A PHENOMENOLOGICAL INQUIRY ON THE LIVED

EXPERIENCES ON THE CHALLENGES AND

ADAPTABILITY OF PARENTS, STUDENTS AND
TEACHERS IN THE NEW LEARNING MODALITY

PSYCHOLOGY AND EDUCATION: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL

2023
Volume: 9
Pages: 450-461
Document ID: 2023PEMJ762
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7997554
Manuscript Accepted: 2023-2-6
Psych Educ, 2023, 9: 450-461, Document ID:2023 PEMJ762, doi:10.5281/zenodo.7997554, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article

A Phenomenological Inquiry on the Lived Experiences on the Challenges and

Adaptability of Parents, Students and Teachers in the New Learning Modality
Alvin D. Divina*
For affiliations and correspondence, see the last page.
Abstract
The study entitled A Phenomenological Inquiry on the Lived Experiences on the Challenges and Adaptability of
Parents, Students and Teachers on the New Learning Modality was undertaken in Sta Cruz Elementary School
Division of Antipolo Rizal during the School Year 2021-2022. The study is qualitative in nature involving nine
(9) participants with three (3) students and their parents under the instruction of three (3) grade six teachers
selected through purposive sampling technique. Data were collected using interview guide questions as the main
instrument used in the study. An in-depth interview was conducted among the chosen participants. Significant
statements of the participants were transcribed, categorized and thematically analyzed following Creswell’s
qualitative data analysis framework. Results were confirmed by the participants themselves to ensure reliability
and accuracy in transcriptions. Permission from the school administration was obtained and informed consent
was secured prior to data collection. The themes emerged from the study were Modular Distance Learning
(MDL) is an alternative mode for lesson delivery, preference for face-to-face, issues on quality content and
lesson presentation and unclear instructions, concerns on irregular retrieval of modules, lack of commitment
from parents, absence of interaction, teacher’s commitment and dedication to work, time management, self-
motivation and better partnership and collaboration between teachers and parents among others. It is
recommended that parents may be given flexible schedule to retrieve and submit modules taking also into
consideration the school academic calendar as parents have also other tasks to attend to especially those who are
working for their families; the school may try to reformat its implementation of the new learning modality to
guarantee the stakeholders maximum adaptability to MDL; and a presentation of this research either in the
regional, national or international conference and its publication in a reputable indexing journal may be
encouraged.

Keywords: modular distance learning, challenges, adaptability

Introduction television-based, radio-based instruction, blended and

online learning to be able to ensure that all learners
have access to quality basic education for school year
In the first quarter of 2020, the entire world was 2020-21 (DepEd, 2020).
caught unprepared in combatting the new coronavirus
which was later declared by the World Health Blended Learning has become prominent in the
Organization (WHO) as pandemic. The said Philippines in the onset of COVID-19 pandemic.
declaration has brought a lot distresses physically, However, even before the crisis arose in the
socially and mentally speaking. It has triggered the Philippines, blended learning already exists in our
temporary closure of institutions vital to humans such country way back in 2007. It offered enhancement and
as banks, offices, schools to name a few as well as different activities to students.
industries and commerce which has caused to
employees to work from home and the worst part was Moreover, the implementation of Modular Distance
to resign and be retrenched from companies that they Learning as an urgent response to ensure continuity of
have been working with for long. education in this time of the pandemic. The
Philippines is in the process of adapting to the new
One of the most important decisions to be made in this normal form of education at present, and continuous
time of pandemic is how to continuously access innovations of educators and active involvement of
education in remote classes. That is why, the other stakeholders are the driving force for its
Department of Education (DepEd) has redesigned its success. The main challenges that emerged were lack
educational programs from face-to-face teaching into of school funding in the production and delivery of
modular distance learning. DepEd provided Self- modules; students struggle with self-studying and
Learning Modules (SLMs) for school year 2020-2021 parents' lack of knowledge to academically guide their
with alternative learning delivery modalities to be child/children. It was able to determine the prevailing
offered for various types of learners across the challenges of the participants in terms of resources,
Philippines. It integrated SLMs with the alternative preparedness and communication (Dangle &
learning delivery modalities such as modular, Sumaoang, 2020).

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Research Article

In the case of the City Schools Division Office in Cruz Elementary School.
Antipolo City, parents and their children are greatly
challenged by the modular distance learning modality Research Questions
as evidenced by their inability to management their
time to study and to do household chores and in This research generally aimed to conduct a
keeping their children to be motivated in answering phenomenological study among parents, students and
modules given by the school. While, students have teachers of Sta. Cruz Elementary School on the
mostly greatly dependent on their parents, guardians challenges and their adaptability in the new learning
and/or siblings in doing their coursework. Aside from modality. Specifically, it sought to answer the
this, the schedule of return of modules by the parents following questions:
to teachers have untimely and at times late. While
teachers have said that they have experienced 1. What are the views and experiences of the
difficulty in going and in retrieving the modules participants on the challenges of the new learning
especially in remote areas and are unsure if learning modality?
takes place, this is without undermining the efforts of 1.1. Parents;
the parents, guardians and/or siblings, because of a 1.2. Students; and
lesser chance of supervising their academic progress. 1.3. Teachers
Parents, students and teachers of Sta Cruz Elementary 2. How do the following participants of Sta. Cruz
School are no exception in experiencing the same Elementary School describe their adaptability in the
things. Hence, the researcher believed that the above- new learning modality?
stated studies on the new learning modality can bring 2.1 Parents;
out and explore more of the lived experiences of 2.2 Students; and
parents, teachers and students alike in Sta Cruz 2.3 Teachers
Elementary School. The studies pointed out some
challenges encountered by the units of study for the
full implementation of the aforesaid modalities from
Literature Review
school facilities and preparedness up to students’ and
parents’ readiness to attain educational success.
Nevertheless, there is no result nor enumeration on Challenges in New Learning Modality
how to properly deal with and adapt to the new
learning modality. Adaptability is perceived to be The Kalinga State University started the application of
very important by the researcher in the delivery of a blended and/or flexible learning approach combining
instruction in the new normal because no matter how synchronous and asynchronous learning modality in
prepared the academic institutions and their the second semester of school year 2019-2020. The
stakeholders are in terms of curriculum and facilities, study employed mixed databases (quantitative and
they will not be able to address the challenges met if qualitative) and found out that there were
everyone has the inability to adapt to the new normal. technological lapses such as the unavailability of
Moreover, no single researcher mentioned has ever educational devices, unreliable internet connectivity
used a phenomenological approach in the study of hindering the success and productive implementation
blended learning modality. of blended learning adaptability. Also, it revealed that
students had a positive attitude and showed a moderate
These are the gaps that the researcher wishes to level of readiness to implement blended learning.
resolve, this time using qualitative data analysis in However, there is a negative correlation between the
relation to the lived experiences of parents, students students’ attitude and students’ readiness towards
and teachers of Sta Cruz Elementary School. The blended learning environment (Abbacan-Tuguic,
researcher theorized that participants find the new 2021).
learning modality to be physically and mentally
stressful but may also be an avenue to find patterns Although, online distance learning modality (ODLM)
which may be helpful in addressing academic needs in has become increasingly available to provide new
the implementation of the new learning modality. pathways of learning experiences during emergency
remote education, a study proved that majority of the
Hence, the researcher believes that these observable students did not perceive motivation, learning
incidents in the school has triggered his curiosity in resources, support system and digital self-efficacy as
conducting a phenomenological study on the lived challenges. Despite these satisfactory results, there
experiences of parents, teachers and students of Sta are still students who encounter challenges such as

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Research Article

lack of motivation, unstable internet connection, and instruction (Smith and Hill, 2019) and that an
voluminous tasks (Manalo et al, 2022). appropriate governance and strategic leadership within
the school community should be instituted
Experiences in the Learning Approach (Namyssova et al., 2019). Therefore, schools are
bound to create a more equitable school setting for all
Despite the fact that blended learning may be a great students coming from various backgrounds to prepare
style, students have experienced access resources, lack them for schooling.
of contact, quality instruction, help and support system
and self-discipline to be the primary problems in Moreover, the Department of Education (DepEd)
studying under the said approach. In addition, ensures the continuity of learning amidst COVID-19
educational institutions have said that blended learning pandemic through Modular Distance Learning (MDL).
may help them save money, time and space. However, Learners use Self-Learning Modules (SLM) based on
technology, time, cost and the students’ experience are the Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELCS)
some of the challenges that they need to overcome provided by the DepEd. Distance Learning refers to a
(Cooke, 2021). On the other hand, students who are learning delivery modality, where learning takes place
technologically literate may benefit much from between the teacher and the learners who are
blended learning while it may be an academic geographically remote from each other during
disadvantage for the greater majority of them instruction. In our country, the Modular Distance
especially those living in far flung areas. (BenQ, Learning is the most popular type of Distance
2021). Learning. This learning modality is currently used by
all public schools because according to a survey
However, it was asserted in a certain study that conducted by DepEd, 8.8 million parents preferred
teachers are well-oriented, prepared by having enough Modular Distance Learning. Learning through printed
trainings and skills which are requisites in the effective modules emerged as the most preferred distance
and efficient performance of their functions using learning method of parents with children who are
modular distance learning education in times of enrolled this academic year.
pandemic. Meanwhile, not all parents and/or
guardians have the capability to support their children
in the new learning modality because a lot of them are Methodology
hindered by their powerlessness of facilitating and
explaining the modules provided for their children
(Guiamalon, Alon & Camsa, 2021). The study applied the descriptive phenomenological
approach which aimed to unfold and understand the
Adaptability in the Learning Approach most essential meaning of the phenomenon of interest
from those directly involved in the said phenomenon
The educational sector has felt the tremendous and due to little knowledge about it (Love et al., 2020).
continuous effect of the pandemic making all One is distinguished from the other in the sense that,
educational institutions provide the best methods the interpretative phenomenological analysis is not
possible so as not to compromise the education of the formally theory-based nor concept-based to generate
students and the teachers’ teaching and its quality general observations.
(Verde & Valerio, 2021).
The researcher believed that using the descriptive
Studies mentioned that online learning provides better phenomenological research method is more
learning outcomes compared to face-to-face learning appropriate than the other one because he needs to
(Choe et al., 2019). It promotes independence and describe only the lived experiences of the participants
autonomy allowing the learners to cultivate self- in the new learning modality and not to interpret their
reliance, decision-making and self-regulation in descriptions at all.
accomplishing their tasks. It was also found out that it
engages students to capitalize on their learning Participants
experiences and to take the full responsibility of their
own learning, hence, achieving favorable learning The phenomenological study was participated in by
outcomes (Dougherty & Schantz, 2020) and improving nine (9) participants selected via purposive sampling
their independent learning skills (Wahyuni, 2018). technique divided into three (3) teachers, three (3)
students and three (3) parents. The teacher-
However, additional teacher training should be participants were all grade 6 teachers while the
conducted before the implementation of blended student-participants were the ones under their

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Research Article

instructions and the parents were parents of the

student-participants. Ethical Considerations

Instruments of the Study The researcher asked consent from all of the three
groups of participants as to their willingness to become
The researcher has designed an appropriate research participants in this phenomenological study
instrument to align with the research goals and
specifically the parental consent of student-
statement of the problem. This would ensure that the respondents who are considered minor at the time the
what and the how questions are used in this
study was conducted. Should they grant consent, they
phenomenological study which may be conducted were interviewed one by one or in groups should they
among the three target groups of participants. The allow. Their answers were treated by the researcher
instrument for this study was a researcher-developed
with the highest degree of confidentiality.
guide questions addressing the themes identified in
this research using Structured Interview Sheet which
contained series of questions that will elicit the Results and Discussion
participants views, experiences and adaptability in the
new learning modality. Interview protocols will be
prepared to serve as guide in conducting the research. Views and Experiences of Teachers, Parents and
Interviews will be conducted among parents, students Students with Modular Distance Learning
and teachers. There was a separate interview sheet for
each group of participants. On their Personal Views and Experiences of What
Modular Distance Learning Is
Procedure
1.1. Personal Views
The researcher, after getting approval from the pre-oral
examining panel, started the study with a formal
request to conduct research from the City Schools
Division of Antipolo down to the principal of Sta.
Cruz Elementary School. After the authority was
granted, the researcher administered the interview
questions among his chosen participants in order to
extract the necessary information material to this
phenomenological study. Data collection method was
through the use of a structured interview sheet which
has gone through the validity test by experts and pilot
tested by non-participants of the study. The data
collection period ran for two (2) months for all
participants composed of three (3) participants who are
teachers and parents with students as their central
reference. It was planned to conduct one interview for
each participant. However, if follow up interview
became necessary, then the researcher would conduct a
one-on-one interview again until he gets the desired
output of this research.

After completing the required data collection period,

the researcher consulted his research adviser for some
advice before he did the qualitative data thematic
analysis based on Creswell’s data analytical
framework. The data transcribed were confirmed by
the researcher from his teacher-participants as to the
reliability and consistency in transcriptions. Finally,
the results of this study were presented before the
members of the Oral Examination Committee.

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2.2. Experiences

On their View on the Academic Progress of

Students using MDL

2.1. Views

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3.1. Experiences

On their Views and Experiences on

Continued Implementation of MDL

3.1. Views

On their Views and Experiences on the Challenges

Encountered with the Modules Itself

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4.1.1. Views

4.2.1. Views

4.2.1.Experiences

4.1.2 .Experiences

On their Views and Experiences on the Challenges

Encountered by the Teachers and Parents with the
Students
On their Views and Experiences on the Challenges
Encountered with the Distribution and Retrieval of
Modules

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4.3.2 Experiences

4.3.1. Views

On the Views and Experiences on the Challenges

Encountered by the Teachers and Students with the
Parents

4.4.1. Views

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4.5.1. Views

4.4.2. Experiences

4.5.2. Experiences

On the Views and Experiences on the Challenges

Encountered by Parents and Students with the
Teachers

Views and Experiences on How the Participants

Adapt to Modular Distance Learning

On their Views and Experiences on How they

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Adapt with MDL as Mode of Learning 6. On their Rating on the Implementation of MDL in
Sta. Cruz Elementary School
5.1. Views

On their Suggestions to Improve the Implementation

of MDL

5.2. Experience 7.1. Views

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