Effects of Using a Modular Approach on Students’ Achievement and Motivation

to Learn Mathematics in Grade IV

CONTENT & RATIONALE

The outbreak of the new coronavirus infection known as COVID-19 has first occurred at Huanan Seafood
Market in Wuhan city of China in December 2019 (Wikipedia, 2020), and within a couple of months it
has turned out to be a global health emergency. It has rapidly affected thousands of people, who are
sick or being killed due to the spread of this disease. The COVID-19 pandemic also resulted in a
widespread disruption such as travel restrictions, closure of schools and global economic recession.
Most countries around the world have temporarily closed educational institutions to contain the spread
of the virus and reduce infections (Tria, 2020). Face to face engagement of students and teachers within
the school has also been suspended. The Philippines is in the process of adapting to the new normal
form of education at present, and continuous innovations of educators and active involvement of other
stakeholders are the driving force for its success. For the continuity of education and for every school to
still attain its mission and vision which is to provide quality education to every Filipino learner, the
Department of Education implemented the Modular Distance Learning. Distance Learning refers to a
learning delivery modality, where learning takes place between the teacher and the learners who are
geographically remote from each other during instruction. This modality has three types: Modular
Distance Learning (MDL)

Based on the researcher’s observation, students who go to the intermediate level mostly do not like
mathematics and are not good in this subject. They usually obtained very low marks in mathematics. In
addition to this problem, the classes usually have students with mixed abilities. It is difficult for the
teacher to teach a mathematics topic to serve individual deficiencies especially the low ability students.
The duration of each mathematics session is also limited, thus the teacher usually has no chance to pay
attention especially to low ability students

In the view of the above observation, the researcher believes that perhaps a better method to overcome
the problem is the use of modules. This type of teaching aid could be used by students during their own
free time and allowing them to proceed on their own pace, besides relieving the teacher from his
tutorial functions. The use of modules plays an important role in the teaching of mathematics,
particularly lesson involving “computation and problem solving”. Modules is useful not only to the fast
learner group of students but also to the remedial teaching for low achievers as well. It may help the
low-achievers catch up in learning the lessons with their classmates. The self-instructional program upon
implemented it give a liberal mean for the students to achieve knowledge and skills in learning
mathematics because the students are allowed to choose his own time in learning and minimizing any
imposition of the school authorities regarding what is to be learned and under what circumstances.
Students are given opportunity to learn based on his own choices and where more moderate approach
is widely
ACTION RESEARCH QUESTION
1. What are the perceptions of the mathematics teachers on the module as a printed material on
teaching in terms of: a. Language b. Graphs and table c. Instructions/Directions d. Activities e.
Contents/Concepts

2. What is the pre-test score of the students in the control group and experimental group?

3. Is there a significant difference between the pre-test score of the control group and experimental
group?

4. What is the post-test score of the students in the control group and experimental group?

5. Is there a significant difference between the post-test score of the control group and experimental
group?

6. What is the gain score of the control group and experimental group?

PROPOSED INNOVATION INTERVENTION AND STRATEGY

Since education is no longer held within the school, parents serve as partners of teachers in education.
Parents play a vital role as home facilitators. Their primary role in modular learning is to establish a
connection and guide the child. (FlipScience, 2020). According to the Department of Education (DepEd),
parents and guardians' perform the various roles in Modular Learning such as Module-ator, Bundy-clock,
and as Home Innovator. As a Module-ator, they are the ones to get and submit the printed Self-Learning
Modules (SLMs) from and to schools or barangay halls at the beginning and end of the week, depending
on the agreement between the parents and the school. As a Bundy-clock, they must check their child's
schedule or workweek plan. Because of the number of subjects or activities to be done, they must see
that it is being followed accordingly to avoid cramming or delays in submission, which may affect the
child's performance. Lastly, as a Home Innovator, they must provide their child with a productive
learning environment to help them focus more on Learning. It must be a well-lighted and well-ventilated
space in the house, with little or no distraction. The use of modules encourages independent study. One
of the benefits of using modules for instruction is the acquisition of better self-study or learning skills
among students. Students engage themselves in learning the concepts presented in the module. They
develop a sense of responsibility in accomplishing the tasks provided in the module. With little or no
assistance from others, the learners progress on their own. They are learning how to learn; they are
empowered (Nardo, M.T.B, 2017). Other advantages of modular instruction include more choice and
self-pacing for students; more variety and flexibility for teachers and staff; and increased adaptability of
instructional materials. The disadvantages include greater self-discipline and self-motivation required for
students, increased preparation time and lack of concrete rewards for teachers and staff, and greater
administrative resources needed to track students and operate multiple modules.
ACTION RESEARCH METHODS
Participants of the Study

There were 40 respondents, 20 for the control group while 20 also for the control group. Out of the 40
respondents, 14 students gained an average of 75 – 76 for the first grading period. While the remaining
26 students gained an average of 77 – 78

Data Gathering Methods

The Experimental Group: The experimental group was given a module. The researcher explained to the
group the use of the module. They were allowed to study the material within 5 days at home, after
which the post-test was administered.

The Control Group: The control group was taught by the researcher in the an online way using the
google class. The content of the lesson is the same as that of the module. The lessons were taken for
five days (40 minutes per day), after which the post-test was administered to them

The Instrument

The researcher made use of questionnaires to gather data on perceptions of the Mathematics Teachers
regarding the prepared module after which the module was revised based in the suggestions of the
teachers. The achievement test was used as the pre-test and post-test

Data Analysis Plan

The following steps were undertaken by the researcher: The researcher asked permission from the
School Principal for the utilization of the Mathematics teachers as well as Grade 4 students as samples.
2. The questionnaires were floated to the Mathematics teachers to determine their perceptions
regarding the module. The pre-test and post-test were administered before and after the remedial
teaching was conducted.

ACTION RESEARCH WORK PLAN AND TIMELINE

After the data were collected, the following analyses were undertaken in response to the objectives of
the study. To determine the perceptions of the Mathematics teachers regarding the module, the
weighted mean and percentage were used. A four- point likert scale was used to determine the
perceptions of the teacher on the module. To answer the hypotheses, the t-test for uncorrelated means
was used.
PLANS FOR DISSEMENATION AND UTILIZATION
On the basis of the findings and conclusions of this study, the following plans are the following

: 1. Mathematics Teachers are encouraged to: . - Validate existing module in mathematics - Develop and
validate simple module on different mathematics concepts for low-achievers.

2. Masters Teachers should continuously conduct seminar-workshop on the construction of the

module.

3. Mathematics teachers are encouraged to adopt the modules asl instructional material for low
learners through a Division/Regional memorandum.

4. Similar study should be conducted to further improve the module content.