INQUIRIES,

INVESTIGATIONS,
AND IMMERSION

LESSON 2:
Identifying the Inquiry and Stating the Problem
 Research Topic Selection and Research Title
 Formulating Research Questions
 Subsections of Chapter 1

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NAME: ___________________________________ GRADE & SECTION: _______________
DATE:_____________________________

WHAT I NEED TO KNOW?

1. Discuss the steps in research topic selection;
2. Develop a research title from the selected topic.
3. State research questions based on the research objectives.
4. Familiarize oneself on the different subsections of Chapter 1

WHAT’S IN?
1. How does Quantitative Research differ from Qualitative Research?
2. What are the different types of Quantitative Research?

WHAT’S NEW?

Choosing a Research Topic

 Research Topic is a subject or topic that we are most interested in when conducting a
research.
 A research topic is a subject or issue that a researcher is interested in when conducting
research (Allen, 2017).
 A good research topic should be something that one is deeply interested in, is scientifically
original and significant, and is manageable within the graduate studies time frame.
There are criteria for topic selection. Such includes:
 Newness of topic;
 Qualifications of researcher;
 Availability of data
 Time constraint
 Availability of resources; and
 Significance of Topic

Steps in Topic Selection

Topic selection may often be regarded as the most difficult part in the research process. It has
to be narrow and focused enough to be manageable. When deciding on a topic, here are some few tips
that we need to do.
1. Get ideas!
 Distinguish the Subject Area of Interest

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  We can be interested to study about the topics from the different disciplines like:

Health Business Management Public Service

Sports Travel and Tourism Communication
Agriculture Environment Food service
Arts Human Behavior Education
Engineering Information Technology Humanities

2. Brainstorm
 Brainstorming is an intellectual activity that encourages collaboration to generate creative
research topic idea.
 Dissect the Subject Area into Sub Areas by using graphic organizers
Example:

3. Formulate your Title

 The title summarizes the main idea of the study. Therefore, it becomes the most important
most important element that defines the research study.
 Title must contain the subject matter of the study, the locale, the population involved, and the
period when the data gathered or will be gathered.
 The title must be brief, descriptive, concise, yet comprehensive.
 It must include all aspects of the subject matter of the study. It should be appropriate and
related to the topic.
 It should wrap up the whole research topic. It should be interesting and should capture or snap
the interest of the readers.
 Make sure your title is 10 to 15 words in length.
Narrowing your topic is an important step in the research process. A broad, general topic makes it
difficult to find specified research, so narrowing down the topic is needed. Here are some steps in
narrowing your topic and transforming it into a title:

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 LITERACY
Broad Topic:

Reading at Tibag High School

(topic and locale of the study)
Limited Topic:
Reading Comprehension among Junior High School Students at Tibag High School

(narrowed through concept, people involved and locale of the study)

Narrow Topic:
Relationship between the Mastery Of Sentence Patterns and Achievement of the Reading Comprehension
among the Junior High School Students of Tibag High School during the School Year 2022 - 2023

(narrowed through concept and issue, people involved, locale of the study, and time)

Good Research Title:

Relationship between the Junior High School Students’ Mastery of Sentence Patterns and Reading
Comprehension Achievement
Note: The omitted population and the period/time of the study should be discussed and be included in
the scope and delimitation of the study.
4. Set the Objectives
 Research objectives have the same characteristics with research with research problems.
Research objectives are also characterized as SMART:
S – specific
M – measurable
A – attainable
R – realistic/Relevance
T – time bound
 Research objectives are stated in specific language for it to be measurable using appropriate
instrument in data collection. Here are some of the verbs you can use in formulating research
objectives:

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 Knowledge / Comprehension Application / Analysis / Synthesis / Evaluation
Remembering / Understanding Applying Analyzing Evaluating / Creating
Define Compare Examine Analyze Arrange Appraise
List Discuss Illustrate Appraise Assemble Assess
Recognize Classify Utilize Contrast Collect Choose
Identify Describe Provide Criticize Combine Conclude
Indicate Differentiate Calculate Debate Compose Critique
State Distinguish Complete Deconstruct Construct Defend
Point Explain Demonstrate Detect Create Determine
List Estimate Solve Diagram Design Dispute
Select Interpret Practice Differentiate Detect Estimate

Examples Titles with Objectives:

Solid Food: Ultra-processed Food and Its Relationship to Weight Gain among
Teenagers of Tarlac
 To identify the different ultra-processed solid foods often consumed by the people.
 To recognize the relationship between consumption of ultra-processed solid food and weight
gain.

Effects of Intermittent Fasting to Weight Loss

 To identify the different fasting techniques used by people.
 To compare and contrast the two best fasting techniques.
 To raise awareness on the importance of healthy diet.

5. Formulate Research Questions

 A research problem is a question which the research seeks to answer or address.
 Research problem implies that a question is posed to find a solution.
Characteristics of Research Question
1. Clear
 It provides enough specifics that one’s audience can easily understand its purpose without
needing additional explanation.
2. Focused
 It is narrow enough that it can be answered thoroughly in the space the writing task allows.

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Examples:

Unclear and Unfocused Clear and Focused

How should social networking sites How does the personal information
address the harm they cause? and privacy of the users on the
following social media be described?
1.1 Facebook
1.2 Twitter
1.3 Instagram

3. Concise but Complex

 It is expressed in the fewest possible words, but should not be answerable with a simple “yes”
or “no.”

Yes or No Question Concise but Complex

Is there a relationship between What is the degree of relationship

rewards and high test scores? between rewards and test scores?

Aligning Research Questions to Research Objectives

Price vs. Quality: Consumers’ Preference to Smartphone

Objectives Research Questions

1. To identify the consumer’s basic 1. What is the demographic profile of the
background information consumers in terms of:
1.1 Age
1.2 Sex?
2. To determine consumer’s preference in 2. What are the consumer’s preferences
purchasing smartphones. in purchasing smartphones in terms of:
2.1 Price
2.2 Quality?
3. To understand the importance of 3. What is the implication of the study to

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 consumer’s preference to electronic electronic companies?
industries.

WHAT IS IT?
CHAPTER 1: THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND
Parts of Chapter 1
1. Introduction or Background of the Study
 It discusses four (4) relevant ideas:
a. TOPIC or subject matter: define and elaborate using methods of paragraph
development like classification and giving examples.
b. IMPORTANCE of the Topic: cite the role that the topic plays in your life and the
benefits you derive from it.
c. REASONS for choosing the topic: emphasized what motivated you to choose the topic.
d. PURPOSE of the Study: discusses the objective of the study
 It consists of statements on what led the investigator to launch the study.
 It may have been generated by some empirical observations, the need to explore the problem
and some other relevant conditions.
 It describes as clearly as possible the problem intended to be addressed and refer to the
relevant literature in the field.
 It is an overview of factors which have led to the problem, comprise the problem and
historical significance relative to the problem.

2. Statement of the Problem

 Guidelines in writing the statement of the problem.
a. Establish clear relationship between research question and research topic.
b. Research questions must express the main problem.
c. Avoid asking questions that are answerable by “yes” or “no”. “How” questions are
more usable.
d. Be guided by SMART. Based your questions on your objectives.

Broad Questions Specific Questions

How do selected restaurants in What is the level of compliance of

Manila comply with the food safety the selected restaurants in Manila to
and sanitation standards? the food and safety and sanitation
standards stipulated in P.D. 856?

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 Broad Questions Specific Questions

How Taal Volcano eruption brought How much is the extent of stress
stress to its victims? experienced by Taal Volcano
eruption victims in terms of:
1.1 Physical
1.2 Emotional
1.3 Psychological
1.4 Financial aspects?

3. Scope and Delimitation

 The SCOPE details how in-depth your study is to explore the research question and the
parameters in which it will operate in relation to the population and timeframe.
 The DELIMITATION of the study is delimiting a study by geographic location, age,
sex, population size, or other similar considerations. It answers the “what/who” that is
excluded with the study.
 The LIMITATION of the study considers the time constraints, nature of the experiment,
instruments utilized and sample itself. Limitations are those elements over which the
researcher has no control.
 The scope and delimitations should include the following:
a. A brief statement of the general purpose of the study.
b. The subject matter and topics studied and discussed.
c. The locale of the study, where the data were gathered or the entity to which the
data belong.
d. The population or universe from which the respondents were selected. This must
be large enough to make generalizations significant.
e. The period of the study. This is the time, either months or years, during which the
data were gathered.

4. Significance of the Study

 The rationale, timeliness and/or relevance of the study to existing conditions must be
explained or discussed.
 Possible solutions to existing problems or improvement to unsatisfactory conditions.

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  Who are to be benefited and how they are going to be benefited? It must be shown who
are the individuals, groups, or communities who may be placed in a more advantageous
position on account of the study. Below is a list of authorities you have to address in the
significance of your study.
a. School Administration
b. Faculty
c. Students
d. Parents
e. Future researchers
f. Current researchers
g. Other people and organization that may benefit from your study.
 Possible contribution to the fund of knowledge.
 Possible implications. It should be discussed here that the implications include the
possible causes of the problems discovered, the possible effects of the problems, and the
remedial measures to solve the problems.

5. Hypothesis
 Hypothesis is used in quantitative research.
 A research hypothesis is a specific, clear, and testable proposition or predictive statement
about the possible outcome of a scientific research study.
 A research hypothesis (also called a scientific hypothesis) is a statement about the
expected outcome of a scientific study.
Directional Hypothesis Non-directional Hypothesis
It states a specific direction that It does not state any prediction
the researchers expect to on the outcome of the study.
surface in a relationship based
on what they learned from
literatures and observation.
Examples: There is a negative correlation There is a significant
between bullying and self- relationship between bullying
esteem since it results show and self-esteem.
that students with high bullying
experience have low self-
esteem.

Kinds of Hypothesis

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 1. Research hypothesis is usually developed from experience, literature or theory, or
combination of these.

Examples:
This is the expected relationship between variables.
Students who eat breakfast will perform better on a math exam than students who do
not eat breakfast.

2. Null hypothesis is the one that states NO relationship between variables. The function is
to let the research test the hypothesis statistically.
Examples:
If one plant is fed club soda for one month and another plant is fed plain water, there
will be no difference in growth between the two plants.
There is no difference in the salary of factory workers based on gender.
6. Definition of Terms
 Technical definition refers to the aspect of explaining or describing any technical terms
or terminology using dictionary or definitions from internet.
 Operational definition, on the other hand, is more on the application of the word. The
researcher attempts to define or explain the word based on a certain process and its
properties including but not limited to the characteristics of the event itself.
Examples:

TERM Technical

Operational

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NAME: ___________________________________ GRADE & SECTION: _______________
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WHAT’S MORE?
Instructions: Define following terms using technical definition (dictionary or web-based). Make sure
to use proper citation on the source of information. Each item is equivalent to two (2) points.

TERM DEFINITION
1. Self-efficacy
2. Computer
Literacy
3. Blended
Learning
4. Procedural
Understanding
5. Conceptual
Understanding

WHAT HAVE I LEARNED?

In four sentences, define and differentiate objectives to research questions.

WHAT CAN I DO?

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Instructions: Narrow the following topics into a better Research Title. Make sure to follow the proper
steps in narrowing a topic/title. Points for each narrowed topic is as follows: Broad (2 pts.); Limited
(3 pts.); Narrow (5 pts.).

Format: Example:
Broad: Topic + Locale 1. Smartphones
Limited: Topic (narrowed down through types Broad: Samsung phones in Tarlac City
and concepts) + Population + Locale Limited: Samsung phones Users of Tarlac
Narrow: Topic (narrowed down through types, City
concepts, and issue) + Population + Locale + Narrow: Quality Performance of Samsung
Time phones and the User’s Level of Satisfaction
in Tarlac City
Topic: Morality
Broad:
Limited:
Narrow:

Topic: Online Games

Broad:
Limited:
Narrow:

ASSESSMENT
Instruction: Read and analyze the following questions and choose the best answer that corresponds to
the given question.
1. Which type of Quantitative Research attempts to establish cause-effect relationships among
the variables of the study?
a. Descriptive
b. Correlational
c. Causal-comparative
d. Experimental

2. Which of the following is NOT a strength of Quantitative Research?

a. Quantitative approach involves a greater number of subjects and enables a broader study, as
well as enhancing the generalization of the results.

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 b. The research is often conducted in an artificial setting, where a certain level of control is
exercised.
c. Study results are more objective and accurate.
d. You can summarize vast sources of information and make comparisons across categories and
over time.

3. Which of the following characteristics of Scientific Research allows the researchers to

determine if the basic findings of the original study can be applied to other participants and
situations?
a. Purposeful
b. Objective
c. Replicable
d. Reliable

4. Which of the following statements does NOT show the value of research in our daily lives?
a. It allows us to get the right information.
b. It helps us analyze things before we jump to conclusions
c. It helps us in understanding daily issues in life from a larger perspective.
d. It is often conducted in an artificial setting which may not necessarily reflect the real-life
situation.

5. The following are subsections of Chapter 1, EXCEPT for?

a. Introduction
b. Statement of the Problem
c. Significance of the Study
d. Research Design

REFERENCE/S
 Baraceros, E. L. (2018). Practical Research 2 (2nd ed.). REX Book Store Inc., Quezon City, 1114
Metro Manila, Philippines
 Encabo, F. V., & Meneses, J. J. D. (2021). Practical Research 2. KLEAFS PUBLISHING.
 Locsin, M. R. Q. (2019). Practical Research. Rajah Publishing House, Sta. Mesa, Manila
 Solano, I. P. (2019). Practical Research 2 (2nd ed.). Diwa Learning Systems Inc., Makati City,
Philippines

Prepared by:

APRIL S. CANDELARIA
SHS Teacher

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