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PRACTICAL
RESEARCH 2
Quarter 1 – Module 4:
Identifying the Inquiry and
Stating the Problem
Department of Education • Republic of the Philippines
Practical Resarch 2 – Grade 12
Supplementary Learning Resource
Quarter 1 – Module 4 Identifying the Inquiry and Stating the Problem First Edition,
2020

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Published by the Department of Education Region III

Nicolas T. Capulong, PhD, CESO V
Ronilo Al K. Firmo, PhD, CESO V
Librada M. Rubio, PhD

Development Team of the Module

Writer: Angelika P. Barbeyto

Editor: Gladys Glo M. Bondoc
Reviewers: Ma. Victoria C. Vivo, EdD
Cherry Len C. Briones
Gladys Glo M. Bondoc
Frederick John A. Macale

Management Team: Norma P. Esteban, EdD, CESO V

Leonardo C. Canlas, EdD. CESE
Fatima M. Punongbayan
Teresa R. Manlapaz, PhD
Arnelia R. Trajano, PhD
Salvador B. Lozano
Nora C. Lising, PhD

Printed in the Philippines by Department of Education – City of Malolos

Office Address: Bulihan, City of Malolos,
Bulacan Telefax: (044) 812-2006 / 812-2007 E-
mail Address: malolos.city@deped.gov.ph
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Practical
Research 2
Quarter 1 – Module 4:
Identifying the Inquiry and
Stating the Problem

This instructional ma terial was collaboratively developed by writer

and graphic designer, edited and reviewed by the Regional Quality
Assurance Team of DepEd Region III.
We encourage teachers and other education stakeholders to email
their feedback, comments, and recommendati ons to the Department of
Education at sanfernando.city3@deped.gov.ph.

We value your feedback and recommendations.

Introductory Message

For the facilitator:

Welcome to the Practical Research 2 for Grade 12 Alternative Delivery Mode (ADM)
Module on Identifying the Inquiry and Stating the Problem!

This module was collaboratively designed, developed and reviewed by educators

both from public and private institutions to assist you, the teacher or facilitator in
helping the learners meet the standards set by the K to 12 Curriculum while
overcoming their personal, social, and economic constraints in schooling.

This learning resource hopes to engage the learners into guided and independent
learning activities at their own pace and time. Furthermore, this also aims to help
learners acquire the needed 21st century skills while taking into consideration their
needs and circumstances.

In addition to the material in the main text, you will also see this box in the body of
the

Notes to t he Teacher
This contains helpful tips o r strategies
that will help you in guiding the learners.

module:

As a facilitator you are expected to orient the learners on how to use this module.
You also need to keep track of the learners' progress while allowing them to manage
their own learning. Furthermore, you are expected to encourage and assist the
learners as they do the tasks included in the module.

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For the learner:

Welcome to the Practical Research 2 for Grade 12 Alternative Delivery Mode (ADM)
Module on Identifying the Inquiry and Stating the Problem!

The hand is one of the most symbolized part of the human body. It is often used to
depict skill, action and purpose. Through our hands we may learn, create and
accomplish. Hence, the hand in this learning resource signifies that you as a
learner is capable and empowered to successfully achieve the relevant
competencies and skills at your own pace and time. Your academic success lies in
your own hands!
This module was designed to provide you with fun and meaningful opportunities for
guided and independent learning at your own pace and time. You will be enabled to
process the contents of the learning resource while being an active learner.
This module has the following parts and corresponding icons:

This will give you an idea of the skills or

What I Need to Know competencies you are expected to learn in
the module.

This part includes an activity that aims to

What I Know check what you already know about the lesson to take.
If you get all the answers
correct (100%), you may decide to skip this
module.

This is a brief drill or review to help you link

What’s In the current lesson with the previous one.

In this portion, the new lesson will be

What’s New introduced to you in various ways such as a
story, a song, a poem, a problem opener, an
activity or a situation.

This section provides a brief discussion of the

What is It lesson. This aims to help you discover and understand
new concepts and skills.

This comprises activities for independent

What’s More practice to solidify your understanding and skills of the
topic. You may check the
answers to the exercises using the Answer
Key at the end of the module.

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 This includes questions or blank
What I Have Learned sentence/paragraph to be filled in to process
what you learned from the lesson.

This section provides an activity which will

What I Can Do help you transfer your new knowledge or skill into
real life situations or concerns.

This is a task which aims to evaluate your

Assessment level of mastery in achieving the learning
competency.

In this portion, another activity will be given

Additional Activities to you to enrich your knowledge or skill of
the lesson learned. This also tends to retention of

learned concepts.

At the end of this module you will also find:

References This is a list of all sources used in developing

this module.

The following are some reminders in using this module:

1. Use the module with care. Do not put unnecessary mark/s on any part of
the module. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the exercises.
2. Don’t forget to answer What I Know before moving on to the other activities
included in the module.
3. Read the instruction carefully before doing each task.
4. Observe honesty and integrity in doing the tasks and checking your answers.
5. Finish the task at hand before proceeding to the next.
6. Return this module to your teacher/facilitator once you are through with it.
If you encounter any difficulty in answering the tasks in this module, do not
hesitate to consult your teacher or facilitator. Always bear in mind that you are
not alone.

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 We hope that through this material, you will experience meaningful learning
and gain deep understanding of the relevant competencies. You can do it!

What I Need to Know

This module was designed and written with you in mind. It is here to help
you master Practical Research 2. The scope of this module permits it to be used in
many different learning situations. The language used recognizes the diverse
vocabulary level of students. The lessons are arranged to follow the standard
sequence of the course. But the order in which you read them can be changed to
correspond with the textbook you are now using.

The module is composed of a lesson, namely:

• Lesson 4 – Identifying the Inquiry and Stating the Problem

After going through this module, you are expected to:

1. design a research used in daily life;

2. write a research title; and
3. describe background of research.

What I Know
Read each statement carefully and encircle the letter of your answer.

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 1) Why is it helpful to consult various literatures in choosing a research topic?
a. It is readily available.
b. These are primary sources.
c. It provides an overview of the issues related to a topic.
d. It gives us the permission to exactly copy the ideas of others. 2) Which of the
following is an excellent source of research topic?
a. current trends in different disciplines
b. casual observation from your day-to-day activities
c. something that you are passionate about
d. all of the above
3) A previous study can be replicated if:
a. we use a new group of participants.
b. we set different variables to be measured.
c. both A and B.
d. none of the above.
4) Which of the following is NOT one of the characteristics of an effective
research title?
a. clear and concise
b. written in a creative manner
c. avoids the use of jargons
d. none of the above

5) The first step in writing a research title is to ask basic questions about your
research. Which of the following questions is NOT necessary to be asked? a.
What or who is being studied?
b. Who is my inspiration?
c. What are the methods used?
d. What is my research about?

6) Which of the following is a strong research title?

a. Development of Online Study Guide in Gas Laws
b. inquiLAB: An Online Study Guide in Gas Laws for Grade 11 STEM
Students of Marcelo H. del Pilar National High School
c. Improving the Academic Performance of Students through the Use of
an
Online Study Guide
d. Development of inquiLAB

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 7) According to Creswell (2012), a well-defined background of the study is
composed of ________ elements.
a. three c. five
b. four d. six

8) It is the literary technique used by researchers to capture the interest of the

readers and to encourage them to continue reading.
a. figures of speech c. satire
b. idioms d. narrative hook

9) What are the evidences that we can present to justify our research problem in
the background of the study? a. personal experiences
b. experiences others have had
c. related literatures
d. all of the above

10) This element of the background of the study highlights the voids found in
previous literatures. a. Topic
b. Research Problem
c. Evidences Justifying the Research Problem
d. Deficiencies in Evidences

Lesson
Identifying the Inquiry and
4 Stating the Problem
When the food presented is visually appealing, we cannot wait to have a
taste of it. Hence, presentation is as important as its flavor. The same principle
applies in conducting a research. A strong title and introduction encourage the
reader to continue reading. If we failed to establish a connection with the reader in
the first parts of our research, expect them to lose interest. In this module, you will
be able learn how to introduce your research problem or topic effectively to your
readers.

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 What’s In

Group the following data under the level of measurement it belongs to:
• Learner Reference Number (LRN) • body temperature
• pulse rate • height in meters
• a basketball player’s jersey number • military rank
• level of satisfaction (ex. extremely • academic distinction (ex.
satisfied) with Honors)

Nominal Ordinal Interval Ratio

Setting variables in our research can help us narrow down our chosen topic.
It helps us identify what we intend to measure.

What’s New

One of the strategies that can be done to come up with a research topic is
brainstorming. However, we might be overwhelmed with the amount of ideas
pouring out of our heads it would lead to a disorganized train of thoughts.

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Here comes the function of a concept map. It is a visual representation showcasing
the relationships among concepts or ideas. You may write down key words and
show its relationship with another key word by connecting it with arrows.

Figure 1.

Once you are done with the concept map, you may ask yourself these follow-up
questions (Hamlett & Lacy, 2017):

1) Which subtopic are you most interested in pursuing for your research?
2) What questions do you have about this subtopic?
3) How are you going to proceed in finding out more information about your
topic?
4) What sources of information might help you answer these questions? Where
you might find this information?

What is It

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Sources of Research Topic
In conducting a research, it is important to select a topic that we can truly
be invested in. This will help us stay motivated and not lose interest along the
tedious process of research. However, there are times when we run out of ideas to
focus on because we pressure ourselves to come up with something new and
original. Such action cannot be done easily without consulting various literatures.
Through this, voids in the existing body of knowledge can be identified.

According to Edmonds (2013, as cited in Baraceros, 2016), the following

ideas may also help you arrive with a topic that you want to conduct a research on:

• casual observation from your day-to-day activities o something that you

are passionate about o current trends in different disciplines o prevailing
issues in the society
• topics that are yet to be explored o recommendations cited in past
researches
• a previous study to be replicated with a new group of participants, in
another setting or with a different set of variables to be measured

Once you have chosen a topic of interest, you may narrow it down by
“limiting the population, place, period, or a certain characteristic” (Department of
Education, 2020).

Writing a Research Title

The research title is the first thing that meets the eyes of your readers. It
provides a name to your research and a glimpse about its content (Taguiam, 2019).
Upon reading it, readers already decide if they will invest time to read further into
your research. Hence, the research title should not only be informative, but also
captivating. A strong research title also exhibits the following characteristics (Chua,
2017; Serrano, 2017):

• includes key variables of the research such as the subject matter, setting,
respondents and/or time when the study was conducted
• clear and concise – composed of not more than 15 words
• written in scientific or technical style
• avoids the use of jargons or abbreviations not common to many o
observes capitalization rules for all nouns, verbs, adjectives, proper
nouns, and the first word of your title

Wordvice Editing Service (2018) listed the steps in writing a research title:

1) Ask basic questions about your research.

a. What is my research about?

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 My paper studies how program volume affects outcomes for liver
transplant patients on waiting lists.

b. What or who is being studied?

I studied 60 liver transplant patients on a waiting list in the National

Transplant Kidney Institute aged 20-50 years old.

c. What are the methods used?

I employed a case study and measured the correlation between

waiting list volume and outcome of transplant procedure.

2) List down keywords or phrases from your answers.

o o
o program volume outcomes liver
o o
transplant patients waiting lists
o
case study 60 liver transplant
o
patients National Transplant Kidney
o o
Institute aged 20-50 years
correlation

3) Write a sentence using the selected keywords or phrases.

This study used a case study of 60 liver transplant patients of

National Kidney Transplant Institute aged 20-50 years to assess how
the waiting list volume affects the outcome of liver transplantation in
patients; correlation will be measured between waiting list volume and
prognosis after transplant procedure.

4) Delete unnecessary and repetitive words and link the remaining.

This study used a case study of 60 liver transplant patients of

National Kidney Transplant Institute aged 20-50 years to assess how the
waiting list volume affects the outcome of liver transplantation in patients;
correlation will be measured between waiting list volume and prognosis after
transplant procedure.

A case study of 60 liver transplant patients of National Kidney Transplant

Institute aged 20-50 years assessing the impact of waiting list volume on

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outcome of transplantation and showing a correlation between waiting list
volume and prognosis.

5) Retain the most essential information and finalize your title.

A case study of 60 liver transplant patients of National Kidney

Transplant Institute aged 20-50 years assessing the impact of waiting list
volume on outcome of transplantation and showing a correlation between
waiting list volume and prognosis.

Impact of Waiting List Volume on Outcome and Prognosis in Liver

Transplantation Patients: A Case Study on National Kidney Transplant
Institute Patients

Here are examples of approved research titles:

• Erudite: An E-Learning Website and Teaching Reference on Philippine

National Building Codes and Standards
• inquiLAB: An Online Study Guide in Gas Laws for Grade 11 STEM Students
of Marcelo H. del Pilar National High School
• Utilization of Dried Mango Leaves and Used Paper Wastes in the Production
of Corkboard
• Development of Computerized Enrollment System for Marcelo H. del Pilar
National High School – Senior High School
• Levels of Financial Literacy Among Grade 12 ABM Students of Marcelo H. del
Pilar National High School
• Desired Managerial Style of Fast Food Chain Employees in the City of
Malolos, Bulacan
Background of the Study
The background of the study seeks to provide the readers the answer as to why the
researcher decided to delve further about their chosen topic (Lobetos, 2018).
Creswell (2012) stated that a well-defined background of the study consists of five
elements. 1) Topic

The opening statements of the research should have a good start as it holds
the role of convincing the readers to read further into the research. Readers
will lose interest if they are immediately bombarded with ideas, they cannot
relate to. Introducing the research with a broad topic or general ideas that
can be easily understood will surely capture their interest.

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 The use of the literary technique “narrative hook” in our opening statement
is an effective strategy to generate interest from the readers. Its different
forms are shown by citing excerpts from the study conducted by Danganan
et al. (2020):
a. statistical data
“Globally, a million of plastic bottles are bought per minute and 91%
of those number are not being recycled.”
b. a provocative question
“Why do school policies that ban the use of plastic bottles not being
strictly enforced?”
c. a clear need for research
“Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is used as an effective package for
liquid products but is now a cause of numerous environmental
problems such as water pollution and landfill pollution.”
d. purpose of the study
“The study aims to determine the effectiveness of polyethylene
terephthalate bottles as a substitute to silica-based soda lime glass.”

2) Research Problem
From a broad topic, it must be narrowed down to a specific research problem
or issue that the researcher wants to investigate. It tells the reader the
problem that you want to address in your research.

3) Evidence Justifying the Research Problem

Reasons cited from other literatures, your personal experiences or others
have had validate the existence of the research problem and the need to
address it.

4) Deficiencies in Evidence
This part highlights the weaknesses of related literatures found. It implies
that the research problem has yet to be completely addressed and your
research aims to fill that void.

5) Audience
It reiterates the purpose of the study. It also considers the diversity of
potential readers and states how it will be beneficial to each.

Below is an example of the background of the study with its five elements identified
(Chua, 2017):

SHS Students’ Social Media Usage and Their Attention Span in Class

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 Topic Over the past decade, social media has drastically increased its
breadth in terms of number of people who use it significantly. In
fact, Facebook alone, as of January 2017 has reached a record
high of approximately 1,850,000,000 active users compared to 400
million in 2012 (Smith, 2017). This exponential increase in social
media activity has fueled the interest of various researchers on the
effects of social media usage. Social media are forms of electronic
communication devices through which users create online
communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and
other content (Merriam-Webster, 2017). Due to this, several
studies have examined the effect of social media on student
academics (Matthews, 2014; Johnson & Johnson, 2016), its
relationship with stress (Santos, 2015; Chan, 2016), and attention
span (Microsoft Corp., 2014; Jackson, 2016).
Research
According to the study funded by Microsoft in 2014, people now
Problem generally lose concentration after eight seconds, highlighting the
effects of an increasingly digitalized lifestyle on the brain.
Evidence Attention span, as defined by Webster (2011) is the amount of
Justifying the concentrated time a person can spend on a task without becoming
Research distracted. Microsoft found that since the year 2000, the average
attention span dropped from 12 seconds to 8 seconds. That is less
Problem
than the 9 second attention span of the average goldfish.

In the Philippines, there is still a limited number of literature that

Deficiencies in directly links to the use of social media to attention span,
Evidences especially those that look into the Senior High School (SHS)
students and their ability to maintain concentration. Furthermore,
the international researchers conducted on this topic does not
provide evidence that the results transcend through different
cultural backgrounds and age groups. It is in the light that the
purpose of this study to determine whether social media usage
Audience possess any significant relationship with the attention span of
Grade 12 students of De La Salle Araneta University.

What’s More

Practice writing a research title based on the steps given. Write

your answers in the box provided.

1) Ask basic questions about your research.

a. What is my research about?

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 b. What or who is being studied?

c. What are the methods used?

2) List down keywords or phrases from your answers.

3) Write a sentence using the selected keywords or phrases.

4) Delete unnecessary and repetitive words and link the remaining.

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 5) Retain the most essential information and finalize your title.

What I Have Learned

Give one significant learning for each subtopic discussed in the lesson. Write
your answers on a separate sheet of paper.

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 A. Sources of Research Topic
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

B. Writing a Research Title

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

C. Background of the Study

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

What I Can Do

Come up with three (3) research title proposals that you are interested to pursue.
Remember to take note of the characteristics of a research title in your proposals.

1) _____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

2) _____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

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 3) _____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

Assessment

Read each statement carefully. Write TRUE if the statement is

correct; otherwise, write FALSE.
______________ 1) Researchers are advised to challenge themselves by choosing a
research topic they are not interested with.
______________ 2) Your casual observations in your day-to-day life can be a source
of research topic.
______________ 3) Observe capitalization among all the first letters of the words in
the research title.
______________ 4) Inserting humor on the research title makes it more interesting to
the readers.
______________ 5) The use of jargons in the research title is a good strategy to make
it sound intelligent.
______________ 6) The research title must be clear and concise by having not more
than 15 words.
______________ 7) The Effects of Coconout Oil and Beeswax Edible coating is a strong
research title.
______________ 8) The background of the study should start with a broad topic or
general idea.
______________ 9) A definition of a term is considered a narrative hook.
______________ 10) The background of the study expresses the context of the
problem that will support the validity and rationale of the study.

Additional Activities

Using your approved research title, write its background of the study and identify
the topic, the research problem, your justification for the problem, potential
deficiencies in the knowledge about the problem, and the audiences that will
benefit from your study.

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References
Baraceros, E. L. (2016). Practical Research 2. Sampaloc, Manila: Rex Bookstore Inc.
Creswell, J. W. (2012). Educational research: Planning, conducting and evaluating
quantitative and qualitative research (4th ed.). Boston, Massachusetts:
Pearson Education Inc.
Chua, V. C. (2017). The problem and its background [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved
from https://mathbychua.weebly.com/practical-research-2.html
Danganan, E. I. C., Corpuz, J. K. M., Evangelista, A. J. T., Perez, A. B. & Cabrera,
B. C. (2020). Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles as substitute to
silica-based soda lime glass.

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Department of Education. (2020). Practical Research 2: Quarter 1 – Module 2
Identifying the Inquiry and Stating the Problem. Cagayan De Oro City:
Department of Education – Division of Cagayan de Oro City.
Hamlett, A. & Lacy, M. (2017). Brainstorming your research topic handout. CUNY
Academic Works. Retrieved from
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/nc_oers/10
Lobetos, M. J. (2018). Describing background of the study. [PowerPoint slides].
Retrieved from https://www.slideshare.net/mjlobetos/lesson-
6describingbackground-of-the-study
Serrano, J. (2017). Identifying and stating the problem [PowerPoint slides].
Taguiam, A. (2019). Writing research title [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from
https://www.slideshare.net/annalietaguiam/writing-research-title
Wordvice Editing Service. (2018, January 25). How to write a research paper title
[Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/Fl1q-I3bE0c

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Email Address: blr.lrqad@deped.gov.ph * blr.lrpd@deped.gov.ph

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