Pedro Guevara Memorial National High School

Santa Cruz, Laguna

AN ACTION
RESEARCH FOR
S.Y. 2005-2006

Enhancing Students Performance in

Research Through the Use of
Science Investigatory Project

Prepared by:

JUVY L. TOBIAS
 Republic of the Philippines
DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION
Region IV-A
CALABARZON
Division of Laguna
Pedro Guevara Memorial
National High School
Santa Cruz, Laguna

August 1, 2005
DR. LILIA T. REYES
Schools Division Superintendent
Division of Laguna
Santa Cruz, Laguna

Dear Madam:

The undersigned would like to ask your permission to allow her to conduct
an action research on “Enhancing Students Performance in Research Through
the Use of Science Investigatory Project.” The course of action if schedule will
start on July 11, 2005 after the pretest and is expected to finish on September
11, 2005.

Hoping for your prompt and favorable response on this matter.

Thank you very much. God Bless!

Respectfully Yours,

JUVY L. TOBIAS

Noted:

ERLINDA R. ARIVE
ESI - Science

Approved:
 Republic of the Philippines
DEPARTMENT OF
EDUCATION
Region IV - A
CALABARZON
Division of Laguna
Pedro Guevara Memorial
National High School
Santa Cruz, Laguna
CIELO S. BERNARDINO
Asst. Schools Division Superintendent - OIC

AN ACTION RESEARCH FOR

S.Y. 2005-2006

Area : Enhancing Students Performance in Research Through the Use

of Science Investigatory Project

Problem : What is the effect of using the science investigatory project on the
performance of the students in Research?

I. Problem Situation

The advent of new and up-to-date curriculum has brought into focus

the need to match the new science programs with the appropriate teaching

method.

As applied to classroom teaching, method has something to do with

the way a teacher communicates the subject to the students. The strategy

should include regular steps to guide the mental processes of the learners in

mastering the subject being presented to them.

 The Science Investigatory Project (SIP) is an undertaking for science

students which need an application of certain scientific principles and ideas.

One of its aims is to develop one’s capacity in order to actively and

effectively participate in the solution of problems being faced by the

community through the application of rational and creative thinking process in

search for the solution of the problem.

For four years of teaching Research I in Pedro Guevara Memorial

National High School, the researcher observed that the students are not

aware of the important contribution of the research to man’s life. They tend

to ignore it as a subject, which is manifested by their negative attitude

towards it and low performance in the Research subject. Students belonging

to the Special Science Classes are expected to acquire high performance

knowing the fact that the Special Science Curriculum adopts technology

enriched science curriculum. It is developed around the major conceptual

schemes, skills and values that are relevant to the needs of the society.

Hence, the assumption is, the students will gain enough knowledge and skills

through their experiences which are essential in solving a particular problem.

It is on this premise that the study was conducted, to use the Science

Investigatory Project as a means to enhance students’ performance in

Research.
II. Preliminary Investigation

The performance of the students in Research for the last five (5) years

showed that the students in Pedro Guevara Memorial National High School

seemed to neglect their Research I subject as evident by their grades.

On the average, the computed grades of the 138 third year students

from three (3) Special Science classes last school year fall within the range

of 84 to 88. Some of them got even lower than 84 and very few obtained 90

and above indicating their low performance in this subject. Considering that

the students from the Special Science Curriculum are already exposed to

various local and national science fair and exhibits which may trigger their

interest to conduct valuable and relevant science investigation still the

students fail to maximize their potentials as researchers.

These findings prompted the researcher to pursue an investigation of

this nature with the hope that the exiting problem relevant to the teaching of

Research will be remedied at once. Furthermore, the study intends to

motivate the students to experience the joy and apply their skills in doing

fruitful science investigation.

III. Statement of the Specific Problems

This action research intends to determine the effect of using the

science investigatory project on the performance of the students in research.

Specifically, it sought answers to the following subproblem:

 1. What is the level of performance of the students in Research I using the

pretest and posttest?

2. Is there a significant difference in the level of performance of the students

in Research I based on the results of the pretest and posttest?

3. Is the use of science investigatory project affect the performance of the

students in Research based on the students mean gain performance?

IV. Intervention Plans

1. The results of the students’ performance in the pretest will be presented

in tabular form.

2. After two (2) months, the scores of the students in the posttest will be

also shown using another table for clearer presentation.

3. The data to be collected will be compared for the purpose of giving

remedial measures.

4. The effect of using the science investigatory project will be determined

through the mean gain performance of the students in Research I.

V. Monitoring Plans

1. The pretest was conducted before teaching the mechanics of making

science investigatory project.

2. The students took the posttest after a period of two (2) months. (July 11,

2005 to September 11, 2005).

 3. The scores of the students in the pretest and posttest were gathered.

4. The mean gain performance of the students was determined through the

application of the mean gain ratio.

VI. Statistical Data

The data collected were treated using the appropriate statistical tools

given below:

For subproblem 1, the level of performance of the students in the

pretest and post test was described by using the frequency distribution and

percentage statistics.

For subproblem 2, the difference in the level of performance of the

students in Research I was determined by using the t-test for dependent

sample means.

For subproblem 3, the effect of using the science investigatory project

was analyzed through the application of the mean gain ratio.

VII. Results and Discussions

1. The Level of Performance of the Students in the Pretest and Posttest

1.1 Pretest

Table 1 shows the distribution of the third year students in terms of

their performance in the pretest

 Table 1
Frequency and Percentage Distribution of the Level of
Performance of the Students in the Pretest

Level of Performance Frequency Percentage

Above Average 19 13.77

(31-40)
Average 104 75.36
(21-30)
Below Average 13 9.42
(11-20)
Needs Improvement 2 1.45
(1-10)

Total 138

Mean 15.01

It can be gleaned in the table that there were 19 or 13.77 percent

above average students; 104 or 75.36 percent average; 13 or 9.42

percent below average and 2 or 1.45 percent of them needs improvement

along the area of research.

The data discussed above only indicate that the students

considered in the study generally, have average performance in

Research based on the results of the pretest.

The findings imply that there is a need for an enhancement in the

performance of the students in Research.

1.1 Pretest

Table 2
Frequency and Percentage Distribution of the Level of
Performance of the Students in the Posttest

Level of Performance Frequency Percentage

Above Average 96 69.57

(31-40)
Average 42 30.43
(21-30)
Below Average 0 0.00
(11-20)
Needs Improvement 0 0.00
(1-10)

Total 138

Mean 33.31

Table 2 shows the frequency and percentage distribution of the

level of performance of the students in the posttest.

It is important to note that there were 96 or 69.57 percent students

who belong to the above average category and 42 or 30.43 percent were

average in performance in their posttest.

The results show that there is a great improvement on the

performance of the students as evident by the higher percentage of the

students who performed in the above average level. This finding can be

attributed to the knowledge and skills they learned in studying Research I.

2. Difference in the Level of Performance of the Students in the Pretest and
Posttest

Table 3
T-value Computed Based on the Results of the
Pretest and Posttest

Pretest Posttest Mean Computed *Critical

mean Mean Difference Df t-value t-value Interpretation

15.01 33.31 18.30 137 41.60 1.98 Significant

* p ∠ 0.05

Table 3 shows the t-value computed based from the data obtained

in the pretest and posttest.

It can be seen in the table that the t-value of 41.60 exceeded the

critical value of 1.98 at 5 percent level of significance using degrees of

freedom equal to 137.

The findings denote a significant difference in the performance of

the students in the pretest and posttest. The results of the present

investigation only indicate the effectiveness of the use of science

investigatory project in teaching the subject Research I.

 3. Mean Gain Performance of the Students

Table 4
Mean Test Scores and the Gain Ratio of the
Target Group

Pretest (N=138) Posttest (N=138) Gain Ratio

15.01 33.31 59.50%

Table 4 shows the mean test scores and the gain ratio of the target

group.

The results indicated that the mean pretest score of X = 15.01

significantly lower than the posttest mean score of X = 33.31. This is

supported by the computed mean gain ratio of 59.50 percent revealing

significant gain in the performance of the students in Research I. This

proved the contention that the use of science investigatory project affects

the performance of the students in a positive way.

VIII. Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations

Findings

1. Based on the results of the pretest, there were 19 or 13.77 percent

students who belong to the above average category while in the posttest,

96 or 69.57 percent students were found to have above average level of

performance.
2. The computed t-value of 41.60 was greater than the critical value of 1.98

indicating a significant difference in the performance of the students

included in the study.

3. The mean gain ratio of 59.50% reveals significant increase in the level of

performance of the students in Research I which denotes the effect of the

use of science investigatory project in teaching Research

Conclusions

The data gathered led to the formulation of the following conclusions:

1. The third year students included in the study have an average level of

performance in the pretest and above average performance in posttest.

2. There is a significant difference in the level of performance of the

students in the pretest and posttest.

3. The use of science investigatory project significantly affects the

performance of the students in Research I.

Recommendations

Based on the conclusions made, the researcher offered the following

recommendations:

1. In as much as the test in the present study is considered as an effective

evaluation tool, its reliability and validity should be emphasized for the

purpose of providing accurate results.

2. Since it was found out that the use of science investigatory project is

effective in enhancing the level of performance of the students in

Research, it is suggested the Research teachers should continue

upgrade their knowledge and skills in teaching the said subject by

attending seminars-workshop relevant to research, having linkages with

other educational institutions regarding the current innovations in the field

of research, pursuing higher level of education and having regular

evaluation of their performance in teaching research.

3. A program should be developed to support the needs of the students and

teachers in the conduct of science investigatory project. The program

should utilize variety of activities that will promote the involvement of all

the students.

The study also recommends the use of students’ evaluation to

identify the indicators that contribute most to student gains.

 Pretest in Research I

DIRECTION:
Multiple choice. Write the letter of the correct answer.

1. In writing the research proposal, the tense of the verb should be

a. past tense c. present perfect tense
b. future tense d. future perfect tense

2. The relevance of the study being investigated to the economy of the Philippines is
written in the ________________ of the introduction.
a. first paragraph c. third paragraph
b. second paragraph d. fourth paragraph

3. The conceptual literature gives the

a. findings c. recommendation
b. conclusions d. theories, principles and concepts

4. The main objective of the study are based on

a. subproblem c. title of the study
b. introduction d. methodology

5. The literature which provides the results of the investigation is the

a. Conceptual Literature c. Related Literature
b. Research Literature d. Related Studies

6. The steps necessary to conduct the investigation are given in the

a. review of literature c. methodology
b. objectives d. introduction

7. It is an example of periodical
a. book c. internet sources
b. theses d. journals

8. Symbol for alternative hypothesis

a. Ha c. H
b. Ho d. O

9. An intelligent guess which is very near to the correct answer is called

a. hypothesis c. recommendation
b. conclusion d. objectives

10. Forms of alternative hypothesis

a. nondirectional c. negative directional
b. positive directional d. all of the above
11. This characteristic of the word research means there should be no bias or partiality
in the treatment of the results.
a. systematic c. critical
b. objectivity d. rationality

12. The operational form of the hypothesis is stated in

a. null form c. equality
b. affirmative form d. negative form

13. It is a systematic, controlled, empirical and critical investigation of the observed

phenomena
a. science c. problem
b. scientific method d. research

14. A method of manipulating conditions for the purpose of studying the effects of
treatments to members of a sample.
a. historical method c. experimental method
b. descriptive method d. ex-post facto research

15. This is the part of the research proposal which presents the problem of the study.
a. methodology c. introduction
b. review of related literature d. objectives

16. The scope and delimitation of the study covers the

a. purpose c. period of the study
b. locale of the study d. all of the above

17. It refers to the process of organizing data into logical, sequential and meaningful
categories.
a. presentation c. interpretation
b. tabulation d. comparison

18. These are primary sources of information except,

a. school directives c. personal materials
b. court decisions d. encyclopedias

19. This is an experimental design which involves a single treatment with tow or more
levels.
a. parallel-group design c. counter-balanced design
b. single-group design d. pretest-posttest design

20. An experimental design which involves an exchange of two or more treatments

taken by the subjects during the experiment is
a. parallel-group c. single group
b. counter-balance d. pretest-posttest
21. Which of the following is quasi-experimental design where there is no
randomization of the subjects?
a. single group c. parallel-group
b. pretest-posttest d. counter-balanced group

22. The degree to which the responses are consistent is

a. reliability c. validity
b. usability d. objectivity

23. The other term for validity is

a. practicability c. objectivity
b. veracity d. reliability

24. To paraphrase is a behavioral term in

a. knowledge c. synthesis
b. analysis d. comprehension

25. It is a characteristic that has two or more mutually exclusive values.

a. variable c. variate
b. criterion d. proportion

26. The title of the study contains the following except

a. variables c. population
b. relationship among variables d. hypothesis

27. It refers to an important fact which is presumed to be true but not actually verified.
a. limitation c. scope
b. hypothesis d. assumption

28. These refer to other terms for conceptual definition except

a. constitutive c. academic meaning
b. functional definition d. universal meaning

29. The non-directional hypothesis

a. states the direction c. means no existence
b. is a one-tailed test d. is the operational statement

30. It is the part of the research which define where and when the study was
conducted and who the subjects were.
a. assumption c. scope
b. hypothesis d. limitation

31. Example of manipulable variable

a. sex c. age
b. mental ability d. method
32. The part of the book which indicates where the information can be found.
a. appendix c. introduction
b. bibliography d. index

33. It refers to the small group being observed in an experiment

a. sample c. sampling
b. population d. all members of the population

34. A process of selecting a sample such that each member of the population has an
equal chance of being included in the sample.
a. use of table of random number c. quota sampling
b. random sampling d. convenience sampling

35. Al of these are types of non-random sampling except

a. purposive c. quota
b. convenience d. lottery sampling

36. It refers to a test for the observed difference between two sample means.
a. Z-test c. chi-square test
b. t-test d. analysis of variance

37. It is a test which determines the main and simultaneous effects of two or more
independent factors on a criterion variable.
a. one-way ANOVA c. three-way ANOVA
b. two-way ANOVA d. none of the above

38. If the computed value of any inferential statistics is greater than the critical value,
the decision is to
a. reject Ho c. reject Ha
b. accept Ho d. none of the above

39. It is used to determine the relationship between two variables that are usually of
the interval type of data.
a. pearson r c. t-test
b. chi-square test d. ANOVA

40. A pearson r computed of .40 indicates

a. high correlation c. moderate correlation
b. low correlation d. negligible correlation