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Project LEAP (Leading and Engaging Activities for Parents) gateway for
learners improved competencies in Araling Panlipunan

Article in International Journal of Research Studies in Education · June 2021

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1. Introduction

History is really important in shaping worldwide values in the early years of life and teach them what is
right to do for our young people. Thus, teaching Araling Panlipunan should be a perfect example of inspiring
learners into maintaining a dependable and meaningful history including themselves and the nation. Much as
Grade 5 learners of Ananias Laico Memorial Elementary School want to embrace their love for Araling
Panlipunan and in other subject areas, they were left with no choice but only to utilize the Self Learning Modules
(SLMs) provided by the Department of Education since the school is under Modular Distance Learning. This is a
modality where there is limited even no face- to face contact with their Araling Panlipunan teacher following the
IATF rules and regulations. Modular Distance Learning is the most commonly used modality, especially in
public schools. It was a shift from a traditional method to home-based learning. True with this, parents or
guardians are expected to guide and assist their children in using the SLMs. Since education is no longer held
in schools, parents served as the partners of teachers in education. Parents can be learning tutors to their children,
and have strict rules of doing the Learning Tasks written in the Weekly Home Learning Plan (WHLP)to avoid
cramming or delays in the submission of Answer Sheets in school. Although modules are created for self or
independent study that develop a sense of responsibility with little or less help from other people, they learned
from their motivation and grow independently. The WHLP is created by teachers to serve as learner’s guide in
answering their modules. It was modified and the schedule for every subject area was clearly stated in it.
Teachers are thinking about how learners can enjoy reading their modules and do the learning tasks in a way that
they won’t feel bored, so everyday learners are to focus only on 2 subjects per day after their daily morning
exercise and breakfast. The same is true in the afternoon where there is time provided to them to have time for
their family. These are what distance learning has to offer for the learners. Distance Learning refers to a
learning modality where learning takes place between teacher and learners in a geographically remote area.
Teachers have the responsibility of monitoring the progress of the learners. They may resort to having Virtual
Kumustahan, Group Chat for those who have strong internet connections, phone call and sending text messages
for those learners who do not have social media account and internet connectivity. Although in Modular Distance
learning, learners are not required to buy gadgets and force their parents to have one, some parents made way to
have even basic cellphones to be used in communicating with the teachers. The disadvantages include a
challenge in the self-discipline of learners in using SLMs, their honesty was tested for there was key to
corrections at the latter portion of modules and the limited time or no time at all of the parents in assisting their
children while studying at home. As cited in (https://helplineph.com/opinion/disadvantages-of-modular-learning/)
when in Modular Distance learning, not all learners do their modules wholeheartedly, most learners do it for
formality. Parents also spoil their children and do the deeds of answering instead of learners and some who can
afford to hire tutors to teach their children. And because of modern technology, learners can easily ask their
classmates and copy the answers gathered instead of them thinking of the correct answers. Another is that
learners kept on saying they did not understand the modules were in fact when in school they even have
difficulty understanding the lesson during face-to-face instruction. It is more difficult when even parents cannot
understand the modules. The key purpose of this research is to find out the challenges encountered by parents
and learners direct from their tongue in studying Araling Panlipunan, its effects on the competencies of the
learners. Furthermore, this helped to know which engagement activities are best suited for parents to improve
the learning competency of learners and find out the difference between learners who are simply using modules
in learning the subject against those who have internet access. According to D. Gross (2020) Parent engagement
in early learning has historically been defined quite broadly and it is unclear whether those designing,
implementing, evaluating, or participating in parent engagement initiatives conceptualize parent engagement in
the same way. Lack of consensus could contribute to the poor quality of parent-school partnerships and reliance
on parent engagement measures and strategies that lack meaning and utility. This is true because whatever
programs or activities the school and the teachers offer to parents for their children if they won’t accept it
wholeheartedly, it would be just like a waste that was thrown in a basket. In this manner, this research tried to
reach out to parents and for teachers, school and parents together with the learners to have a harmonious learning
environment and relationships.

1.1 Significance of the Study

It was long been declared the importance of parental involvement in the academic progress of children.
Families contribute to the child’s socio-emotional and cognitive development. Findings have demonstrated a
positive association in improving the child’s esteem and their academic performance. Garbacz et al., (2017).
Not all children are privileged to have parents who are always on their time of studying their lessons, but blessed
are those who have supportive parents who stayed beside them especially in answering their modules. The
same is true with those learners who have strong internet connectivity, they have chances to build
communications to their teachers online. The Internet plays a major role in the lives of young people today.
Children and youngsters engage in online activities both inside and outside the classroom (Sefton-Green 2004).
Formally, that is in school, young people use the Internet for instance, when searching for information and when
completing tests. They can do researches to help them in answering their modules, unlike those learners who
were ought to just use the copy of modules, in other words, they have limited resources. This study is significant
to the learners and parents as well because through Project LEAP there is constant communication between the
teacher, parents, and the learners through Virtual Kumustahan, chat messages, phone calls, and sending text
messages. The teacher also benefitted from this because he/she will be updated on the developments of the
learners while studying at home. This is also an advantage to learners who are using modules for teachers used
phone calls and even text messaging to reach them and their parents. Further learnings and guidance were
provided by the teacher to the learners because the teacher can give fact sheets or additional information and
even provide them teacher self-made video lessons. This implies that teachers should know how to utilize their
videos, as well as those of other teachers, to improve their instructional skills as well as the learning of their
students. These initiatives have also urged teacher educators to prepare and use video-recorded instruction either
in classrooms or in field-based practices (Arya & Christ, 2013). Through this, there is an additional source of
information that parents and learners can get from the teacher, and will surely help learners for easy
understanding of the lesson. Because of constant communication, parents are engaged in improving the
competency of their children for they will be provided with additional learning by the teacher through fact sheets
given to them. It will be beneficial to the learners as well as to parents who are deprived of education in their
early years. Hitting two birds in one stone.

The findings of the study based on the collection methods were synthesized and answered and guided by
TOJDE (2004) that tackled about three types of interactions labeled as learner-content interaction,
learner-instructor interaction, and learner-learner interaction. The study focused more on learner-content
interaction and learner-instructor interaction, the relevance of communication between the two as cited by Taylor
(2006) that distance learning is a field of education that focuses on the use of technology in the delivery of
curriculum to students who are not physically on-site to receive their education and supported by (Singh, 2003)
Teaching and learning at a distance can be delivered via full electronic learning otherwise known as single
delivery mode programs (synchronous or asynchronous) or blended delivery mode programs more. Constant
communication of teacher to the parents would contribute to a meaningful teaching-learning situation even
learners are at their homes.

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2. Methodology

This action research was undertaken at Ananias Laico Memorial Elementary School, the researcher’s place
of the station, in the district of Magdalena province of Laguna, from October 2020 to March 2021 the end of the
2nd quarter. The focus of this action research was the improved competencies of Grade 5- Mabini learners in
Araling Panlipunan since the researcher is an Araling Panlipunan teacher. The data on improved competency of
Grade 5- Mabini learners will use the experimental method to show the development of learners those who do
not have access to the internet against those with strong internet connections under Project LEAP and descriptive
qualitative approach. Data were collected from 42 parents falling in the inclusion criteria. Considering the
lockdown problem, the data were collected via Google docs form with open-ended questions related to
COVID-19 and home learning, also used phone calls and text messaging. Data collected were collated at the end
of the research study. Mean, percentage and rank were used to treat the data gathered.

3. Findings and Discussions

3.1 Findings

The findings of the study from the two data collection methods, which are presented, in the methodology
section, were synthesized into four categories, namely challenges encountered by parents and learners in-home
-learning, second is an effect on the learning competency of learners in Araling Panlipunan, third is the best
engaging activities that served as a gateway to parents help improve the learning competency of their children at
home, and the fourth one is the significant difference between learners using modules only as compared to those
with internet connectivity in studying Araling Panlipunan.

3.1.1What difficulties are encountered by students and parents in Modular Distance Learning?

Advantages have been divulged in using Modular Distance Learning Modality, but true with this some
factors remain unsolved and need to be addressed. These problems include the (i) quality of instruction, (ii)lack
of gadgets, (iii)insufficient mobile data, and (iv) the attitudes of students and parents towards modular distance
learning. Each one of these affects the overall learning competency in the subject area which is Araling
Panlipunan. In many ways, each of these issues relates to the others. We will examine each of these issues
separately.

A. Quality of instruction

The first issue is the quality of instruction that is given through distance learning programs. Recent trends in
teachers’ professional development stem from an increased understanding of the importance of the teacher’s role,
which influences the learners, improves their competencies in learning. In addition, teachers are the most
important factor in their students’ achievements (Gerard, Varma, Corliss, & Linn, 2011.) The teacher takes the
responsibility of monitoring the progress of the learners. If possible, they will conduct home visits to check on
each student’s progress and performance.

B. Lack of gadgets

Initial data from the enrollment survey conducted by the Department of Education (DepEd)

Showed a significant number of parents citing the lack of gadgets, insufficient mobile data allowance, and
an unstable internet connection, the three issues as among the primary challenges that they believe may affect the
learning process of their children. More than 6.9 million cited unstable mobile and internet connections, while
over 6.8 million noted a lack of available gadgets and equipment suitable for distance learning. Although gadgets
were not necessary for Modular Distance Learning, learners and parents need to have either one basic phone to
communicate with teachers of their children.

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 C. Insufficient mobile data

Based on the survey conducted on 42 parents, 49 percent had network signals but did not have internet
connections in their households, while 51 percent lacked both. The increase in internet usage reflects new
information technology as the world of communication technology network that can use to improve learning.
The internet is also very important for people's every life nowadays. Globalization makes opportunities and
challenges for learners in higher education to emphasize information and communication technologies (ICTs)
such as internet usages (Macharia & Nyakwende, 2011). But this issue is hard on the part of the researcher to
sustain, there is a proper authority to solve the issue but it is undeniable to say that mobile data is not needed in
this technologically evolving world. The investigation of the relationship between internet usage and learning is
useful to ensure that the learning improvement needs to emphasize internet usage and motivate students to use
the internet in their learning. According to Sylvia (2000), internet usage in education can help with individual
learning and teaching such as quickness of delivery, development of communication and writing skills, and
increase of motivation for learning and self-reliance.

Attitudes of parents and learners toward distance learning

Distance learning has many positive assets. Firstly, students are provided with the flexibility to learn at their
place (Thoms and Eryilmaz 2014). Moreover, there is a variety of educational tasks, which enable learners to
adapt their learning schedule according to their learning style, without following a tactical structured schedule of
learning. In this way, distance learning programs provide the flexibleness for students to decide on their course
of learning, as students can participate in the learning process from their homes (Davis et al. 2019). Additionally,
for those who want to improve their professional and academic qualifications without leaving their jobs, distance
education is often beneficial, as distance learning can serve both learning and working (de Oliveira et al. 2018).
Distance learning involves individualized instruction that allows learners to use self-learning modules (SLMs) in
print or digital format/electronic copy, whichever is applicable in the context of the learner, and other learning
resources like Learner’s Materials, textbooks, activity sheets, study guides, and other study materials. Learners
access electronic copies of learning materials on a computer, tablet PC, or smartphone. CDs, DVDs, USB
storage, and computer-based applications can all be used to deliver e-learning materials, including offline
E-books. The teacher takes the responsibility of monitoring the progress of the learners. The learners may ask
assistance from the teacher via e-mail, telephone, text message/instant messaging, etc. Where possible, the
teacher shall do home visits to learners needing remediation or assistance. Any member of the family or other
stakeholder in the community needs to serve as a para-teachers or as if a teacher. From the interview conducted
by the teacher, 65 % of parents of learners preferred face-to-face instruction because as for them it is very
difficult to teach the subjects to their children due to their lack of knowledge about the competencies although
there was the information written int the beginning of every module. Based on the data gathered, the teacher
regarded the 65% of parents need engagement activities to fully support the home study of their children.

3.1.2 How these difficulties affect the learning competency of learners in Araling Panlipunan 5?

Despite the challenges encountered in distance learning, 65% of learners were relatively satisfied with what
are they receiving. 35% of Grade 5-Mabini learners of ALMES were very satisfied because they can
communicate well to the teacher by using technology.

3.1.3 Which engagement activities will serve as a gateway to engage parents and improve learner’s
competency in Araling Panlipunan 5 in Modular Distance Modality?

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Table 1
Engagement activities that will serve as gateway to engage parents in learner’s competency in Araling Panlipunan
No. of Responses
Engagement Activities (Parents/Guardians) Percent Rank
Virtual Kumustahan 4 10 2
Group Chat (GC) 34 81 1
Phone Call 1 2 4
Sending Text Messages 3 7 3
Total 42 100
As shown on the table, 81% or 34 parents preferred Group Chat (GC) as a very engaging activity for them,
while Virtual Kumustahan ranked 2 in the list, followed by sending text messages with 3 parent responses or 3%
and lastly is phone call as the last option of parents with only 1 response or 2 % of the participants.

3.1.4 Is there a significant difference between learners who are using modules only in studying Araling
Panlipunan 5 against learners with internet connectivity intervention in their studies?

The computed P-value 5.46956 is high or (Greater than 0.05). The probability that the observed results are
due to random chance is high. This will be the case if the calculated t-value is below the t-critical value. So,
based on the result it was concluded that Ho or There is no significant difference between learners who are using
modules only as compared to those also in Modular Distance learning but with internet connectivity at home.

4. Conclusion

Based on the above research findings, there are at least four main issues related to parents' and learners’
challenges encountered in the Modular Distance Learning Modality namely quality of instruction, lack of
gadgets, insufficient mobile data, and the attitudes of parents and learners towards the learning modality. The
difficulties cited in using the modality did not greatly affect the learning competencies of learners in Araling
Panlipunan because data gathered proved that learners were neither relatively nor very satisfied with what they
received from the teacher and the school as well. For the 65 % of parents preferred Group Chat (GC) as the best
engaging activity for them to help teacher and school improve the learning competency of their children in the
subject Araling Panlipunan showed that they longed for constant communication and activities that the teacher
and school will give them to be used at home so that they will be engaged more in the success of learnings of
their children. Furthermore, it was proven that there is no significant difference either learners are simply using
modules alone as compared to those learners who have internet connectivity intervention in the Modular
Distance Learning Modality.

In this respect, to address the concern of parents and learners, teacher and school head worked
collaboratively to address the gap in the teaching-learning instruction by providing teacher self-made video
lesson that can be shared to the Group Chat (GC) of parents and so they can also share and watched it together
with learners as well as those who do not have gadgets at home. In this manner parents and learners are
engaged in the activity as they also learned together. Furthermore, the teacher prepared Fact sheets and
Learners Activity Sheets for those parents and learners who are not privileged to acquire even basic cellphones to
de distributed during retrieval day as allowed by the IATF. These are what this research can offer to parents and
the most important client of school- the learners. Education must continue in this time of Pandemic as stated by
DepEd Secretary Leonor Magtolis -Briones. Learning will not necessarily mean traditional face-to-face learning
in the classroom. In this time of the pandemic, different learning modalities were offered by the Department of
Education. The physical opening will depend on the risk severity grading or classification of a certain
community according to guidelines from the Department of Health (DOH), the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF)

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for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases in the Philippines, and the Office of the President (OP).
Meanwhile, the researcher wished for parents and learners to deeply embrace everything that the school and
teacher can offer in the meantime.

5. Acknowledgements

The author wishes to acknowledge her School Head in the person of Maam Severa C. Versola and to the
Education Supervisor in Araling Panlipunan, Dr. Lucy F. Pagalanan for the unselfish support to the researcher in
the whole time of the conduct of research, also to the Dean of Graduate Studies of Emilio Aguinaldo College,
Manila Dr. Lino Reynoso for the encouragement he gave to his students, to Emilio Aguinaldo College where the
researcher was exposed more to dissertation writings and a refresher course offered that helped the researcher
understand more about research, to the researchers family her husband Jay and daughters Jayleen, Yajeen and
Leiane Jay, most importantly to the Lord above who gave enough wisdom and strength to the researcher and
believe that she can produce one. Lastly, the author wishes to declare that, there is no conflict of interest in the
publication of this article.

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