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THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF DEVIATE FIRST YEAR COLLEGE STUDENTS OF XAVIER UNIVERSITY Analyzing the contributing factors of senior high school strand and college course deviance

A Concept Paper

Submitted by Rika Anne Warell R. Jarales MA Sociology – 1

Submitted to Dr. Edvilla Talaroc Qualitative Research Methofs 12 October 2018

CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM

INTRODUCTION The K-12 curriculum has been mandatory in most parts of the world, aside from several countries, including the Philippines, being one of the countries left in Asia that has only started applying the system to the educational institution. This is one of the things that hinders the country from being further globalized and globallycompetitive (Macorol, 2016). Thus, since its full implementation in most schools and universities all over the country in 2014, there has been an additional two years in the program, which means that education starts from kinder all the way to Grade 12, instead of until Grade 6 then four years in High School. With the new curriculum, there has been difficulties and challenges faced by the Department of Education in terms of the training and addition of effective teachers, the sustainability of the program, and the behaviors of the students that are well affected by the curriculum shift (Sergio, 2011). Moreover, the recently implemented senior high school (SHS) program has brought an uproar to the students and parents affected by it. The senior high school students are to choose the strands they wish to go into. In turn, these strands should enable the students to be college-ready and even job-ready. The students should be able to decide better the course they will be taking up in college (Bigcas, 2016). Furthermore, it should help the senior high school graduates to match with their jobs after graduation or after college (Canezo, 2016). For the first batch of senior high school students, there are several advantages and disadvantages of the program, which is furthered when the experimental batch were enrolled in

college. One example would be the experiences of the students who deviated from their strands and took up a course that is not aligned to their strands. For instance, a graduate of the ABM strand

would have wanted to take up Engineering, but several factors did not let him be under the STEM strand. Penedilla & Rosaldo (2017) mentioned that there are evident inconsistencies in the students’ career paths from their senior high school tracks. Hence, there would always be a challenge and a variety in the experiences of the students in the first few years of the transitioning stages in the Philippine educational system, especially between the students who enroll in courses that are not vertically-aligned to their strands and those who enroll in their strands’ corresponding courses. Several factors would have contributed to the placement of the students in senior high school strands, as well as their course preferences for college. Moreover, this is where the impact and effectiveness of the senior high school program to the students can be seen and assessed in terms of preparing the students for college and careers in the future.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Senior high school students are expected to choose courses in college that are vertically-aligned with their strands. However, there are some students who tend to choose a different path for college, or were not able to choose what their strand in senior high school should be in the first place. Hence, this study intends to describe the academic performance of the deviate first year college students in accordance with contributing factors behind their strand placement and course preference. The following are the research questions of the study: 1. What is the academic performance of the deviate first year college students of Xavier University? 2. What is the academic performance of the deviate students on their major subjects in their first year of college in Xavier University?

3. What are the lessons in senior high school that contributed to the courses of the deviate students? 4. What are the factors that led to the deviate students to be placed in their strands in senior high school (regardless of school)? 5. What are the factors that contributed to the course preference of the deviate students?

OBJECTIVES 1. To evaluate the academic performance of the deviate students in their first year in college in Xavier University; 2. To assess the performance of the deviate students on their major subjects in their first year of college in Xavier University; 3. To describe the lessons in senior high school that contributed to the courses of the deviate students; 4. To identify the factors that led to the placement of the deviate students in the senior high school strands; 5. To determine the factors that contributed to course preference of the deviate students in college.

HYPOTHESIS Graduates of the senior high school program who do not enroll in courses that are vertically-aligned to their strands do not perform well in their academics in college.

THEORETICAL AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK The perspective used in the study is functionalism. The theory mainly used to look at the study is Talcott Parsons’ Theory of Action. In the theory, it explained how an “actor” in a society is motivated to achieve a certain goal. However, to achieve the goal, there are the means, conditions, and normative standards to go through (Wallace & Wolf, 1995). In Figure 1.0, the theory is shown in an orderly manner, wherein the actor needs to undergo the “situation” involving the means or the resources, and the conditions or the obstacles that come up along the way. These two are managed by the normative standards of society, or the rules to be abided in order to achieve the goal.

Fi gur e1. 0The or e t i c alFr amewor koft heSt udy: Pa r s ons ’Theor yofAc t i on

For a regular college student who has undergone the Senior High School program, the goal would normally be to have a good academic performance in the course that is aligned to his strand, showing the impact of the program on his college performance. In contrast, Figure 2.0 shows that the college journey of the deviate student, or the student that

did not enroll in the courses that is aligned to his strand, has a different situation than that of a regular or non-deviate student.

Fi gur e2 . 0Conc e pt ua lFr a mewor koft heSt udy

The conceptual framework illustrates that the actor is the deviate student/s, and their goal is to have a good academic performance in college, based on the impact of the senior high school program. However, the situation calls for means such as factors that affected their placements in senior high school and their course preference for college, and passing the entrance exams for college. It also has conditions, which are the different learnings that were acquired from the senior high school program, and the preparatory courses that should be taken before enrolling in a different course. The normative standard that makes the goal achievable is to pass all the subjects in the course.

DEFINITION OF TERMS In order to have a better understanding of the terms used in the study, the following are operationally defined: Deviate Students. These are the first-year college students that took up different courses that are not aligned to their strands in senior high school; also referred to as the “conditional” students.

Academic Performance. This pertains to the passing and/or failing of the deviate students in their major and minor subjects in college; No failure marks in major subjects, and no failure due to absences for both major and minor subjects. Senior High School Lessons. This pertains to the different lessons and subjects undertaken in the senior high school program under specific strands. Contributing Factors. This includes the factors that affected the placement of the deviate students in senior high school strands and the factors that affected their course preference in college; the reasons of the deviate students for deviating from their strands.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY The study intends to elaborate the importance of the senior high school program, especially on the deviate students. Hence, it should have a well-arranged and well-managed system that helps the students decide and prepare for the life ahead of them. Moreover, the students of the new curriculum may possibly still have plenty of career options. This study will therefore be beneficial to: The students of the new curriculum, so that they may be able to discern well the strands and tracks that they aim to enroll in, and the courses in college and future jobs they opt for.

The Department of Education, that there would be betterment in terms of preparing the students for placement and entrance exams, making better curricula and training teachers better for the preparation of the students in college, and having the facilities for the students to learn, for the Philippines to have an effective and globalized educational institution. The faculty and administration staff among the different high schools and colleges in the country, that they may provide better placement systems, training, facilities, and preparation.

SCOPE AND DELIMITATION The study is limited to the pioneering batch of senior high school students who have enrolled in Xavier University – Ateneo de Cagayan for college. However, it is not limited to students of Xavier University Senior High School only, and thus, graduates from other Senior High School from the school year 2016 – 2017 are considered, for as long as these students enrolled in college at Xavier University. Moreover, the study includes all strands of the Senior High School program—ABM, GAS, HUMSS, STEM, and TECVOC. It also entails all college courses offered in Xavier University from the Colleges of Agriculture, Arts and Sciences, Engineering, Information and Technology, and School of Education, and School of Business and Management.

CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter presents the studies and literature that are related and relevant to the topic presented in the study. This includes topics on the K-12 curriculum, the Senior High School program, factors behind course preferences and the college admissions in Xavier University in 2018.

THE K-12 PROGRAM In 2010, then-President of the Philippines Benigno Aquino III disclosed his platform to reform the Philippine educational system, saying that those who can afford fourteen years of education are those who are succeeding in life, in comparison to those public school students who cannot afford it. The Philippine educational system has always been a six-year elementary and four-year high school education, having a total of only ten years of basic education (Crisol & Alamillo, 2014). Thus, he urged for the implementation of the K-12 system to give chance to the students from public schools to have at least 12 years of education that would give everyone equal chances of success (Senate of the Philippines, 2010). With this system, Grade 12 graduates would be able to apply for jobs even without having a college degree.

Since 2012, the K-12 system became a part of the curriculum in the schools and universities in the Philippines. Being one of the few remaining countries that has only started the K-12 system, many of the students and teachers alike have had difficulty in adjusting to the subjects, load, and additional year levels. The K-12 system aims to enhance the skills and competency of the students, given the additional year levels of education, and to prepare the products of the system to further studies and employment. The “K” stands for Kindergarten, and the “12” stands for the

next twelve years of education, consisting of elementary, junior high school, and finally, senior high school (Bigcas,

2016). After the 12 years of basic education, the students will be able to proceed to look for employment, or they may also opt to advance their learnings and proceed to the college level of education.

THE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAM The senior high school program is the additional two years in high school, wherein the students are placed according to tracks and strands. The program serves as an “entry point” for college, since most students from the Philippines would opt for the academic track that will enhance their education and prepare them for college courses. In one study, half of the students chose the academic track and only 3% chose the technicalvocational track (Sarmiento & Orale, 2016). According to the Department of Education’s enrolment data in 2016, 60.6% of the senior high school students in the Philippines chose the academic track, in comparison to the 39% who chose the technical-vocation track. In addition, the senior high school curriculum enables the students to choose well and ahead what they want to do in life, whether or not they want to proceed to college or find work immediately after. The K-12 system was duly implemented to increase the employment rates in the Philippines, since one of the reasons for unemployment rate in the country is job mismatch. Moreover, the Department of Education has mandated that only senior high school graduates will be admitted to college. As aforementioned, the senior high school curriculum has prepared specializations or tracks that the students will be able to choose from. According to Abarro (2016), the tracks offered are the Academic track, which includes four strands: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) strand, Accountancy, Business and Management (ABM) strand, Humanities and Social Sciences

(HUMSS) strand, and the General Academic (GAS) strand. Another track is the TechnicalVocational (TECHVOC) track, wherein

the students can choose any TESDA-accredited curriculums, including automotive, electronics, electrical, mechanical, as well as non-TESDA vocational programs. The strands under TECHVOC include Home Economics (HE), Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Agri-Fishery (AF), and Industrial Arts (IA). The Sports track will enable the students to prepare for sports-related professions, and the Design and Arts track will prepare the students for professions and employment involving the arts. However, senior high school should be beneficial to the students in the Philippines, most especially to the batches to come in the next ten years. The reason behind this is first of all, education and learning is never ending, and its sole purpose is to be able to gain knowledge and learn. Secondly, beyond that, sufficient, and even more education, leads to opportunity and employment (Bacarra, 2016). With the Philippines being a country imposed on poverty, education becomes a great means of finding job opportunities and success in life. Furthermore, the previous curriculum of only 10 years of education was weak in a sense that the Philippines was never that globally competent. The global education standard is, in fact, 12 years. When Filipinos from the past 10-year curriculum continue their studies abroad, they will be asked to undergo senior high school instead of proceeding to college. As aforementioned, the graduates of the K-12 system are allowed to seek for employment immediately, or proceed to college, since, again, only Grade 12 graduates are allowed to advance to college. But regardless of its benefits, there are many complications with regard to the students being unable to choose the strands and course preference. Prior to the full implementation of the senior high school program, teachers are supposedly trained to give sufficient learnings to their senior high school students. Schools should have already prepared

their curriculum and hired their teachers that would qualify to train students in the specific tracks and strands. The problem

is that schools have insufficient materials, manuals, equipment, and facilities to implement all the tracks and strands mandated in the senior high school program, and teachers have not been thoroughly trained for the subjects they ought to teach. Additionally, there have been difficulty in hiring teachers that would be able to teach, as well as there is a lack of budget to pay the salaries of newly hired teachers and teachers who are given more load (Abulencia, 2015). Regarding the choice or placement of tracks and strands of the students, these play an important role throughout their journey in senior high school. According to Abarro (2016), the tracks that are chosen by the students are aligned with their career choices for the future. The career choice of the students should already be pondered on ahead of time in order for them to decide what track and strand, and course to take in senior high and in college, if ever they opt to proceed. Moreover, the senior high curriculum was designed to allow the students to develop their competencies and skills alongside their interests (Calderon, 2014). The career paths in the K-12 program began in junior high school, wherein core learning areas and livelihood courses are presented to the students. In grades 9 and 10, the students’ learnings will be based off their preferences, so that prior to their enrolment in senior high school, they will already be able to identify their track and strand choices (Sarmiento & Orale, 2016). The academic track in senior high school proceeds to aligned courses in college, aside from the General Academic Strand (GAS), which is designed to give broad major subjects for students who have not yet decided their career paths at all. However, other students who have decided their tracks and strands in senior high school may also lead to choosing a different career path and course preference once they reach college. Others may also have been enrolled in their particular strands and tracks due to the

availability and unavailability of the offerings in their schools. Others are unable to enroll in the strands of their choice due to examinations and

assessments that hinder them to do so. In a study by Magno & Piosang (2016), it was mentioned that the students need to have indicators including aptitude, interest, and cognitive capability that will match and determine the tracks that are appropriate for them. Hence, if the students do not pass the assessments on the aforementioned indicators, then they will not be able to take the track they are interested in. In some schools in the Philippines, entrance exams were given to the enrollees of the senior high school program, and each strand has a corresponding score that needs to be reached in order to be enrolled in the desired strand. Thus, some students were unable to take the strands they decided to go into.

FACTORS BEHIND COURSE PREFERENCES Although indefinitely, the senior high school strands should be able to already “choose” the course and career path of the students when they reach college and apply for jobs. Moreover, students tend to choose a course for college solely based on a variety of factors. A study conducted by Sabir, et al. (2013) showed that students from Engineering and Business courses chose their particular courses mainly out of personal interest and loyalty to the university of choice.

Another study by Penedilla & Rosaldo (2017) on the senior high school students in Tacloban City, Philippines, showed that the students’ career choices do not significantly match with their strands. Hence, they were enrolled in strands that are insufficient in training them for their chosen career paths. It was also discovered as well that the students’ course preference depended on the means available for them to study the course, their personal choice, and their parents’ choice. The course offerings of the university they opt to be enrolled in is also a factor that affects their course choice for

college, especially since most of the students would rather enroll in familiar environments with familiar sets of ...