Factors Influencing the Senior High School Track Choices of Grade 10 Students at
Bagong Barrio National High School
This study is about the factors which influence the Grade 10 students at Bagong Barrio
National High School in picking the senior high school track which they want. The grade
10 students have more than 5 choices such as STEM, ABM, TVL, HUMMS, GAS, and
more but those strands or tracks were most known.
Your chosen track and strand in Senior High School will reflect on the subjects you will
take. Your 2 academic years in SHS is designed for you to take specialized upper
secondary education and you are required you to pick among different tracks upon
enrollment. These different tracks, strands, and specializations are intended for you to
determine which paths could best match your strengths, passions, and skills. Choosing
the right Senior High School strand will help motivate you for your future career. Once
you have chosen a strand you like, studying becomes more interesting. While you enjoy
learning, it also expands your knowledge and skills, while at the same time, exposing
you to your chosen field of study in preparation for college. (JMCFI, 2023)
Students tend to mislead themselves in picking strand or track for themselves because
there are some things which influence them even though they are preferring different
path for college. Another thing is the availability of strands and tracks on the chosen
school that they want to enroll too. There’s also the possibility of financial problem for
studying the chosen strand for it is too pricey to attain.
The Senior High School (SHS) program is a critical stage in the education system of the
Philippines. This educational level provides students with various tracks that will prepare
them for their future careers, whether it is in academics, technical-vocational, or
entrepreneurship. Choosing the appropriate SHS track is an essential decision for grade
10 students because it can have a significant impact on their future academic and
professional careers. However, despite its importance, there is a lack of understanding
of the factors that influence students' preference for SHS tracks. (Kilag, Dejino, Arcillo,
Borong, Manlingoy, & Combista, 2023)
Olufemioladebinu, Adediran, and Oyediran (2018) claim that a student'sacademic
performance in a test has been positively impacted by their parent'smoney or social
position.This is further corroborated by a prior study byOlufemioladebinu et al. (2018),
which found that pupils from lower socioeconomicfamily status typically perform worse
academically than those from higher socioeconomic family status. Nnamani, Dikko, and
Kinta (2014) noted that students' financial issuessignificantly contribute to their poor
academic performance, which ultimatelyresults in the bad quality of education in various
ways. According to this earlystudies, having money issues causes financial stress,
which subsequently affectskids' poor academic performance.
Students who are forced to take a different senior high school (SHS) strand from the
one they prefer due to unavailability face more costs at the tertiary education level,
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said Tuesday. Gatchalian focused on the non-crediting of
subjects and rejection from the college degree program as he noted the comments from
SHS students which the DepEd included in their presentation which showed the
unavailability of their preferred strand. In DepEd’s presentation, a student from the
CARAGA region stated that he chose the General Academic Strand (GAS) because it is
the available track in his school. Another student in Pangasinan wanted to take the
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) strand but had to take
GAS because it was the only available track in her school. Gatchalian said that the lack
of available strands in schools was also pointed out in a research conducted by the
Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS). (Bordey, 2023)
https://jmc.edu.ph/how-to-choose-the-right-senior-high-school-track-and-strand/
#:~:text=These%20different%20tracks%2C%20strands%2C%20and,like%2C
%20studying%20becomes%20more%20interesting.
https://www.scribd.com/document/613002543/FINANCIAL-PROBLEM-
ENCOUNTERED-BY-SHS-STUDENTS-OF-S
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED628620.pdf
https://www.pids.gov.ph/details/news/in-the-news/gatchalian-lack-of-preferred-shs-
strand-adds-to-students-college-costs
