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Chapter I

INTRODUCTION

Plato once said that, “Do not train children to

learning by force and harshness, but direct them to it by

what amuses their minds, so that you may be able to discover

with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius of each.”

The thought expressed by Plato struck our minds. Since

teachers nowadays have their own strategies unto what

approaches that could greatly fascinate the students, we

found out that workbook is one of the most endearing

instructional materials that can help students to easily

absorb their lessons in a specific subject on their own. It

has been proven by various researches all over the world

that the use of workbook as instructional material can help

improve the academic performance of the students especially

in the field of English. As what Cindy Wyels from California

State University (2005) said that, worksheets or workbooks

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are effective tools in ongoing efforts encouraging the

students to engage their brains during class.

According to the English teachers of Thailand, as of

2002, 66.8% of the students had experience difficulties in

learning their English lessons due to lack of instructional

materials like workbook. They said that the students can’t

fully understand the lesson because they can’t engage

themselves in such activities that will help them. This

problem was addressed to the government of Thailand and was

given an immediate action. The Constitutions of the Kingdom

of Thailand has assigned the use of instructional materials

like workbook in the educational management. According to

the National Education Acts (Ministry of Education, 2542:30-

31), the needs and uses of the instructional materials are

regarded as very important factors for successful teaching

and learning. Teachers must be responsible for selecting the

teaching tools and materials for the learners. The school

put more emphasis on providing modern and effective teaching

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instruments and materials to support the efficiency of

learning activities. After implementing this act, it was

reported that the instructional materials motivate the

students and they really understand the lessons better

through the use of these materials. And they used

instructional materials such as workbook to give direct

experiences in learning and using the language.

Unfortunately, in third world countries like

Philippines, where instructional materials are scarce and

teachers are often untrained, textbooks and workbooks assume

wider importance than they do in more developed countries,

(UNESCO). The availability of textbooks and workbooks has

long been recognized as an important factor in educational

attainment if not the only means of teaching. With this,

alternative forms of instructional materials may be both

more important and more effective. According from the office

of the university registrar (DLSU-M, 2012), 80% was

concluded that the academic performance of students is

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affected by the availability and the use of instructional

materials. The students can’t involve themselves in their

lessons because of less availability, misallocation, and

deficiency in the use of instructional materials.

We designed to conduct this study about the use of

workbook to be able to identify its uses and to know how

this instructional material affects the learning of a

student in a particular subject. By these, we can be able to

understand the student’s view on its use and importance. As

what our fellow researcher Maycel R. Laurente, who had

experienced engaging into workbook in her former school,

said, “I enjoyed using workbooks in my English classes

before. Using workbooks I can easily practice more with the

topic I have difficulties with, by answering the provided

questions which is intended for practice. Workbooks are

designed in a way a student will have fun answering sets of

questions about the lesson. Workbooks are not just for

benefits of the students but for the teachers as well.

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Through workbooks teachers can easily identify on which part

of the lesson students have difficulties by checking their

workbooks.” During our research, we found out that workbook

is commonly used in Basic English classes.

Purpose of the Study

Workbook is a teaching material that can support

student’s learning. Workbook should correlate directly with

the main text and must have exercises that correspond with

the lesson. Using workbook teachers may asses their students

in their learning process and from that teachers can easily

determine how to help the students further. Workbooks are

the introductory tool of a good teacher to proceed such

methods of making learning more fun.

In University of South Eastern Philippines – Tagum and

University of Mindanao – Tagum, first year college students

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are using workbook in their English classes as one of their

learning material. All of them have their own experiences

with workbooks. From that, we, the researchers would like to

know the views of first year college students in the

University of South Eastern Philippines – Tagum and

University of Mindanao – Tagum on the use of workbooks. We

wanted to know the benefits they get in using workbooks and

how does it help in their learning.

Research Questions

This study aims to know the different views of first

year college students in University of South Eastern

Philippines – Tagum and University of Mindanao – Tagum.

Specifically, the study ought to answer the following

questions:

1. What are the standpoints of the first year college

students on the use of workbook in English classes?

Theoretical and Conceptual Framework

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This study was based on the Cone of Experience Theory

by Dale (1960) who states that learners retain more

information by what they “do” as opposed to what is “heard”

or “observed”. The Cone was intended to describe various

learning experiences. Essentially, the Cone shows the

progression of experiences from the most concrete (at the

bottom of the cone) to the most abstract (at the top of the

cone).

It shows what the students will be able to do at each

level of the Cone (the learning outcomes they will be able

to achieve) relative to the type of activity they are doing

(reading, hearing, viewing images, etc.). It is important to

remember that this doesn’t mean reading and listening are

not valuable learning experiences, simply that “doing the

real thing” can lead to the retention of the largest amount

of information.

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Figure 1: Edgar Dale’s Cone of Experience

The Cone above describes learning experiences that

shows a direct learning process of the students and explains

that learners retain more information through their hands-on

experiences in a real-life context that will allow the

students to remember best what they do. It means that every

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hands-on activities from the workbook give meaningful

experiences to the students that able them to create their

different standpoints namely, positive and negative

standpoints on the use of workbook in their learning

process.

This theory intends to investigate the effectiveness of

workbook as teaching-learning instructional material on

students’ academic performance in English classes.

Significance of the Study

This study will be beneficial to the following:

Students. They will be able to see the importance of

learning activities to their cognitive aspect that will help

them to acquire and understand lessons from English subject.

Teachers. It will help them to assist and facilitate

the learning of their students through the use of learning

materials like workbook.

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Administration. They will be encouraged to provide and

enhance more the use of workbook in teaching and learning

English.

Other Researchers. It will be a guide to their future

study which is related to the present study.

Delimitation of the Study

This study is limited to its main reason on use of

English workbook with the comparison of two schools that

uses workbook. The study will be realized with the help of

the students in University of Southeastern Philippines –

Tagum, and University of Mindanao – Tagum. First year

college students no matter what course, age, gender. The

comparison will be through answering our personal interview

with the student. The equipment to be used during the

interview is the following: voice recorder, video recorder,

field notes, consent form and interview guide.

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The limitation of this study is how honest the students

are in answering the interview.

Definition of Terms

The following terms are defined notionally and

functionally for clarity and common frame of reference.

Standpoint. A position from which objects or principles

are viewed according to which they are compared and judged

(Merriam-Webster Dictionary). In this study, it refers to

the personal beliefs or judgments of the students.

Workbook. A book exercises and questions for students,

usually with spaces in which answers can be written

(Merriam-Webster Dictionary). In this study, it is used as

the learning exercises and practices of the students.

Organization of the Study

This study is divided into five chapters.

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Chapter One introduces the study with its purpose,

significance, delimitation, research questions, definition

of terms and theoretical framework.

Chapter Two will outline the Review of Related

Literature. Chapter Three describes the methodology,

including the selection of students, the curricular program

we used, and the data collection and analysis methods

employed to develop our findings.

The results of the interview conducted to each student

are stated in the Fourth Chapter.

Chapter Five completes the report by drawing

conclusions about what we’ve learned during the run through

of this study, and what we plan to do next regarding the

development of our practice concerning our field.

Appendices include samples from our data to elucidate

the study process and the types of data collected during the

study.

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Chapter II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

The Review of Related Literature is presented in this

chapter.

Instructional Material

Ema and Ayaji (2004) viewed instructional material as

an “acts of giving help normally by teachers to provide help

and encouragement n students or pupil’s learning activities.

They further described instructional materials as tool,

which can easily be used by a teacher to correct wrong

impressions and to illustrate things that learners cannot

forget”.

The use of instructional materials does not only

encourage teachers and students to work collaboratively but

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also results in more cooperative learning activities among

students. Ikerionwu (2000) refers to instructional materials

as objects or devices which help the teacher to make

learning meaningful to learners. The purpose of

instructional materials is to promote efficiency of

education by improving the quality of teaching and learning.

On the basis of research finding conducted by Fayyaz

Ahmad Faize, et al, (2011), it was concluded the academic

performance of the students is affected by the availability

and the use of instructional materials if there is less

availability, misallocation and deficiency in the use of

instructional material.

It is well known among educators that the educational

experiences involving the learner actively participating in

concrete examples are retained longer than abstract

experiences. Instructional materials add elements of reality

by improving concrete examples to learning. (Demirel, 2004)

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Worktext distinguishes itself from other form of

instructional materials by weaving into the sets of

exercises stories, meant to equip learners with classical,

firmly and educational pieces of information. Within each

lesson, exercises have different levels of difficulty,

allowing learners to build up confidence with the simpler,

more familiar tasks before moving onto the challenging ones

later in the lesson. (Mazon, 2000)

With usable and accessible activities throughout

English Worktext is ideal for undergraduate students and

advanced learners of the English Language. It is also a

valuable resource for families, professionals, learners of

English as second language, and for anybody who wants to use

English more effectively. (Mazon, 2000)

Workbook

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Workbook serves as a springboard to English Language.

It is attuned to the students own particular language needs

and especially designed to enhance and widen the grammar

skills. Workbooks generated critical thinking through visual

language photos, the grammar notes are encapsulated thus,

and they are simple and easy to understand for the students.

(San Miguel, 2008)

Workbook is designed to cater to college freshmen

enrolled in English classes. It contains an intensive study

of a sentence through its word, phrase and clause

components, its structure and meaning. It provides exercises

adjusted to the three different levels of student competence

– basic, intermediate, and advanced. With such divisions,

the teacher can approximate the level of the student’s

comprehension of the lesson and thus devise ways to assist

the students or individual. Workbooks help the teachers and

students teaching – learning process. (Dadufalza, 2007)

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Worksheets are materials by which students are given

transaction steps regarding what they are supposed to learn.

Also, they include activities which give the students main

responsibility in their own learning (Kurt & Akdeniz, 2002).

Thus worksheets are known to help students gain scientific

process skills such as setting up experimental mechanism,

recording data, interpreting the data, and so on so that

they can conceptualize the concepts in their mind.

There are several studies showing that worksheets

increase student’s interest in the lesson and affect their

success in a positive way (Saka, 2002).

When using pre-made handouts/workbooks, it is necessary

for teachers to tailor their teaching to the handouts,

explaining the material in the same terms or part of a

process in an identical order. Teachers can increase student

engagement by integrating contemporary topics into their

teaching. The creation of customized handouts allows them to

do this seamlessly. It can keep student’s interest by

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including topics that they care about in the handouts.

Students notice this extra effort and enjoy these little

additions. (Schreiner, 2008)

Workbooks are helpful for keeping one child occupied

while working with another. Workbooks that children can do

on their own are valuable supplements for homeschooling

families who travel or who frequently do their "school time"

away from home.Many workbooks are actually "worktexts",

containing both instruction and practice, providing both

drill and review. Better quality worktexts include problem-

solving items that encourage this kind of higher-level

thinking in addition to the traditional fill-in-the-blank

and define-the-term exercises. (Knapp, 2006)

The study conducted by Yasar Demirel (2004) presented a

new strategy called the “workbook strategy”. Such strategy

may reduce the mismatches between learning and teaching

styles, and hence improves active learning, critical

thinking, and problem solving skills. Most of the students

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who are exposed to the workbook strategy have found it very

effective in their learning.

Direct Learning Process

A process in which the individuals take the initiative,

with or without the others, in diagnosing their learning

needs, formulating learning goals, identifying human and

material resources for learning, choosing and implementing

appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating learning

outcomes. (Malcolm Knowles 1975: 18)

Learning has been defined in a number of ways by

various authors. Hilgard (1956) defines learning as “the

process by which an activity originates or is changed

through reacting to an encountered situation, provided that

the characteristics of the change in activity cannot be

explained on the basis of native response tendencies,

maturation or temporary states of organisms (e.g., fatigue,

drugs, etc.).”

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Self-directed learning is a form of study in which

learners have the primary responsibility for planning,

carrying out and evaluating their own learning experiences.

(Merriam and Caffarella 1991: 41)

Alan Tough (1967) initially described this process as

‘self-teaching’. In such circumstances, learners assumed

responsibility for planning and directing the course of

study. As he developed his approach Tough tended to

conceptualize his approach in terms of learning projects.

Learning may be defined as the acquisition, retention,

and application of knowledge, skills, attitudes, way of

thinking or some other types of responses. (Kalesnick, 1963)

The aim ‘is to make the subject a continuing “inner-

directed”, self-operating learner’. Learner self-direction

refers to ‘characteristics of an individual that predispose

one toward taking primary responsibility for personal

learning endeavors. (Brockett and Hiemstra, 1991)

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Chapter III

METHOD

This chapter describes the methodology used in the

study. It begins with an introduction about the chapter

followed by the research design. There is also information

about the selection of participants stated in the research

participants with the data sources and data collection

procedure. A significant portion of this chapter describes

the trustworthiness of the study along with the role of the

researcher. This chapter concludes with the data analysis.

Research Design

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The method used in this study is the Qualitative

Method. Qualitative Research has been defined in a variety

of ways. In one definition, Strauss and Corbin (1998)

identified qualitative research as, “Any type of research

that produces findings not arrived at by statistical

procedures or other means of quantification. It can refer to

research about person’s lives, lived experiences, behaviors,

emotions and feelings as well as organizational functioning,

social movements and cultural phenomena. “

These authors elaborated that qualitative research is

best used when the methods are: (a) complementary to the

preferences and personal experiences of the researcher, (b)

congruent with the nature of the research problem, and (c)

employed to explore areas about which little is known. Miles

and Huberman (1994) expressed an expanded position and

indicated that qualitative research is conducted to: (a)

confirm previous research on a topic, (b) provide more in-

depth detail about something that is already known, (c)

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gives a new perspective or a new way of viewing something,

and (d) expand the scope of an existing study.

In this study, it is really preferable to have a

qualitative research since it is a kind of study that is

usually done on one or more individuals or on a small group.

The purpose of a qualitative study is to study impact in

depth rather than in breadth. In this study, we deal with

the standpoints of the students, so it is necessary for us

to have an in-depth interview to be able to expound the

views of the students. Questionnaires may play a part, but

the main techniques of the researchers will be observation

and interviews. The interviews may be with the students,

their teachers or their parents, if necessary.

Research Participants

Creswell (2002) has recommended that 3-5 participants

can be used for case study research. Also, with respect to

phenomenological studies, sample size recommendations range

from 6 (Morse, 1994) to 10 (Creswell, 1998).

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In this study, the sample includes 1st year students

that has experienced the use of English workbook. It is

important for the respondents to have a firsthand experience

in using the English workbook for the reason of being able

to give consistent standpoints in using the said workbook.

Since the study is a qualitative type we have chosen to have

only 10 participants for our study following the recommended

number of participants.

In this study, the participants came from two different

schools or universities that observe the use of English

workbook. They are from University of South Eastern

Philippines – Tagum Campus and University of Mindanao –

Tagum Campus. Five students from each university are

randomly selected by their Program Coordinator. In

University of South Eastern Philippines, three of the

selected students are from Bachelor of Elementary Education

and the other two are from Bachelor Science in Information

Technology. For the University of Mindanao, three

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participants are from Bachelor of Science in Criminology and

the other two are from Bachelor Science in Hospitality

Management major in Hotel and Restaurant Management.

Data Sources

Qualitative researchers typically gather multiple forms

of data such as interviews, observations and documents

(Creswell, 2007)

In this study we gather the standpoints of the

participants on the use of English workbook by interviewing,

observing and document gathering.

The datum for this study was taken from the interview

that was recorded through video camera and audio-tape

recorder of the ten (10) participants that uses the English

workbook. The interviews were done in separate venues. The

students from University of Mindanao –Tagum had their

interviews separately. Students from BSCrim (Bachelor of

Science in Criminology) had their interview inside their

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campus in a vacant room while students from BSHM (Bachelor

of Science in Hospitality Management) agreed to have their

interview outside the campus to avoid destructions, namely

in Volare Pizza & Pasta Parlor. The students from University

of South Eastern Philippines – Tagum had their interview

inside the campus’ library. Student from BEED (Bachelor of

Elementary Education) and BSIT (Bachelor of Science in

Information Technology) agreed to have the interview as

whole or a group for convenience purposes.

Data Collection Procedure

Qualitative Research can be conducted by utilizing a

variety of data collection techniques or by choosing one

technique in particular. Marshall and Rossman (1999)

suggested that data collection method in qualitative

research could be categorized into four types: (a)

participation in the setting, (b) direct observation, (c)

in-depth interviews and (d) document analysis. In this

study, we utilized in-depth interviews as the primary method

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of qualitative data collection. Coffey and Atkinson (1996)

suggested that data collection and analysis are best

conducted simultaneously in qualitative research to allow

for necessary flexibility. Therefore, data collection and

analysis occurred in a cyclical process until concepts and

themes became detailed and redundant and new information

ceased to emerge. (Miles & Huberman, 1994; Strauss & Corbin,

1998)

Trustworthiness of the Study

Lincoln and Guba (1999) and Krefting (1990) describe

trustworthiness as the truth value of the findings of the

study.

Brink (1999:124) states that trustworthiness has to do

with consistency, stability and repeatability of the

informant’s accounts as well as the investigator’s ability

to collect and record information.

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In this study, the trustworthiness of the data

collected was established through credibility, reflectivity,

interview technique and structural coherence.

Credibility. Marshall and Rossman (1995) define

credibility as “an act of conducting inquiry in such manner

as to ensure that participants were identified and described

for the study to show that the inquiry is credible to the

constructors of the original multiple realities”. In this

study, the researchers ensured credibility by choosing the

first year college students of University of Mindanao –

Tagum Campus and University of South Eastern Philippines –

Tagum Campus as the study population. The researchers also

allowed the thesis adviser to determine whether the findings

of the study are credible to the people under study (Brink,

1990). The participants also allowed seeing drafted versions

of the data collected from them, because credibility is

demonstrated when participants confirm that the reported

research findings are their own experiences (Strenbert &

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Carpenter, 1995). In this study, the informants agreed that

the information is true.

Reflectivity. The researchers were reflective in order

to monitor the process of data collection and analysis. The

researchers were aware of the assumptions and values

throughout the research process. The researchers remained

objective during the research process and could not analyze

the data collected without bias.

Interview technique. The researchers develop an opening

question to be asked before developing an interview guide.

An opening question was asked, followed by the questions

from an interview guide. A structured questionnaire was

designed and the validators checked the questions before the

field work was done.

Structural coherence. Structural coherence means that

there are no inconsistencies between the data and its

interpretations. In this study, the answers of the

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respondents were translated into English and were

transcribed with the use of International Phonetic Alphabet.

Role of the Researchers

The researcher is the instrument and main source of

data collection.

The researchers’ moral behavior involves the

researchers as persons who have to be sensitive and

committed to honesty and integrity. Therefore, data

collection and recording was done as honestly as possible.

As active participants, the researchers were aware that

their presence might trigger a variety of reactions from the

participants, such as psychological factors like informants’

responding according to what they thought the researcher’

expectation, and not for the sake of truth. This was

counteracted by explaining to the respondents that they

should say what they know the way thy know it (Bulmer &

Warwick, 1993).

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During an interview, the researchers are the main

instrument for obtaining knowledge and have to understand

the ethical guidelines. Informant should not just be chosen

because of their vulnerability. They have to be chosen

because of their expert knowledge. In this study, the

researchers were therefore fair and honest in collecting and

analyzing of data.

Ethical Consideration

According to Cormack (2001) that the first duty of the

researcher is to ensure that the researcher shall do the

participants no harm. The participants’ right to privacy,

self-determination and freedom to withdraw at any time from

the study were considered in this study. The researchers

observed the following ethical considerations in this study.

Principle of Beneficence

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With this principle, the researchers kept the principle

of no harm in mind. It is also the most fundamental ethical

principle in any research.

Freedom from harm - although physical harm was not

considered, psychological harm was a possibility in the

sense that if the informants were not prepared for the fact

that they could be interviewed twice or, if needed be,

requested to clarify certain issues in the information they

had given, this could harm psychologically. The researchers

also told the informants that if they did not wish to

continue with the study, they could withdraw at any time

(Polit &Hungler, 1998)

Freedom from exploitation – all informants who took

part were purposefully selected because of their expert

knowledge, not because of their vulnerability. Freedom from

exploitation in this is also equated with the principle of

justice in the sense that the researchers considered the

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fact that the informants/respondents were not selected

unfairly.

Principle of Respect from Human Dignity

Respect for human dignity included observing the right

to self-determination in the sense that the

informants/respondents were made aware that they had freedom

of choice to participants or to withdraw from the study at

any time if they so wished. The researchers would respect

their decisions and wishes.

The right to self-determination – the participants had

the right to choose to participate or not. The researchers

approached the participants purposefully and no remuneration

was offered. This meant that the participants volunteered to

participate in the study after being approached by the

researchers, written consent was signed prior the interviews

as well as the declaration letter by the researchers.

Participants who did not participate were not threatened or

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intimidated. Permission was asked to record the interviews

(Polit & Hungler, 1999).

The right to full disclosure – full disclosure means

that the nature of the study was fully explained to the

participants. Self-determination depends on full disclosure.

The research question, aim and purpose were discussed with

the research participants who agreed to participate. The

nature of the study, time, commitment and involvement of the

participants were explained. The drafted version of the data

was read to participants to increase the trustworthiness of

the data.

The Principle of Justice

Justice includes the right to fair treatment and to

privacy.

The right to fair treatment – fair treatment entails

that the participants were selected on the basis of the

requirements of the research question. It entails non-

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prejudical treatment of individual who decline to

participate in or withdraw from the study (Polit & Hungler,

1999).

The right to privacy – anonymity occurs when the

researchers cannot link the information with the

participants, thus anonymity with qualitative research

should be ensured by assigning labels to the participants

and not actually writing the participants’ names down.

During the study, the participants were assured of privacy.

The promise of confidentiality was guaranteed, and

information was not publicly reported in a way that the

participants’ identity was exposed. Confidentiality was

ensured verbally and in the inform consent.

Data Analysis

Data analysis in qualitative research has a two-fold

purpose: (a) to understand the participants’ perspectives

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and (b) to answer the research questions. Marshall and

Rossman (1999) defined qualitative analysis in terms of

organizing and attributing meaning to data. To accomplish

these tasks, we followed the three-phase procedure described

by Miles and Huberman (1994) which includes: (a) data

reduction, (b) data display and (c) conclusion drawing and

verification.

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Chapter IV

Results

This chapter presents the results of the standpoints on

the use of workbooks in English classes of the First year

College students. Results are illustrated on the table.

Tables are supported by discussions and citations taken from

the transcripts analyzed to answer the questions modeled in

this study. The citations are indicated in italics.

Positive and Negative Standpoints of the First Year

College Students on the Use of Workbook in English Classes

The participants viewed their different opinions or

standpoints regarding the use of workbook in their English

classes using the interview guide.

As soon as the analysis of the data was completed and

the presentation of the results was made, another back-

aching process was the transcription of the documented

interview. We considered this as very time-consuming because

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some of the responses were unclear in the voice recorder.

Listening to the audio recorder was done repeatedly to make

sure all responses would be translated into written code.

After that, it was it was followed by classification and

categorization of ideas to obtain the varied standpoints of

the participants on the use of workbook in English classes.

Their responses were classified into themes. Next, the data

were tabulated and patterned after the study of Amparo

(2011) as cited by Baquerfo (2013). The tables present three

classifications: general means 50% of participants mentioned

the item; typical means only 25% to 49%of the participants

mentioned the item. Variant means that the response is

unique which is below 24%.

Table 1: Themes and Core Ideas of the Positive Standpoints

on the Use of Workbook in English Classes

Positive

Standpoints Frequency of Core Ideas

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ResponsesMajor Themes

Good source ofinformation

General

General

General

General

General

General

It helpsthestudents tofullyunderstandthe lesson

Broadenstheknowledgeof thestudents tothe topic

Informationareaccessibleanytimebecauseworkbookcan bebrought inhome

Serves as agoodreferencefor bothteachersandstudents

Used forclarity of

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the lesson Used to

expound thelesson

Thinking SkillsEnhancer

General

General

General

General

General

General

Develop thelearning ofthestudents’through theuse ofvariousactivities

Used as amaterial toenhance the

students’ideas tothe topic

Build thecomprehension skillsof thelearners

Enable thestudents toanalyze andanswerdifferentactivities

Test theunderstanding of thestudents

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Awaken thestudents’ interest

to the topic

Typical

Typical

Typical

Typical

Typical

Studentsare activeduringdiscussion

Helps thestudents tobe activelyinvolved inthelearningactivity

Increasedtheattentionandmotivationof thelearners

Enables thestudents toworkindependently

Catches thestudents’attention

Table 1 shows that 1st year college students viewed

workbook as a source of information in which it helps them

to fully understand the lesson, broadens the knowledge of

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the students to the topic, information are accessible

anytime because it can be brought home, serves as good

reference for both teachers and students, used for clarity

and used to expound the lesson. Second, it serves as

thinking skills enhancer: develop the learning of the

students through the use of various activities, used as a

material to enhance the students’ ideas to the topic, build

the comprehension skills of the learners, enable the

students to analyzed and answer different activities and

tests the understanding of the students. Lastly, awaken the

students’ interest to the topic: students are active during

discussion; helps the students to be actively involved in

the learning activity, increased the attention and

motivation of the learners, enables the students to work

independently and catches the students’ attention.

Table 2: Themes and Core Ideas of the Negative Standpoints

on the Use of Workbook in English Classes

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In spite of the optimism of the participants on the use

of workbook in English Classes, they also considered

workbook to have a negative effect to the behavior of the

students and teachers.

NegativeStandpoints Frequency of

ResponsesCore of ideas

Major themes

Dependent toworkbook alone

Heavy to carryeveryday

General

Variant

General

Students willnot havefurtherresearchabout thetopic becausethey willjust rely tothe workbook

Teachers willjust let thestudents readand answertheirworkbookwithoutdiscussingthe lesson

The students

44

will feellazy oncarryingtheirworkbookseveryday

Table 2 shows the negative standpoints of the first

year college students on the use of workbook. Using workbook

can be negative in a way that the students will be dependent

to the workbook alone in which students will not have

further research about the topic because they will just rely

to the workbook and teachers will just let the students read

and answer their workbook without discussing the lesson.

We had ten (10) different first year student

interviewees which are from two (2) different schools so as

anyone could imagine conducting our interview isn’t easy. We

had to adjust our schedules in order to accommodate the time

given by the interviewees to us, yet we had to postponed and

reschedule twice due to the absence of some interviewees who

had failed to inform us then that they couldn’t make it due

45

to conflict of events. Nonetheless, we had managed to pull

through which at the end is quite relieving.

As our group settled to start the interview some of the

students were noticeably fidgety and seemingly nervous

despite that we faced them with smiles on our faces which

made them a bit relaxed and eventually had the will to

exchange jokes and laughter with us.

The Use of Workbook in English Classes

Furthermore, as the interview continued the students

gave the different insights of the question that were asked,

one of which is the second question on the interview guide

that includes how often the workbook is used in their

classes. Despite the fact that the students that were

interviewed came from different schools they all agreed that

the use of their workbooks depends upon the syllabus of the

teacher.

46

A student stated that they only have workbooks on

selected subjects. Particularly on subjects that includes

language and communication.

“Uhm kanang not all subject nga naa mi workbook pero sa English ug

Filipino kay naa mi workbook so kanang everytime kanang ano sa English

discussion is nagagamit mi ug workbook.” (PsI5)

Ikerionwu (2000) refers to instructional materials as

objects or devices which help the teacher to make learning

meaningful to learners. The purpose of instructional

materials is to promote efficiency of education by improving

the quality of teaching and learning.

Another student added that the frequency of usage of

the workbook in their English subjects depended on the

semester’s listed lessons.

“Uhm how often? Kanang this second sem ay tung first sem usual always

jud namo siya ginagamit pero katong pagka second sem kanang murag mga

prelim or half sa midterm ginagamit gud siya pero dili na kayo kay research

47

naman pud gud pero kung ang didto gyud tanan ang ginatudlo samong

teachers bali murag naa pud didto gyud tanan ang ginatudlo samong teacher

bali murag naa pud didto ang guide sa kanang sa mga balay research ana

gud.” (Ps17)

Another one stated the significance of their workbook

is not much emphasizes since its purchase and production was

delayed.

“So when it comes to katong pagamit ato para sa akoa kay kanang

ginagamit gud namo siya although kay kanang bag-o lang siya namo na release

kay kuan man kanang amo pa siya ipurchase didto so ginagamit namo siya kay

naa man didto sa last page didtoa kay kato kami ra first year for second

semester kay naa mi research paper by group siya so naa didtoa ag mga guide

kung unsaon so importante siya nga dapat jud kanang tingklase napud sa

English sa period sa English dapat naa jud siya kay kung magdiscuss pud ang

teacher ba nga didto man mi gakuha kung asa na unsa asa name dapit sa

introduction, sa significance of the study ingana.” (PsI5)

Another student answered that the usage of their

workbook was minimal because of the delay of release of the

48

institution hence the workbook becomes backup information of

the current topic of discussion wherein they are currently

dealing.

“Since late na siya na release so para samo pinaka useful siya na pang if

naa mi iresearch paper unya wala mi masabtan unya didto name mag refer

samong workbook kay mao man toy gi pa assign samo na paliton para sa

English namo.” (PsI7)

On the basis of research finding conducted by Fayyaz

Ahmad Faize, et al, (2011), it was concluded the academic

performance of the students is affected by the availability

and the use of instructional materials if there is less

availability, misallocation and deficiency in the use of

instructional material.

The Scope of Lessons on Workbooks based on the subject of

English

The student’s answered differently for the reason that

they had emphasized wherein it would be the teacher’s

49

prerogative yet generally the common variable of the lessons

taught is that it states the basic discussions usually is a

recollection of the topics that were learned during their

high school years and a pre-handed background of the initial

topics and directions on the makings of research paper.

“Mga lesson? First uhm kanang basic for College ay kanang murag

something recall gud from highschool gud natun-an kung unsa pud tung

nalesson pud tung high school kanang murag kanang ginadungagan lang, then

second sem kanang ang topic didto kay kanang paghimo ug paragraph, thesis,

for the research purposes.” (PsI8)

With usable and accessible activities throughout

English Worktext is ideal for undergraduate students and

advanced learners of the English Language. It is also a

valuable resource for families, professionals, learners of

English as second language, and for anybody who wants to use

English more effectively. (Mazon, 2000)

This was supported by another statement of another

interviewee.

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“So karon ng second sem ang akoa jud nabasahan na topic nga naa didto

is about writing, kay gitackle namo ang writing kay kuan kayo ba used kayo siya

samong research paper nga himuonon mao to sa kuan kay katong mga nay

editing, rephrasing, assessing. Inana jud na siya kanang mga topic naa ra man

sa module nga naa didto sa module sa English para sa second sem.” (PsI3)

Moreover, the response of another student cited

emphasis on the fact that the lessons given are fundamentals

of making a research paper.

”Ang module sa first sem is all about of study and thinking skills pang

preparatory na magamit pang second sem is Writing in the Discipline which is all

about for ginatagaan mig techniques na magamit samong research paper on

how to write effectively. (PsI4)

Workbook serves as a springboard to English Language.

It is attuned to the students own particular language needs

and especially designed to enhance and widen the grammar

skills. Workbooks generated critical thinking through visual

language photos, the grammar notes are encapsulated thus,

51

and they are simple and easy to understand for the students.

(San Miguel, 2008)

Correspondingly, another answer from the interviewees

had highlighted the fact that when it comes to the

activities conducted it is usually given dynamics through

grouping all in accordance to the teacher’s directives.

”Ang usual na activities kay group activities, role playing, kay then naa puy

individual mga kuan na activity mga inana gud.”(PsI2)

It provides exercises adjusted to the three different

levels of student competence – basic, intermediate, and

advanced. With such divisions, the teacher can approximate

the level of the student’s comprehension of the lesson and

thus devise ways to assist the students or individual.

(Dadufalza, 2007)

From another perspective, it also gives off agreement

with the prior statement.

52

“So namention nila ang by groups, naa pud mi by pair, inana gud. By pair

namo among ginabuhat, kato mao to among kadalasan ginahimo.” (PsI6)

Thus worksheets are known to help students gain

scientific process skills such as setting up experimental

mechanism, recording data, interpreting the data, and so on

so that they can conceptualize the concepts in their mind.

(Kurt & Akdeniz, 2002)

Activities conducted involving Workbooks on English Subjects

Based on the statements that were analyzed activities

were limited due to the conflict of schedules of the

curriculum that should be followed thus creating a

restriction to the regularity of the use of Workbooks on the

English subject.

As stated in the following responses, the activities

are diversified by the number of participants that is

included nevertheless each deed promotes cooperation and

unity among the students.

53

“So far in this sem naa mi sa topic kanang summarizing and

paraphrasing, so ginatagaan mi kanang naa mi kanang paragraph or text

basahon then amo siyang isummarize or paraphrase, by group siya or by pair,

naa puy individual so kato siya nga, kana siya nga mga activity makatabang

man pud siya ba so that ang cooperative pud sa isa’t isa ma enhance pud siya

ato nga naa puy ma share naa puy mahatag siya nga knowledge.” (PsI8)

Many workbooks are actually "worktexts", containing

both instruction and practice, providing both drill and

review. Better quality worktexts include problem-solving

items that encourage this kind of higher-level thinking in

addition to the traditional fill-in-the-blank and define-

the-term exercises. (Knapp, 2006)

Additionally, it was further reiterated that usually

the activity given is permitted to be brought home and

worked up on.

“So naa pud mi mga bring home assignments gani nga para inig kuan sa

teacher nga sige iassignment ni aron ma read namo in advance jud ang lesson

tas ma answeran namo tung kuan.” (PsI10)

54

Workbooks are helpful for keeping one child occupied

while working with another. Workbooks that children can do

on their own are valuable supplements for homeschooling

families who travel or who frequently do their "school time"

away from home. (Knapp, 2006)

The Aid of Workbook on the English Subject

The students expressed the advantage of workbook in

their lesson particularly in terms of reviewing the previous

lessons. This makes the topics easily understood and gives

off an access of information that could be tracked anytime

for examinations.

The testimony of one student backed up the factuality

of the core and unified premise of all the interviewees.

“Helpful gyud kaayo te kay aside nga kanang diba workbook from the

word book libro siya pag naa diri sa school as well as pwede namo siya ma bring

home, easy to bring, then naa na gud tanan concept, activities, kung unsa tung

nasulod sa isa ka semester nga topic naa na didto dili kay book man gud kay

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diba daghan pa diay reference sa book, kung didto sa workbook kanang giisa

najud siya tanan ba that’s why ma easy for the student nga mas maka learn jud

gud kay madala sa balay ana gud.”(PsI5)

Alan Tough (1967) initially described this process as

‘self-teaching’. In such circumstances, learners assumed

responsibility for planning and directing the course of

study. As he developed his approach Tough tended to

conceptualize his approach in terms of learning projects.

Likewise, another student expressed its confirmation

with the significance of the workbook on recalling and

reviewing prior lessons.

“Sa akoa pud lahi pud akong comment niana useful jud siya kaayo pud

pero ako lahi kaya lang ang akoa kung icompare gud siya sa classroom nga

naay workbook ug classroom nga walay workbook, dili sa tanang panahon ba

magdiscuss ang teacher masulat jud gani sa board, dili tanan jud mga

important na words na dapat jud itake up na dapat jud idiscuss masulat sa

board, pero kung naa kay workbook naa man guy tendency nga kanang wala

ma discuss niya didtoa ato nga topic kay kuan man gud mareview nimo didtoa

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tanan ba inana siya nga walay makatabang samo labi na nga ting exam gud

labi na ting review na hala unsa gani to wala baya nako masulat tung kani nga

word na dapat naa ni siya sa exam kung naa kay workbook matanaw nimo siya

didto so marefresh nimo siya ba so kung mag exam dali ra gud kaayo

makaanswer kung nay workbook syempre didto ma studyhan nimo siya, ma

scan nimo ma read pajud nimo inana.”(PsI3)

When using pre-made handouts/workbooks, it is necessary

for teachers to tailor their teaching to the handouts,

explaining the material in the same terms or part of a

process in an identical order. Teachers can increase student

engagement by integrating contemporary topics into their

teaching. (Schreiner, 2008)

The Demand of Workbook in English classes

Some interviewees expressed that the usage of workbook

is not compulsory yet it is advisable because it would serve

as a guiding tool in order to attain the comprehensive

understanding of that specific topic while others expressed

57

the great demand of workbook for better process of learning

and evaluation of the student’s knowledge.

“For me dili nako ginaingon na tanan campus mag workbook but for me

its kanang advisable jud dili man gud sa tanang panahon nay reference ang

kana gung students makapangita jud siyag reference for that certain topic so

kanang naa nagud daan ang workbook so naa nay idea for the next topic or

kanang unsay mga pwede nimo buhaton kanang at the same time pud di man

pud gud siya sayang di jud siya sayang, kanang magamit di man gud siya

mabubulok so ma use jud siya magamit sa imong mga manghod na musunod

gud nga kuan next generation nga magskwela.”(PsI1)

Worktext distinguishes itself from other form of

instructional materials by weaving into the sets of

exercises stories, meant to equip learners with classical,

firmly and educational pieces of information. (Mazon, 2000)

On the other hand, a student pointed out the great

significance of using workbook on English subjects so that

there would be no confusion on the point of origin of the

58

information that is being tackled thus he gave a verdict

that using workbooks should be strongly implemented.

”Para sa akoa dapat lang jud nga nay workbook para pud halimbawa

magstudy mo siya lahi na nga reference, lahi lahi ba, nay ma confuse unsa man

gud unsa man jud unsa man jud an tinuod ani, unsa ang original ani mura gud

ug inana so kung nay workbook man gud murag naay unity murag isa lang ba

kulang na lang ang mag expound magexplain kay para masabtan jud namo

kung unsa jud ba nga mga lessons.” (PsI9)

Ema and Ayaji (2004) viewed instructional material as

an “acts of giving help normally by teachers to provide help

and encouragement n students or pupil’s learning activities.

They further described instructional materials as tool,

which can easily be used by a teacher to correct wrong

impressions and to illustrate things that learners cannot

forget”.

This was supported by another statement which had given

confirmation on the current concern of having a specific and

sole source of reference.

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“Sako kay need jud siya kay naa man guy, so first sem ni na module so pag

abot namog second year, third year, naa man gud nay mga lesson na ma recall,

uy naa man diay mi ani sa first sem so pwede namo buklaton unsa to na page

mao ni siya nga lesson magsearch napud ko sa internet kuan napud ang time so

icompare pud namo diba its provided man jud tag mga books diba so diba

much easy pagabot ug College ma realize jud nimo unsa siya ka importante

especially sa mga subjects nga walay workbook kay ikaw juy mangita sa

kuan.”(PsI4)

Workbook is designed to cater to college freshmen

enrolled in English classes. It contains an intensive study

of a sentence through its word, phrase and clause

components, its structure and meaning. (Dadufalza, 2007)

The Level of Difficulty in Answering the Workbooks in

English Subjects

60

The students gave off a confident response as this

question was asked. Unanimously they indicated that

answering the workbook would be classified as easy due to

the detailed information that is on the context of each

workbook.

One of the testimonials cited that the activities on

the workbook are in one way or another related to reality

thus making it relatable and easy to grasp.

“Diba sa workbooks nay mga activities mga pang answeran, bali easy lang

jud siya, easy lang jud siya tungod kay somewhat gina expound siya and relate

siya sa reality, pag answer sa workbook kay di man gud siya o.a ka complicated

kanang makaya jud siya kanang kung maka sabot lang mo sa topic makaya jud

siya answeran katong all the questions nga naa didtoa.”(PsI6)

It is well known among educators that the educational

experiences involving the learner actively participating in

concrete examples are retained longer than abstract

experiences. Instructional materials add elements of reality

by improving concrete examples to learning. (Demirel, 2004)

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Another student answered that because they could review

and re-read the previous lessons and has the prerogative of

bringing the workbook to their respective houses thus making

the activities due for evaluation in the workbook compliant.

“So kung naa mi workbook ang topic na madiscussed sa teacher naa man

jud na didtoa no bali amoa man jud ng mabasa no and amoa jud ng masabtan

ug taman so pagabot sa activity ana murag naa nami mga ideas unsaon siya

paganswer ba kay di ba at the same time madala man namo siya sa balay

pwede nga mag advance study mi halimbawa kung mag advance study mi

makakuan name kung unsay buhaton ana, kung nay workbook man gud maka

advance pud kag study ba at the same time madala gud namo so makabasa

basa mi sa balay kung gusto namo.”(PsI2)

This was seconded by a new statement strengthening the

idea of workbook’s reliability in basis for easier

compliance.

“For me, much easier kung naay answeranan sa workbook kay sa other

page pwede nimo ma rely kung unsaon ni siya pag answer sa workbook nga uy

naa diay mga lessons diri unya pagbasa nimo so kung wala ka kabalo sa answer

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pwede nimo siya ma rely nimo sa next page kung unsay mga gipangtackle na

lesson.”(PsI7)

Thus worksheets are known to help students gain

scientific process skills such as setting up experimental

mechanism, recording data, interpreting the data, and so on

so that they can conceptualize the concepts in their mind.

(Kurt & Akdeniz, 2002)

Hence, they all resorted into one common point of view

that the comprehension and evaluation of a lesson being

taught is much attainable when there is a workbook.

Workbook as an Effective Tool in Increasing the Student’s

Interest

The interviewees answer varied on this aspect some

had stated that too much reliance on workbooks causes the

student’s tardiness and incapability of extending and

striving to go beyond more than what they already know.

While some stressed that workbooks especially those includes

63

various actual activities promotes fun and a new learning

experience for the students which in return made them more

eager to enhance their awareness.

On student expressed his various concerns on workbooks

which highlighted the fact that it may be that the student’s

enhancement depends upon the student itself while on the

other hand workbooks serves as reference and learning guide

of the student’s capacity and the extent of his

understanding.

“For me it’s subjective eh, because some people will say that it depends

upon the student’s capability on how to understand his or her lesson, but for me

also it is very helpful for the student to have a workbook for them to have a

reference on their lesson.“(PsI1)

The aim ‘is to make the subject a continuing “inner-

directed”, self-operating learner’. Learner self-direction

refers to ‘characteristics of an individual that predispose

one toward taking primary responsibility for personal

learning endeavors. (Brockett and Hiemstra, 1991)

64

Likewise, the second student gave off the same response

which agrees to the prior opinion.

“Uhm for me it’s very important of course it can if you have time to read

your books, you can practice or it will develop your reading and learning

comprehensions about the English subjects.”(PsI2)

Furthermore, the students indicated that through

workbooks a bridge of communication is built between the

teacher and the class since they have the same reference

thus makes it easier for the lesson to be conveyed and

illustrated.

“With the aid of the workbook the student and the teacher would have an

intellectual intercourse because they have the same reference in how the lesson

they are going to tackle which is very helpful on the topic they are going to tackle

for me, but for other people they would it’s not important uhm it is important but

not that much but for me it is very important because it forms a bridge between

the teachers and the students.”(PsI2)

65

The use of instructional materials does not only

encourage teachers and students to work collaboratively but

also results in more cooperative learning activities among

students. (Ikerionwu, 2000)

The Implementation of Workbooks on All Subjects on Various

Schools

The interviewees outlook on workbooks are fused into

one main point, the usage of workbooks must be encouraged

yet it should be withhold so that it would not come to a

point wherein the students have become too dependent and

contented on what is handed unto them.

There are several studies showing that worksheets

increase student’s interest in the lesson and affect their

success in a positive way (Saka, 2002).

“Uhm for me I will not recommend that the workbook would be used in all

subjects because it will get us bored and it may be used for the major subjects

66

but if all I will not because students will not get their research because they will

depend on their workbook.”(PsI6)

Teachers can increase student engagement by integrating

contemporary topics into their teaching. The creation of

customized handouts allows them to do this seamlessly. It

can keep student’s interest by including topics that they

care about in the handouts. Students notice this extra

effort and enjoy these little additions. (Schreiner, 2008)

Chapter V

DISCUSSIONS

This chapter begins with a restatement of the purpose

of this study and a review of the methodology and results.

Next, a presentation of the results and their relationship

to the research questions is provided. Implication for

practice and recommendations are also presented for

education professionals who administer academic support

67

programs as well as for college level administrators in

general.

Summary of Procedures

In-depth interviews were conducted with the students

who participated in our study. The students agreed to tell

their story to illuminate their own standpoints on the use

of workbook specifically in English classes. The interviews

were audio and video-taped and transcribed later. Data

analysis were then applied and resulted in the

identification of five major themes; (1) good source of

information, (2) thinking skills enhancer, (3) awaken the

students’ interest to the topic, (4) dependent to the

workbook alone and (5) heavy to carry every day.

Summary of Themes

The students who choose to participant in this study

shared their standpoints on the use of workbook in English

68

classes. In doing so, themes emerged in the areas that

consist of good source of information, thinking skills

enhancer, awaken the students’ interest to the topic,

dependent to the workbook alone and heaviness to carry.

Good Source of Information

The participants described workbook as a good source of

information: it helps students to fully understand the

lesson, broadens the knowledge of the students to the topic,

information are accessible anytime because it can be brought

home, serves as a good reference for both teachers and

students, used for clarity and used to expound lesson.

Thinking Skills Enhancer

Workbook developed the learning of the students through

the use of various activities, it is used as a material to

enhance the students’ ideas to the topic, build the

comprehension skills of the learners, enables the students

69

to analyzed and answer different activities, and it tests

the understanding of the students.

Awaken the Students’ Interest to the Topic

Through the use of workbook in English classes, the

students are active during discussion; helps the students to

be actively involved in the learning activity, increased the

attention and motivation of the learners, enables the

students to work independently, and catches the students’

attention.

Dependent to the Workbook

According to participants, the disadvantage on the use

of workbook is that students will be dependent to the

workbook alone for students will not have further research

about the topic because they will just rely to the workbook,

and lastly, teachers will just let the students read answer

their workbook without discussing the lesson.

Heavy to Carry Everyday

70

The participant find workbook heavy to carry every day

that made them feels lazy on carrying it everyday.

According to the results, the participants give

positive reviews on the use of workbook in English classes

because it provides good source of information, serves as a

thinking skills enhancer and it awaken the students’

interest to the topic. Their feedback and opinions give

clarification on how useful the workbook is in the learning

abilities of the students. In spite of the positive

responses of the students, negative reviews were raised and

were not neglected. Chiefly, because of the students and the

teachers will be dependent to the workbook alone and the

workbook is heavy to carry everyday.

Recommendation for Future Research and Implication for

Practice

In an effort to address the contributions of this

research study, results gleaned from this study indicate

several important recommendation for ways in which the use

71

of workbooks in English classes can be designed to better

meet the student’s needs.

The recommendation for practice, in accordance with the

findings of the study, have implications that suggest that

the college student population needs the provision of

academic support in implementing the use of workbook in

English classes since workbook plays an instrumental role in

today’s academic environment.

The success on the use of workbook in every school or

universities will depend on how the teacher will use this

instructional material to have active learners in classroom.

The use of workbook is beneficial for both teachers and

students since it create learning strategies.

Conclusion and Remarks

The use of qualitative methodology was beneficial in

uncovering the standpoints of the students on the use of

72

workbook. In-depth interviews were conducted with the

participants of the study and were utilized to explore how

does the use of workbook affects the students’ learning

process.

First year college students from University of

Mindanao- Tagum and University of South Eastern Philippines-

Tagum who are using workbooks have had a positive response

on the use of workbook in their English classes and in other

subjects. They considered workbook as a great help on their

subjects because through workbook it is easier for them to

review on which part of the lesson they have difficulty with

and which part of the lesson they need to study more and

through workbook they can have the same references from

their teacher’s reference. Therefore, workbook is an

effective instructional material that can be used in English

classes to enhance and motivate students’ interest in the

subject.

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The shared stories of the participants produced an

increase of awareness on how workbook helps them for better

understanding about the lesson. Each students’ standpoints

give clear vision that workbook is a good tool to enhance

and increase students’ interest to the English subject.

The workbook served as a great tool when it comes to

the inculcation of knowledge on the student’s minds.

Generally, the workbook becomes a guiding system wherein the

students gets evaluated, enhanced, and measured their depth

of knowledge yet there is a slight of confusion for some

opinions when the vitality of workbook in the English

curriculum is brought up, for the reason that the student’s

perception may be dependent to what is solely written in the

workbook’s directives and may fail to strive and seek for

wider references that may help them for deeper understanding

and retention of the lessons in their minds. Yet though

there are shades of grey in that matter we had foreseen the

greater good impact of the workbook.