FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE ACADEMIC RESILIENCE

AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS DURING THE PANDEMIC

SW 315
CHAPTER 1 OF RESEARCH STUDY
BSSW 3B

SUBMITTED BY:
BACASMAS, MERRY JOY
CAARE, MARIA SHEENA
JARAULA, APPLE JHANE
 Chapter I

INTRODUCTION

This research paper is about Academic Resilience of college student at City College of El
Salvador. The researcher finds it interesting study because it will help students especially to
those students who preserve in learning. The regular students of City College of El Salvador
but there are only few students who are able to continue regularly despite all the challenges
especially in times of pandemic they started ace to face but just suddenly and come to the
situation that they are not prepare for they have different perspective as a student in their
studies. The ability to meet and overcome challenges in ways that maintain or promote
wellbeing plays on essential role in how students learn to achieve academic and personal
goals.

Resilience is the process of adapting in the face of adversity. Research has shown that this
trait is usual, not unusual as people commonly demonstrate resilience through life
experiences (Chung, 2008). This is because resilience is not a characteristic that people either
have or do not have. For this reason, resilience involves behavior and actions that can be
learned and developed in any reason. A combination of protective factors and risk factors
affect resilience in individuals. Risk factors are those factors that increase the likelihood of a
future negative outcome. Protective factors refer to those variables that buffer against the
effects of risk factors (Wright and Masten 2005). It is seen as distinct from academic
resilience, which instead relates to the capacity to overcome significant adversity that
threatens a student's educational development. (Martin, 2013) does present evidence that
whilst buoyancy and resilience are related, buoyancy better predicts low-level negative
outcomes and resilience better predicts major negative outcomes which aligns with Martin
and Marsh's (2008) earlier description of buoyancy as reflecting " everyday" academic
resilience. Consensus on a definition of resilience has been hard in coming (Southwick, et al.,
2014), as different writers put a different spin on the construct. Definitions are exceptionally
important to ensure that we talk or write in harmony with each other. The term resilience has,
to at least some extent, become an empty word that can be filled with almost any meaning.
Some refer to resilience as something intrinsic to the individual, while others refer to it in a
more holistic sense. Some refer to resilience as the competencies or capacities of people,
while others refer to it as positive functioning in the face of adversity. These multitude of
meanings for the same term have led to severe criticisms about the validity of resilience
theory (Fletcher & Sarkar, 2013; Kolar, 2011).

The coronavirus (covid19) pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for social work
students. Resilient student sustains high levels of achievement and performance of stressful
events and conditions that place them at risk of doing poorly in school. Academic resilience
means that students achieving good education outcomes despite adversity. Study that
academically resilient students are more successful in school and more likely to thrive
academically. The City College of El Salvador established the social work course that can
lead among the students to become successful to serve the public to give guidance and help
them to overcome their problems as

a group, individual and in the community. Is the ability to bounce back after challenges and
tough times. Resilient can recover setbacks and get back to living life.

Resilience develops when student's experience challenges and learn to deal to them
positively. This article introduces techniques and resources for building resilience for
building and engaging with, rather than ignoring or separating ourselves from the realities we
face. Social work both a head and heart practice. At all levels of intervention, effective social
work necessities genuine engagement. To understand people who positively face adversity, it
is undoubtedly important to identify the factors that may promote resilience, such as coping
strategies (Smith et al., 2008; Steinhardt & Dolbier, 2008). Coping has been defined as a
person’s efforts to remove, reduce, or manage threatening events or situations that are
appraised as challenging or stressful (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). Although resilience and
coping are sometimes used interchangeably, they are in fact related, but conceptually distinct,
constructs. The distinction between AR and coping strategies is based on the definition of the
constructs: whereas coping refers to the set of cognitive and behavioral strategies used by an
individual to manage the demands of stressful situations, resilience refers to adaptive
outcomes in the face of adversity (Campbell‐Sills et al., 2006).
 II. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

During the Covid-19 emergency, distance learning modalities became a widespread remedial
approach to support the student's learning in times of closure due to covid-19 pandemic. In
the Philippines various learning modalities were implemented to sustain the delivery of
quality instruction to every school. The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has issued
CMO No. 4, Series of 2020- Guidelines on the Implementation of Flexible Learning. This
guideline allows educational institutions to operate classes and organize lessons through
modules and online addressing diverse needs of students. The City College of El Salvador
was one of the schools in the Northern Mindanao who offer degree of Social work. And the
only one who offer social work courses in El Salvador City. Academic resilience as an
increased likelihood of success despite environmental adversities. The purpose of the
research is to identify academic resilience of regular students from City College of El
Salvador. This study aimed to determine which factors that contribute these skills to
overcome adversity. A considerable amount of research has been covered little range of
factors that contribute among regular students of 4th year in Bachelor of Science in Social
Work. The academic resilience of the students to determine the objectively in times of
pandemic. Academic is the dream of every nation, community, parents and students to have
good academic attainment to adequately equip the individual to meet the challenges of the
Modern global world. Education is the key to the achievements it is considered the heart, soul
and mind of the society and the single most important vehicle for personal, group and societal
development. Through education society and the world at large can be influenced and
transformed. Resilience enables them to face challenges. So, it becomes an important part of
education system. Student's face many challenges or difficult situation in everyday life like,
academic or adjustment with peer group, problems in society or community adjustments,
home or family adjustment.

This study will provide knowledge and information that will promote academic resilience to
students. It is to see how student's battle with academic problem and difficulties. It is a way
for them to be successful and remove inferiority in themselves with regards to academic
capabilities. The purpose of this study is to assess the potential that promotes academic
resilience among College Students of City College of El Salvador, and the Province of
Misamis Oriental as well.

THEORITICAL FRAMEWORK

The Resilience Theory In order to fully discuss the resilience framework, a brief literature
review will be used to illustrate the diversity of conceptualization of resilience, some basic
conceptual definitions will be offered, and then the model itself will be considered. The term
resilience has been used to label three different types of phenomenon:(a) individuals who
have experienced traumatic events but have been able to recover well:(b) persons who belong
to high-risk groups, but who have more favorable outcomes than expected and: (c) persons
show positive adaptation despite life stressor (Masten, Best, and Garmezy, 1990). Although
resilience is sometimes conceptualized in terms of a profile of desirable personally and
cognitive characteristics of stress - resistant persons, this definition fails to capture the
dynamic phenomenon of individual adaptation which is necessarily process-based. Instead,
we propose to present a framework which conceptualized the phenomenon of resilience as
the process, of capacity for, and outcomes of successful adaptation in spite of adversities
which threaten development (Masten, Besty and Garmezy 1990)

Hope theory these observations are very consistent with Charles Snyder’s hope theory. Hope
has both cognitive and affective elements. According to Snyder,1 there are three components
associated with hope: 1) having goal-oriented thoughts; 2) developing strategies to achieve
goals; and 3) being motivated to expend effort to achieve goals. An individual’s belief in their
ability to realise these components determines the likelihood they will develop a sense of
hope. At risk youth may believe that anything bad that happens to them is out of their control
or simply what they deserve. Peer-based programs help at risk youth set personal goals for
their future and develop strategies that will help them achieve these goals. Providing a safe
environment, practise opportunities, exposure to positive role models and opportunities to
receive positive and constructive feedback and encouragement all contribute to the sense of
personal agency that is important for achieving goals. This ‘agentic perspective’ is also en
element of Social Cognitive Theory.2 A variety of studies has shown that different goal
orientations determine students’ cognitive, affective and behavioral reactions as well as the
students’ educational performance. Academic resilience is considered as an affective
consequence of goal orientations

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

1. What is demographic profile of students

Age
Gender
Occupation
Status
2. What are the factors that contributed to academic resilience?
3. What are their strategies in facing their adversities in life and as students?

The researchers came up with these questions in order to assess the factors
contributing academic resilience of regular student’s in social work in times of
pandemic.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY TO SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE

This study will contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between academic
resilience and pandemic. The study could lead to future research on the resilience of student
facing different adversity such as trauma, tragedy, threats, significance sources of stress
(family, relationship problem, financial stressors and stress of pandemic). The information
gathered from this study could help improve services provided by social workers, educators
and psychologists, to help them build the resiliency of every students.

This study analyzes whether resilience, defines as a process rather than as a static response
overtime, is associated with social work. The main aim was to determine whether social work
increases resilience in students and professionals during training and when practicing the
profession.
 SCOPE AND DELIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The coverage of our study specifies the 4th year regular students of Bachelor of Social Work
at City College of El Salvador. Consist of four (4) Male and Thirteen (13) Female.

Irregular students in this study represented a delimitation, because the main focus was on the
regular students male and female, this study did not include any irregular students, so the
findings from this study cannot be generalize to those students who are irregular.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

 Resilience – the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.

 Adversities – "resilience in the face of adversity"
 Pandemic – A pandemic is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has spread across
a large region, for instance multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial
number of individuals. A widespread endemic disease with a stable number of
infected individuals is not a pandemic
 Perspective – a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of
view.
 Inferiority - the condition of being lower in status or quality than another or others.
 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Resilience
The concept of resilience comes from physics, where it is defined as the ability of a body to

recover its shape and size after being deformed. In the social sciences, resilience is a

recurring construct in studies on academic achievement in the face of difficult situations or

contexts [17]. This concept has been approached from different angles [18], as shown by

Bonanno’s studies [19], which define resilience as the result of the interaction of protective

factors on traumatic situations, as contrasted with other studies that define it as a process that

grows in the face of adversity [20]. According to the latter, resilience as a process that is

constructed based on the skills that the individual puts into practice to overcome a trauma

[21]. Therefore, they consider resilience as the ability to overcome traumatic situations that is

based on the interaction between the subject and their coping strategies. In the same vein,

Vanistendael’s proposal [22], supported by Cyrulnick [23], further refines the concept of

resilience as a person’s ability to resist possible psychological trauma caused by a

problematic and harmful environment. It is, therefore, the result of an internal drive to heal,

of the human resistance to a condition, resistance which leads one to reject resigning oneself

to suffering or to reality itself. This is, thus, an acquired ability [24] resulting from a person’s

adaptability to traumatic situations. As is the case with general resilience, work focusing on

academic resilience has led to the emergence of apparently distinct yet related concepts and

constructs, each aiming to address a seemingly similar issue. Although drawing some explicit
distinctions between their own constructs and resilience (Perkins-Gough, 2013), both

Duckworth and Dweck provide significant contributions to the field of academic resilience

with their work on “grit” and “mindset.” Duckworth describes grit as an individual’s

tendency to sustain interest, passion, effort and persistence toward achieving long-term future

goals (despite challenges and failures) and reports grit as a better predictor of academic

success than IQ (Duckworth et al., 2007; Duckworth, 2013) or talent (Duckworth and Quinn,

2009). Dweck’s (2006, 2010) work on mindset has led to the identification of two types of

mindset, fixed and growth. A fixed mindset describes individuals with fixed beliefs regarding

their level of intelligence and ability, which they believe remain stable. A growth mindset

instead describes individuals who view their intelligence and ability simply as a basis for

development and believe that challenges, including failure, are opportunities to develop their

capacity for success through effort and practice. The influence of mindset is emphasized

further by Snipes et al. (2012), who consider a growth mindset to be a major contributory

factor in the development of grit. Despite noted dissimilarities— Duckworth considers

resilience to be only one factor explaining grit (Perkins-Gough, 2013)—there are clear

overlaps between academic resilience and the constructs proposed by Duckworth and Dweck,

and their relevance is illustrated by Farrington et al. (2012) who reports that the combination

of a growth mindset and grit in students is been associated with higher academic grades.

Another construct, closely related to academic resilience, proposed by Martin and Marsh

(2008, 2009) is academic buoyancy. Described as the “capacity to overcome setbacks,

challenges, and difficulties that are part of everyday academic life.” (Martin, 2013, p. 488) it

is seen as distinct from academic resilience, which instead relates to the capacity to overcome

significant adversity that threatens a student’s educational development. Martin (2013) does

present evidence that whilst buoyancy and resilience are related, buoyancy better predicts

low-level negative outcomes and resilience better predicts major negative outcomes, which
aligns with Martin and Marsh’s (2008) earlier description of buoyancy as reflecting

“everyday” academic resilience. Waxman et al. (2003) suggest that studying resilient students

will provide important implications for improving the education of students at risk of

academic failure and evidence already exists supporting the relevance of academic resilience.

It is inevitable for each individual to come across different hardships and obstacles in their

academic life. It is a known fact that while some individuals get through negative

situations, some cannot cope. Individuals who cope with the obstacles despite the hard

conditions they face, are named as academically resilient individuals in the literature

(Morales & Trotman, 2011). These individuals are seen to be able to reach positive

results despite negative conditions. Academic resilience is an individual’s struggle

despite situations in which the individual can be unsuccessful or face negative life

conditions, and achieving academic success throughout the education process (Alva, 1991).

Resilience develops when student's experience challenges and learn to deal to them

positively. This article introduces techniques and resources for building resilience for

building and engaging with, rather than ignoring or separating ourselves from the realities we

face. Social work both a head and heart practice. At all levels of intervention, effective social

work necessities genuine engagement. To understand people who positively face adversity, it

is undoubtedly important to identify the factors that may promote resilience, such as coping

strategies (Smith et al., 2008; Steinhardt & Dolbier, 2008). Coping has been defined as a

person’s efforts to remove, reduce, or manage threatening events or situations that are

appraised as challenging or stressful (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). Although resilience and

coping are sometimes used interchangeably, they are in fact related, but conceptually distinct,

constructs. The distinction between AR and coping strategies is based on the definition of the

constructs: whereas coping refers to the set of cognitive and behavioral strategies used by an
individual to manage the demands of stressful situations, resilience refers to adaptive

outcomes in the face of adversity (Campbell‐Sills et al., 2006).

The COVID-19 pandemic undoubtedly tested the resilience of academics in higher education.

Many universities were severely affected by reduced student enrolment, with widespread job

losses reported across universities. For many academics, the impact of the pandemic has been

worrying, financially crippling and overwhelming. The virus has also exposed academic

inequalities and impacted heavily on vulnerable people. The individual and collective heroic

spirit of many academics has been nothing short of extraordinary. Overcoming the initial

hurdles of COVID-19 takes one kind of energy; the resilience needed to remain engaged

despite the continuing changes and uncertainties is quite another challenge. It is one that

demands sustained resilience. This timely book provides perspectives across disciplines,

career stages and global contexts on how to develop resilience in academia. These personal

stories may empower others not only to survive, but to thrive in times of adversity (Marian

Mahat

University of Melbourne, Australia). Academic resilience is the notion that there are some

students who achieve favorable achievement outcomes despite coming from lower SES

backgrounds. Yet, to the average person, the word “resilient” means something quite

different. Indeed, the Oxford dictionary defines resilience as “the ability of people or things

to recover quickly after something unpleasant, such as shock, injury, etc.” Clearly, the

general notion of resilience is much broader than what is typically captured and often widely

reported when discussing students and education systems. At the same time, the

unprecedented and generational challenges presented by COVID-19 have provided an

important impetus to reconsider how we support students in contemporary schools. It is

highly likely that the pandemic has created even greater inequities with respect to students’

access to learning resources and supports due to socio-economic factors. Further, the impact
of these inequities will impact more than just academic outcomes. (by: Dr. Louis Volante, Dr.

Don A. Klinger, Dr. Joe M Barrett).

Children living in poverty are more exposed to family turmoil, less stimulating home

environments and lower quality schools than non-poor children (Evans, 2004). Yet, not all

students from low-income families are at risk for academic failure as poor children vary on a

variety of other factors linked to academic outcomes. Poverty increases the odds of such

failure but more proximal risks play an important role as well. Higher education helps reduce

poverty. According to Barbara J. Astle, 2005, Higher education is one of the most powerful

yet underestimated means that countries can rely on to reduce poverty and achieve social and

economic development goals. Most people recognize its value for productivity and growth in

developed countries, but some people inexplicably consider university education a luxury for

developing countries. It is not a luxury, it is essential. Similarly, they say, science, technology

and innovation must be front and centre in achieving the millennium

development goals. Imagine trying to achieve one of these goals – universal primary

education – without higher

education. This would mean providing primary education without training teachers, without

developing locally relevant curriculum, and without equipping the principals and ministry of

education officials with solid management and governance skills. These kinds of specialized

training take place within universities, and point to the importance of achieving a narrow

view of basic education delivery in favor of a more sustainable approach to education – an

approach that capitalizes on the complementary roles of primary, secondary and tertiary

education. Higher education provides fundamental expertise to all sectors of society and the

economy, including the key sectors that drive development – health, education, governance,

private sector development and the environment. In the Philippines, local universities help

developing countries to train their own business leaders, policy-makers, scientists, teachers
and front-line service professionals instead of relying on foreigners. University graduates

have the specialized skills to earn a living and infuse their sector of employment – whether in

the private industry, the public sector or civil society – with the expertise that underpins

success (Sheila Mae Carol A. Buslig, Kalinga State University Tabuk City, Kalinga,

Philippines 3800).

The goal of this chapter is two fold. First, to review relevant literature regarding the

experiences of the many African American learners. The second goal is to provide an

overview of literature that supports the academic resilience concept. In sum, academic

resilience research helps to reframe how professionals perceive adverse environmental

conditions or challenges experienced during childhood across disciplines (Morales, 2010).

Specifically, common links throughout all of the research presented were the importance of

individual characteristics or personal protective factors (e.g., strong motivation, high self-

concept, and good work ethic) and external protective factors (e.g., encouragement and

expectation from peers, families, schools, and communities). These factors serve as a safety

net to support resiliency among African American youth (Esquivel, Doll, & Oades-Sese,

2011; Morales, 2010; Williams & Bryan, 2013). As with family and school, the community

also supports the positive developments of African American youth. Among this group, there

is a need for support beyond the classroom and into their community. Educational

stakeholders should adopt a systemic approach for evaluating various aspects of students’

lives to better utilize multiple resources to solve problems in the school setting (Bryan &

Henry, 2008; Morales & Trotman, 2011).After combing through this literature, it is clear that

more research is necessary to further examine how the interplay of protective factors (e.g.,

family, school, and community) may contribute to positive academic outcomes among

African American high school students. Previous empirical studies embracing the academic

resilience approach lacked a solid theoretical basis. Thus, this study will use
Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological System Theory to explain the processes related to academic

resilience. Bronfenbrenner argued that human development processes could explain the

relationship between an individual and their environment. To that end, the present study was

designed to concentrate on the understanding of protective factor processes (e.g., the

interaction between individual, family, and community) and how these factors are associated

with academic resilience. A description of the study is presented in the subsequent chapters

(Natasha L. Murray, EXAMINING A EXAMINING ACADEMIC RESILIENCE F

CADEMIC RESILIENCE FACTORS AMONG AFRICAN ORS AMONG AFRICAN

AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS,). In any formal educational set up it is very

essential to have a positive environment. A positive environment includes a supportive

teachers as well as students. As Fallon C (2010) has also pointed out that towards the

significant association between school’s environment and resilience among students. Mental

health, internal locus of control and social support plays a key role in the development

resiliency among students. Studies also points out that there is also need for the development

of social support policy by the Government. One of the good examples of it is community

participation. In one of the articles Sarwar, Inamullah, Khan, and Anwar (2010) investigated

the relationship between resilience and academic achievement of secondary level students of

Gujranwala, Pakistan. A resilience scale was used to collect data. The sample consisted of

127 secondary students, with 52 boys and 75 girls. The data exposed that there was no

association between resilience and achievement as measured through marks obtained in 10th

grade. The boys are more resilient than girls at the secondary students in Pakistan. This is one

of the critics of the academic resilience, but here one has to look how do we understand

academic resilience is it only marks? This is a question worth asking for. On the other hand

Fallon (2010) conducted an ex post facto quantitative study to examine the connection

between the academic optimism of schools and academic resilience in urban Latino high
school students. The study was conducted on 150 low Social Economic Status Latino high

school students and 47 teachers at three campuses of a deed high school in Chicago. As per

the results, significant relationships were found between academic optimism of schools and

academic resilience of students, even when family-related and personal protective factors

were controlled for. The findings of the study added in the existing body of research and

recommended that schools can serve as defensive factors for low Social economic Status

Latino students. This research put a very good example for the school system, where we

definitely need a healthy environment for each individual. In one of the study conducted by

Cavazos et al. (2010) provided insight into certain resiliency factors that helped Latino

students to achieve greater academic achievement. Certain factors like high educational

goals, support and encouragement from parents, intrinsic motivation, internal locus of

control, and high self-efficacy were found to play significant role in determining students’

level of resiliency. (Dr. Monika1, Shikha2, A Study of Academic Resilience among Students

of Secondary and Higher Secondary Schools). Educators are faced with a challenge, not only

to prepare students to participate in American society, but to also be a part of the ongoing

transformation of American society

(Banks, 2007).

To educate future citizens merely to fit into and not to transform society would result in the

perpetuation and escalation of these problems, including the widening gap between the rich

and the poor, racial conflict and tension, and the growing number of people who are victims

of poverty and homelessness. (Banks, 2007, p.14) Analysis of the U.S. Bureau of Census

2010 results indicates the U.S. population has changed during the last decade and is set to

change even more dramatically during the years ahead (Johnson & Kasarda, 2011). This

change in the makeup of the population poses challenges to the nation in terms of economic,

political, and educational policy. According to Johnson and Kasarda (2011), the American
workplace will be much more diverse, requiring skills that are different than those required

today. In response to the societal changes occurring in the nation and significant changes to

the American economy in the past decade, educators must rethink the role of public schools

and the way schools prepare students for their future roles in a democratic society (Johnson &

Kasarda, 2011). Efforts to improve public schools are evident in all aspects of education

(Bryk & Schneider, 2002; Louis & Wahlstrom, 2011). School reform initiatives are seen at

all levels, from school governance and curriculum, to assessment and teacher quality (Bryk &

Schneider, 2002; Louis & Wahlstrom, 2011). Based on the reported trends in demographics

in the last decade, it is inevitable that students will face change in the future (Johnson &

Kasarda, 2011). When considering the educational requirements for future opportunity, it is

evident schools must educate students to be adaptable. Educators must focus on both

knowledge and thinking to make school relevant for students who are exposed to an ever-

changing information stream (Banks, 2007). (Tamara Andrews Foster, Doctor of Education,

Piedmont College, An Exploration of Academic Resilience Among Rural Students Living in

Poverty). Resilience is the ability to adapt and overcome difficult times at hand (Amelasasih,

Aditama, & Wijaya, 2019). Resilience is the ability to adapt to risks, difficulties, and some

monumental adverse events constructively and positively (Dunn, et.al ,2009 as cited in

Compton & Hoffman, 2013). Meanwhile, according to Hendriani (2018), resilience is an

individual’s ability to cope with stress and learn from negative emotional experiences. In the

context of higher education, students are expected to be resilient in facing academic

challenges, which are commonly called academic resilience (Gizir as cited in Sari &

Indrawati, 2017). Academic resilience is the ability of a student to get on its feet, survive, or

adapt to the pressure and challenging conditions in the academic field (Sari & Indrawati,

2017). Martin and Marsh (as cited in (Sari & Indrawati, 2017) explain that students who carry

out academic resilience are students who can face four conditions, namely setbacks,
challenges, adversity, and pressure in the academic context. Based on this explanation,

academic resilience is very useful in facing the challenges of learning during the COVID-19.