CHAPTER 1

PROBLEM AND RESEARCH DESIGN

Introduction
Scientific literacy means that a person can ask, find or

determine answer to questioned derived from curiosity about everyday

experience. Scientific literacy entails being able to read with

understanding articles about science in the popular press and to

engage in social conversation about the validity of the conclusions. A

definition by the University of Nebraska (2018) explains that science

literacy is an enhanced capacity, both at the individual and collective

levels, to make effective discussion grounded in Science and

Technology, Engineering and Mathematics-informed analysis of

complex, real-word challengers.

In the study of Murat Genci, (2015) entitled “The Effect of

scientific Studies on Students’ Scientific Literacy and Attitude” the

author concluded that the students voice their opinions about scientific

issues in a debate setting. Today Studies which are based on

constructivism should be done, but problem-solving skills, creativity

and scientific literacy levels should be developed in the students as

well, the self-confidence and personal development of the students will

be supported and increased. Moreover, Ozdemir and Ustundag (2007)

stated that the creative drama method helped students grow in their

scientific literacy. Akilli (2008) stated that scientific literacy plays an

important role in science classes as they involve the teaching of deep

and complex concepts. Scientific literacy has an impact on the

behaviour of students, as to their academic achievements in their

lessons. Thus addresses the current needs highlighting the concrete

ideological ideas and abstract theory. According to Mr Anastacio

Martinez, Ph.D. the principal of Butuan Doctors’ College, the grade 12

students of Butuan Doctors’ College-Senior High School are

moderately scientifically literate. The researchers have based on the

student’s grades taken from their teachers that they are not really

scientifically literate but not all, some might to be scientifically literate.

The purpose of this study is to give awareness to students for

them to know where they are missing out. Also, give them a better

understanding, what science literacy means, and the importance of it.

This research aims to help the students to be scientifically literate, and

to determine what holds them back to be one.

Theoretical framework
Cunningham & Helm (1998) suggests that the community plays

an important role in the social nature of science. Many scientists form

alliances and belong to various associations which provide a forum for

the sharing of information. Such a setting allows scientists to

 collaborate on scientific ideas and keep abreast of the rapidly changing

nature of science. This networking process may also be used by

scientists as a means of procuring equipment, funding and other

material needed for their research. It helps to generate support for

scientists‟ and their research so that it is accepted by the wider

community as new scientific knowledge. Likewise, students form small

groups when conducting experiments in the laboratory in order to share

ideas, advice and data. This allows them to produce more reliable

results and to recognize that there may be many possible solutions to a

given problem.

Conceptual Framework
This study was guided by a conceptual framework which

presents the independent and the dependent variables of the study.

INDEPENDENT VARIABLES DEPENDENT VARIABLE

 Learning facilities Level of Scientific literacy of

grade 12 students of Butuan
 Academic Achievement
Doctors’ College
 Interest/preferences

 Co-curricular activity

Figure 1: Schematic diagram of the Conceptual Framework of the

study
 The figure shows the independent variables which are learning

facilities, academic achievement, interest and preference, and co-

curricular activities. The dependent variable which is the factor to the

level of scientific literacy of grade 12 students of Butuan Doctors’

College.

Hypothesis

On the basis of the study, the researchers formulated the

hypothesis as tested at 0.05 level of significance.

HO. There is no significant difference between the scientific

literacy of grade 12 students of Butuan Doctors’ College Senior High

Department.

Significance of the Study

This study is also beneficial to the following individuals:

Students. The students would benefit this study to understand

the procedural knowledge and skills of science. And to play an

important role in achieving the goal of science education.

Teachers. This study would help the teachers to educate the

students in school only to prepare them in the field of scientific literacy

and to develop their own positive attitudes towards science.

 Schools. This study would help the school to provide the needs

of the students and also to the teachers, in giving an emphasis of the

curricular with aspects of the daily life of their students and teachers.

Future researchers. This study would help the future

researchers are to give information about scientific literacy to individual

at same time to teach individual how problem are solve.

Scope and Delimitations

Content. The study will determine the level of scientific literacy

of grade 12 students of Butuan Doctors’ College Senior High

Department. The dependent variables are independent variables which

are learning facilities, academic achievement, interest and preference,

and co-curricular activities.

Respondents and Place. The respondents of the study are all

grade 12 students of Butuan Doctors’ College Senior High School.

Period. The study will be conducted from Second Semester,

School Year 2018-2019.

Definition of terms

Co-curricular activity. Extra mathematical and scientific

activities held by the school that are participated by the grade 12

students of Butuan Doctors’ College Senior High Department.

 Scientific literacy. Is the capacity to use scientific knowledge,

to identify questions and to draw evidence-based conclusions in order

to understand and help make decisions about the natural world and the

changes made to it through human activity.

Knowledge. The ability and skills needed to perform in the

scientific field.

Cultural Literacy. Knowledge and beliefs developed from

cultural influence.
 Chapter 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This study was supported by related literature and studies

from books, journals, and electronic sources. The information serves

as the basis of the research study.

Related Studies

Foreign

The physical environment consists of many interacting variables

that we are all aware of such as class size, spatial density, location &

noise, acoustics & noise, secluded study spaces, ambient

temperatures and air quality. According to Lackney (2000) Assessing

School Facilities for Learning/Assessing the Impact of the Physical

Environment on the Educational Process: Integrating Theoretical

Issues with Practical Concerns the environmental qualities at each site

that contributes most to students' performance. To assess the

building's manifest functional characteristics with respect to basic

educational activity is the objective here and an assessment of

educational adequacy is made against pre-determined criteria like

adequate space requirements generated by experts. These factors will

affect a student thus a school must develop a process of continuous

improvement within each school site.

According to Lyons (2001), entitled Do School Facilities Really

Impact a Child's Education? IssueTrak: A CEFPI Brief on Educational

Facility Issue, it has been said, "A good teacher can teach anywhere,"

a growing body of research literature also strongly suggests a direct

relation between the condition and utility of the school facility and

learning. The classroom is the most important area within a school. It is

here that students spend most of their time, hopefully in an

environment conducive to learning. Learning in the classroom requires

a reasonable level of concentration, listening, writing, and reading.

Individual classrooms and entire facilities need to be evaluated, not

only on how they meet changing educational requirements, but also on

how they meet the environmental requirements for health, safety, and

security. His study concluded that there is a relationship between a

school buildings and student achievement, it found out that student

achievement found higher test scores for students learning in better

buildings and lower scores for students learning in substandard

buildings.

As concluded by Gençi (2015) in his study entitled The Effect of

Scientific Studies on Students Scientific Literacy and Attitude It is

extremely important to provide more open environments for students

where they can express their thoughts and feelings. The creation of

debate opportunities supports and encourages the personal

development and creativity of students. In this study, the students

voiced their opinions about scientific issues in a debate setting. Today,

scientific literacy has gained great importance, and it seeks to

systematically enable students. Studies which are based on

constructivism should be done, but problem-solving skills, creativity

and scientific literacy levels should be developed in the students as

well. In this way, the self-confidence and personal development of the

students will be supported and increased.

In the study of Darlington (2017) entitled Understanding and

Developing Student Interest in Science: An Investigation of 14-16 year-

old Students in England University College London the results of his

study the level of student interest in learning science-related topics in

most subjects (e.g. Physics, Chemistry, Human Biology, Astronomy,

and Geology) is shown to have a significant positive relationship with

scientific literacy. Students who are one unit more interested in

Physics, Chemistry, and Astronomy are predicted to achieve more than

10 units in scientific literacy. Particularly in Chemistry, when students’

interest in learning this subject increases by one level, their scientific

literacy increases by 18.32 units. Chemistry courses are the major

factor that affects students’ learning in science more than other

subjects. Students who reported less interest in chemistry courses

performed weakly in their scientific literacy.

 According to Darlington H. (2017) entitled Understanding and

Developing Student Interest in Science: An Investigation of 14-16 year-

old Students in England University College London the overall

rationale for increasing interest in science lessons is to enhance

students’ awareness and appreciation of the scientific endeavour and

the knowledge and understanding of the world that has resulted over

the centuries. This rationale includes the ways in which students

perceive and value the place of science in their culture and the

contributions scientists have made to improving society and the quality

of life that we all experience. In the context of school science, students’

levels of interest are often assessed using narrower criteria, namely

student attainment in science subjects and the number of them

choosing to continue with their science education leading to a career in

science or a science-related field.

In the study of Huang (2010) entitled A Multilevel Analysis of

Scientific Literacy: The Effects of Students Sex, Students’ Interest in

Learning Science, and School Characteristics students’ interest in

learning science is related to their scientific literacy significantly.

Students who have a higher interest in learning the subjects of physics,

chemistry, human biology, astronomy, and geology are predicted to

achieve higher science scores than those students who have less

interest in learning these subjects. Nevertheless, students who show

higher interests in learning the biology of the plants or the ways

scientists design experiments are predicted to achieve lower scores in

science.

In the study of Storey, K. (2010) entitled Bridging the Gap:

Linking Co-Curricular Activities to Student Learning Outcomes in

Community College Students Community College Leadership

Cocurricular activities can help to enhance formalized learning when

measured with defined institutional student learning outcomes. If

community colleges can provide co-curricular activities relevant to its

specific student learners and academic programs, it can help to

enhance the achievement of student learning outcomes. As cited by

Storey in her study Chickering‘s Theory of Identity Development

supports the role of co-curricular activities as both complements to

classroom learning and to students‘ identity development. If more

community college professionals were to recognize the academic value

of cocurricular activities in enhancing classroom learning, more

opportunities could be created to support a thriving student learning

experience throughout the entire campus.

The results of Kisango’s study (2016) entitled Factors

Influencing Students’ Participation In Co-Curricular Activities in Public

Secondary Schools in Lamu County Kenya stated that curricular

activities does have an influenced the students‟ development. He

recommended the following: (a) Students should be encouraged to

engage in various co-curricular activities such as joining social clubs,

religious clubs and sporting groups to develop their total personality for

the outside world. (b) Parents should be positive about co-curricular

activities in schools and encourage their children to participate in them

as some may make a career out of them. They should shun away from

the popular believe that they can only succeed in life if they only excel

in academics. (c) Schools and relevant authorities should hold

seminars and training sessions for students in co-curricular activities to

broaden their career choices. This will ensure that students make

informed choices and have right attitudes towards co-curricular

activities.

Local

The study of Ebora (2016) entitled Academic Performance in

Physics of Fourth Year High School Students In one Public High

School in Batangas City,Phillipines recommended that in order to

increase the performance of students, laboratory and result of

achievement test the teacher should use strategies and methods that

will be suited to the needs of the students. Trainings should be

conducted to enhance the student’s abilities in writing science

investigatory project. Utilizing cooperative learning approach in

performing laboratory activities would provide active involvement of the

students in the completion of the tasks.

According to the study of Ombra A. Imam, Maripaz Abas

Mastura, 0078Hajri Jamil and Zurida Ismail (2014) entitled Reading

Comprehension Skills And Performance In Science Among High

School Students In The Philippines Students need to develop scientific

literacy in order to participate fully as citizens, community members,

and in the globalised economy. The DepEd with the support of school

administrators and funding institutions should commission a separate

study to determine strong significant determinants of students’

performance in science that would guide DepEd officials, policy

makers, school managers and teachers in changing the future of

science learning and achievement in the Philippines. The scientific

literacy of a student relies on how well their academic achievement

specifically to science and math subjects performances.

 Chapter 3

METHODOLOGY

Research Design

The researchers used the descriptive method of research

design. Descriptive research design describe the nature of the

phenomenon under investigation which involves the process of

collecting presenting analyzing and interpreting of data on the Scientific

Literacy of Grade 12 students of Butuan Doctors’ College.

Research Setting/Locale

The study was conducted at Butuan Doctors’ College JC.

Aquino, Butuan City located at Estacio Village, Victoria Ave, Butuan

City, Agusan Del Norte which is headed by Maria Katrina M. Estacio,

DMD, and MBA as the school’s administrative and Dr. Anastacio P.

Martinez, Ph. D as the Senior High School principal. It is a 280 m away

from Robinson’s Place Butuan to Butuan Doctors’ College and also a

280 m away from Dotties H Butuan Doctors’ College is a 2-storey

concrete building and has a floor made of hardwood planks. The

Senior High School has a total population of 127 students, consisting

68 grade 11 and 59 grade 12.

 Respondents of the Study

This study was utilized simple random sampling procedure.

Each student is chosen entirely by chance and each member of the

population has equal chance of being included in the sample.

Grade 12 students of Butuan Doctors’ College Senior High

School has a total of 60 students. Out of 60 were computed from

Slovin’s Formula and they were selected through simple random

method.

Slovin’s Formula:

𝑵
𝒏 = 𝟏+𝑵𝒆𝟐

Where:

n= number of samples

N= total population

e= error tolerance

Research Instrument

The researcher was used self-made questionnaire as the main

tool in gathering data. The questionnaire has twenty questions. The

respondents would select their answer by placing check mark on the

space that represent their best answer that are categories as “T” for

true, capital “X” for I do not know and

the capital “F” for false.

Data Gathering Procedure

The researchers were observed the following step-by-step

procedure in the data collection.

Request for Approval to conduct the study. A letter of

request was sent to the School Principal of Butuan Doctors’ College

Senior High School, Dr. Anastacio P. Martinez, Ph. D seeking

permission to conduct a survey on the preference of grade 12 students

on Scientific Literacy of Grade 12 students of Butuan Doctors’ College

Senior High Department.

Distribution of Questionnaire. The researchers was personally

distributed the questionnaires to the respondents in their perspective

rooms. They will be given enough time to answer the questions.

Retrieval of Questionnaire. The questionnaire was retrieved by

the researcher’s right after the respondents answered the

questionnaires.
 Consolidation of data. The data that was collected will be

checked, tallied, analyzed and interpreted with the application of the

appropriate statistical tools.

Statistical Techniques

To quantify the responses and to provide tools for testing the

null hypothesis, the following statistical techniques will be used.

Weighted Mean. This tool is used to determine the central

locations of the distribution using the Dichotomous Scales with the

following numerical and verbal rating as shown in table (..). This would

be used to determine the level of scientific literacy of grade 12 students

of Butuan Doctors College Senior High School Department.

Formula:

∑ 𝑓𝑥
𝑥̅ =
𝑁

Where:

𝑥̅ = Mean

∑ = Summation of Respondents

F= Frequency of respondents

X= Numerical Rating
Numerical rating Ranging of means Verbal Description

3 2.36 - 3 True

2 1.66 – 2.35 False

1 1-1.65 I do not know

 Chapter 4

PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS, INTERPRETATION OF THE DATA

STATEMENT T F X
WM VD

1. China uses rewards and punishments to enforce

a one-child limit to each family to help with 24 4 26 1.96 False
population control
2. The current world population is five billion and 11 18 25 1.74 False
counting.
3. Soil is a mixture of biotic and abiotic and 24 2 28 1.92 False
counting.
4. Doctors did not wash their hands when treating 7 27 20 1.75 False
patients even for surgery until The Germ Theory of
Disease was developed during the Industrial
Revolution.
5. The population growth rate has recently started 4 22 28 1.55 I Don’t
to decline. know

6. Total fertility rates have started to increase 27 6 21 2.11 False

globally.
7. Technology has only positive impacts on the 6 33 15 1.83 False
environment
8. Annually the likelihood of death is greater from 12 8 34 1.59 I Don’t
being struck by lightning than by being hit by a Know
meteorite.
9. Malaria can only be spread by the bite of a 27 6 21 2.11 False
female Anopheles mosquito.
10. Eradicating mosquitoes can also reduce the 13 10 31 2.66 True
risk of cholera.
11. Excessive use of alcohol may cause mental 36 4 14 2.40 True
retardation and birth defects in developing embryos
and fetuses.
12. Furniture, carpets and foam insulation in your 11 5 38 1.05 I Don’t
house contains the pollutant formaldehyde and has Know
the potential to cause respiratory inflammation and
cancer.
13. The most popular fruit in the world is apple. 27 9 18 2.16 False

14. Vitamin A deficiency can lead to blindness. 20 10 24 1.92 False

15. Beef requires more feed, water, land, and 10 4 40 1.44 I Don’t
energy to produce than any other animal food Know
product that we consume.
16. The honey bee is a common pollinator whose 21 7 26 1.90 False
population is declining due to pesticide use.
17. The site of the world’s worst nuclear incident 11 5 38 1.05 I Don’t
occurred in Chernobyl, Russia in 1986. Know
18. Countries with recent widespread transmission 9 8 37 1.48 I Don’t
of AIDS are Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Know
19. Genetically manipulating plants by adding 10 4 40 1.44 I Don’t
multiple genes for the same or different traits, such Know
as higher yield and herbicide tolerance is called
trait stacking.
20. The first genetically modified food to receive 23 2 30 1.90 False
approval from the FDA (Food and Drug
Administration) in the U.S. was corn.
Total 333 194 554 1.79 False
Average of Weighted Mean 1.79 False

Interpretation. The table shows the distribution of the

respondents as to the scientific literacy of grade 12 Senior High School

students. The questionnaire contained twenty particulars and has a

total weighted mean of 1.79 with “false” as its verbal description. The

question number 1,2,3,4,6,7,9,13,14,16,20 has a verbal description of

false and has weighted mean between 1.66-2.35. The questions

number 11, has a verbal description ‘’true’’ and has weighted mean

between 2.35-3. The questions number 5,8,12,15,17,18, and 19 has

verbal description ‘’I do not know’’ and has weighted mean between 1-

1.65.

Analysis. The weighted mean distribution of the respondents as

to the scientific literacy of Grade 12 Senior High School Students

obtained an average of 1.79 with a verbal description of ‘‘false”.