slightly Assertive”. The coping with criticisms (M

= 2.58) and conflict (M = 2.54) has both “Fairly Assertive”

interpretation.

This result denotes that the students did not consider

their classmates being expressive in their own thoughts and

opinion, that their classmates easily got impatient doing

some challenging task like performing activity, that they do

not feel or act in a self-confident way in doing activity,

that their peers prefer to do the task alone rather than

asking help from them and would rather observe than

participate in doing the activity.

This result conforms what Ames (2008) had said that

individuals who are non-assertive lack the ability to

maintain adequate boundaries between his or her rights and

those of others. Non-assertiveness happens when one permits

his or her boundaries to be restricted. A non-assertive

person tends to internalize tensions and feelings and to

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experience such emotions as anxiety, fear, fatigue,

nervousness and depression.

Table 2.Peer Pre-assessment of Grade X students’

assertiveness in Science in a single group as a
whole and in terms of communications, conflict,
resistance to influence and coping to criticism
Peer Pre-assessment
Categories of Mean Verbal Interpretation
Assertiveness
Communication 3.49 Moderately Assertive
Conflict 2.54 Fairly Assertive
Resistance to Influence 3.14 Slightly Assertive
Coping with Criticisms 2.58 Fairly Assertive
Grand Mean 2.94 Slightly Assertive

Lazarow as stated by Palmer (2017), “those who has the

confidence in himself will gain the confidence in others.”

Palmer (2017) stated further that an assertive person is

confident and direct in dealing with others. Assertive

communications promote fairness and equality in human

interactions, based on a positive sense of respect for self

and others. It is the direct communication of a person’s

needs, wants, and opinions without punishing, threatening,

or putting down another person.

Self Post-assessment of Grade 10 students’ Assertiveness

in Science as a Whole and in terms of Communications,
Conflict, Resistance to Influence
and Coping to Criticism
 41

As indicated in table 3 are the mean scores of the self

post-assessment of Grade X students’ assertiveness in

Science in terms of communication, conflict, resistance to

influence and coping to criticism. As exhibited in the

table, the mean ranged from 3.13 to 3.96. As a whole, got a

grand mean of 3.53 verbally interpreted as “Moderately

Assertive”.

The communication category got the highest mean score

(3.96) which was interpreted as “Moderately Assertive”. On

the other hand, conflict and coping with criticisms (M =

3.13) was interpreted as “Slightly Assertive”.

This results support the study of Galassi, et al.,

(1974) as cited by Kirst (2011) that assertive people are

communicative, free-spirited, secure, self-assured, and able

to influence and guide others.

Additionally, personal assertiveness is one

interpersonal variable that theoretically could enhance the

beneficial aspects of social support among people in one

society (Elliott & Gramling, 2016).

Likewise, according to Hermes (2016) learning assertive

communication skills benefits oneself and not to change

others. It is the choice when and where to be assertive. If

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someone resists being assertive, conflict could be avoided

by restating its own assertiveness. How others respond

cannot be controlled to what someone have to say. What could

be done is to talk to others respectfully

Table 3.Self Post-assessment of Grade X students’

assertiveness in Science in a single group as a
whole and in terms of communications, conflict,
resistance to influence and coping to criticism
Self Post-assessment
Categories of Mean Verbal Interpretation
Assertiveness
Communication 3.96 Moderately Assertive
Conflict 3.13 Slightly Assertive
Resistance to Influence 3.90 Moderately Assertive
Coping with Criticisms 3.13 Slightly Assertive
Grand Mean 3.53 Moderately Assertive

and with their feelings in mind. When someone learn how to

be assertive, part of the discomfort may be related to

messages that heard growing up about how should or should

not communicate.

Peer Post-assessment of Grade 10 students’ Assertiveness

in Science as a Whole and in terms of Communications,
Conflict, Resistance to Influence
and Coping to Criticism

As specified in table 4, the mean scores of the peer

post-assessment of Grade X students’ assertiveness in

Science in terms of communication, conflict, resistance to

influence and coping to criticism. Moreover, the mean ranged

 43

from 3.20 to 3.90. As a whole a grand mean of 3.50 with

“Moderately Assertive” verbal interpretation.

Communication (M = 3.90) and resistance to influence

(3.64) obtained a “Moderately Assertive” interpretation,

Table 4.Peer Post-assessment of Grade X students’

assertiveness in Science in a single group as a
whole and in terms of communications, conflict,
resistance to influence and coping to criticism
Self Post-assessment
Categories of Mean Verbal Interpretation
Assertiveness
Communication 3.90 Moderately Assertive
Conflict 3.20 Slightly Assertive
Resistance to Influence 3.64 Moderately Assertive
Coping with Criticisms 3.24 Slightly Assertive
Grand Mean 3.50 Moderately Assertive

while coping with criticisms (M = 3.24) and conflict (3.20)

both “Slightly Assertive” interpretation.

This result supports that non-assertiveness is

characterized by communicating one’s viewpoints and feelings

in such an over-apologetic, timid, and self-deprecating

fashion, that it leads others to easily ignore or dismiss

them (Lange & Jakubowski, 1976) as cited by Kirst (2011).

Firstein (2010) agrees also that assertiveness usually

fosters better relationships by making a person more

comfortable with themselves and therefore more comfortable

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to be around. Assertiveness greatly reduces fear and anxiety

and enables people to release positive energy towards each

other. Healthy and mutual satisfaction of needs in any

relationship can only occur between assertive people. The

biggest benefit of assertiveness is the feeling of living

one’s own life.

Difference between the Self Pre-

assessment and Post-assessment

The test of difference between the means of the self

pre-assessment and self post-assessment is shown in the

table 9. As revealed in the table, self pre-assessment did

not differ significantly to self post-assessment because of

its p-value of 0.068 which was greater than 0.05 alpha.

Therefore, the hypothesis stating that there is no

significant difference between the self-pre-assessment and

post-assessment as a whole is hereby failed to reject.

This result was contradicted by the study conducted by

Tsay and Brady (2010) that cooperative learning have

indicated its positive relationship with student achievement

and attitudes about learning (Slavin, 1989; Johnson and

Johnson, 1989; Johnson et al., 2007). Cooperative learning

has also been found to enhance social and intellectual

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development (Cohen, 1984; Burton, 1987) and help students

build interpersonal skills while promoting a sense of

achievement, productivity, and psychological well-being

(Nilson, 1998).

Likewise, Felder and Brent (2007) stated that

cooperative learning is an approach to group work that

minimizes the occurrence of those unpleasant situations and

maximizes the learning and satisfaction that result

from working on a high-performance team. A large and

rapidly growing body of research confirms the effectiveness

of cooperative learning in higher education. Relative to

students taught traditionally—i.e., with instructor-centered

lectures, individual assignments, and competitive

grading—cooperatively taught students tend to exhibit

higher academic achievement, greater persistence

through graduation, better high-level reasoning and

critical thinking skills, deeper understanding of learned

material, greater time on task and less disruptive behavior

in class, lower levels of anxiety and stress, greater

intrinsic motivation to learn and achieve, greater ability

to view situations from others’ perspectives, more positive

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and supportive relationships with peers, more positive

attitudes toward subject areas, and higher self-esteem.

Difference between the Peer Pre-

assessment and Post-assessment

The test of differences between the means of the peer

pre-assessment and peer post-assessment is shown in the

table 10. Table shows, peer pre-assessment differed

significantly to peer post-assessment because of its p-value

of 0.032 which was lesser than 0.05 alpha.

With these results, the hypothesis stating that there

is no significant difference between the peer pre-assessment

and post-assessment as a whole is hereby rejected. This

implies that the peer pre-assessment and post-assessment as

a whole differs each other. This may be because of the

carousel brainstorming intervention conducted to the

respondents.

The result of this study conforms to the study

conducted by Ferrer (2004) that cooperative learning has

demonstrated its positive effect on social development.

Cooperative learning encourages social and interpersonal

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development as students learn how to work together and to

appreciate diversity. Many studies credit the approach with

improved cooperative attitudes (Walters, 2004).

In addition, cooperative learning and training

activities in the learning process will teach students in

order to express their thoughts logically, express their

thoughts against dissent ones, try to give their opinions on

the basis of reason and defend the logic of their ideas

courageously. The results of this research are in the line

of the research results of Malekan (2012), Qeltash (2004),

Nejenga (2010), Boeno (2008).

Adams (2013) stated in his study that cooperative

learning strategies employ many of the following

characteristics and strategies in the classroom: positive

interdependence, face-to-face interaction, individual

accountability, social skills, and group processing.

Positive interdependence is the belief that students are

linked together with other students in such a way that one

cannot succeed unless the group members also succeed

(Hendrix, 1999).

Table 6. Difference between the Peer Pre-assessment and

Post-assessment in a single group
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Mean S.E.D t – p -
Mean Remarks
Difference X value value
Peer Pre- 2.94
Assessment
0.56 0.25 -2.26 0.032 s
Peer Post-
Assessment 3.49
Legend: p-value >0.05 alpha, s (significant)