PROBLEM SOLVING BASED LEARNING MATERIAL

IN MATHEMATICS FOR GRADE 2

A Thesis Proposal Presented to the

Faculty of Graduate School
San Pablo Colleges
San Pablo City

In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for degree of
Masters of Arts in Educational Management

ANALEA C. AÑONUEVO
 CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Mathematics from Grade 2 is a skills subject. The contents of mathematics

include Numbers and Number Sense, Measurement, Geometry, Patterns & Algebra and

Statistics and Probability as applied - using appropriate technology - in critical thinking,

problem solving, reasoning, communicating, making connections, representations, and

decisions in real life. The ability to use numbers and solve problems in real life is called

Numeracy. Numeracy involves skills that aren’t always taught in the classroom. It

means having the confidence and skill to use numbers and mathematical approaches in

all aspects of life. Numeracy is as important as literacy. In fact, it's sometimes called

‘mathematical literacy. (National Numeracy Org., 2020)

More importantly, Numeracy provides necessary concepts and life skills needed

by Filipino learners as they proceed to the next stage in their life as learners. With this,

it is more important for teachers to find ways to reach every learners and help them

increase the level of performance in numeracy using different measurement like

Integration of Educational Games, Collaborative Learning, Remediation and Peer

Tutoring. Despite of this measurement used by the teacher there are still a difficulties

faced by the learners in numeracy which are Attention Span, Dependency, Retention

and Creativity.

In line with the problem, the researcher, a Grade 2 adviser for 2 years (2018 to

date) was encouraged to conduct a study and developed PROBLEM SOLVING BASED

LEARNING MATERIALS FOR MATHEMATICS FOR GRADE 2.

 Review of Related Literature

The review of literature explores the variable of the study: level of performance of

Grade 2 learners, measures to increase the level of performance, difficulties

experienced by the Grade 2 learners and the development and evaluation of the

problem solving based learning material.

Level of performance

Mauro (2018) explains that an assessment which should be done freshly and

thoroughly each year, a present level of performance should include a detailed

description of your child's current abilities and skills, with attention to learners’ weakness

and strengths and how these will affect his education. Overall, the PLOP is a very

important step in describing a child's academic, physical, and social needs which will

need to be addressed in special education during the current year.

Likewise, Agricola (2018) states that when teachers diagnose their students’

understanding accurately, they can develop and apply more effective and efficient

supervising or mentoring strategies, with conscious consideration of students’ needs.

Park (2020) clear that performance levels describe students’ performance when

instructed on grade-level skills and concepts. Combined with the Quantile Measure, the

performance levels can be used to group students and to determine appropriate

instruction.

Measures undertaken to increase the level of performance

 According to Peters (2019) while playing games is a great leisure activity that

people of all ages can enjoy, games can also be used for learning and educational

experiences. Some games have been found to improve cognitive functions like memory

and reasoning. Other games have the potential to reverse aging related brain function

problem such as short term memory loss. Game-based learning can also done as

collaborative between learners and educators.

In agreement, Loncher (2019) explains that Social interaction in a traditional

classroom often detracts from the learning experience. Social interaction in a classroom

where collaborative learning is emphasized and done correctly improves the quality of

instruction and learning. Effective collaborative learning strategies—such as jig-sawing-

force students to rely on each other for critical information. In addition, collaborative

learning allows students from different backgrounds and cultures to share positive

learning experiences, allowing for diverse students to come together for a common

goal. With collaborative learning, students are required and encouraged to interact and

communicate with their peers.

Alongside, Sudhakar (2018) emphasize that teachers should make good use of

all teaching materials. For example, they may select and use the materials in textbooks

to meet the teaching objectives, or compile their own supplementary teaching materials.

They may also design materials of different standards. Materials from the internet,

newspapers, magazines and references provided by the Education Department may

help teachers design interesting and enjoyable activities to enhance pupils

’effectiveness of learning.

Also, Dowd (2018) says that peer tutors learn by teaching the material to

a classmate or younger student. Peer tutors are challenged to use and hone
their creativity and critical thinking skills to help tutees make sense of new

material introduced by the teacher. Students being tutored can ask questions

to ensure understanding. For both students, repetition aids retention. Peer

tutoring increases motivation and improves the overall academic performance

of the class. If you are looking for a way to combat boredom, absenteeism and

truancy, peer tutoring is the answer.

In addition peer tutoring brings the classroom alive with energy and

positive attitudes. Students who receive peer tutoring are less likely to fear or

detest certain subjects. Peer tutors develop a sense of pride and self-worth

knowing they’re capable of making a positive difference in the life of another

student. Peer tutoring is also thought to increase self-confidence as tutors and

tutees discover they’re capable of mastering difficult assignments and abstract

concepts even without the help of the teacher.

Difficulties experienced on the measures undertaken to increase the level of

performance

According to Thompson (2018), attention span is the amount of time that a

person can spend on a task without becoming distracted. People with a short attention

span may have trouble focusing on tasks for any length of time without being easily

distracted. A short attention span can have several negative effecats, including: poor

performance at work or school, inability to complete daily tasks, missing important

details or information, communication difficulties in relationships and poor health related

to neglect and inability to practice healthy habits. (Healthline, 2020) In particular,

attention is implicated as a key factor in the apparent negative influence of technology

on learning in the digital age. (Lodge, 2019)

At the same time, Higgins (2019) states many students ask teachers for help without

even attempting a task on their own. But the real problem isn’t students’ knee-jerk

requests for help, but rather teachers obliging them. Hence the term, learned

helplessness. A key, then, to students unlearning helplessness is teachers relearning

helpfulness.

Especially, Andriotis (2019) says that retain information longer and better. Design

your learning modules so that they require your trainees to review and summarize what

they have learned. Encouraging critical thinking has been shown to increase learning

retention rates over time, as it fosters an active learning mindset in learners, leading to

greater engagement. Add a review questionnaire at the end of learning modules

alongside a quiz or test, or have group training and feedback sessions, where

participants have to summarize and demonstrate what they have learned – after all, the

best way to learn something is to teach it.

While, Pugliese (2019) opines that creativity is a cluster of skills that are needed to

produce ideas that are both original and valuable and Teaching Creatively has been

defined as ‘teachers using imaginative approaches to make learning more interesting,

exciting and effective’. Teaching creatively requires both the ‘right’ set of skills and

dispositions. One way to teach more creatively is to look at teaching as a problem-

solving activity and to adopt a growth mindset. But can teachers learn to develop our

creativity? The good news is that the so-called everyday type of creativity can indeed be
developed. On the condition that one is a) motivated, b) has the right attitude, and c)

uses some strategies.

In addition, Johnson (2019) states that imagination and creativity are the

traits that fuel the future. Both serve to inspire students and should be

integrated into every part of learning. In  planning and designing learning for

students, this will know: Teaching students how to think is more important than

teaching students what to think.

Problem solving based material can be developed, evaluated, and proposed for

numeracy learning

Apparently, Rasna (2018) says that a balance among cognitive, affective and

psychomotor aspects are required for character education. It is suggested that a theme-

based book for young children should balance the academic and non-academic

aspects.

Gruber (2018) explain that Competency based programs are very flexible as their

structure depends on the individual learner. The focus of CBE is on the final outcome

and not the journey. This enables students to control their pacing because they are not

confined by a set learning process. One of the strongest outcomes of competency

based education is increased student engagement. The cost of competency based

programs varies by institution, program and student pace. One of the key benefits of

CBE is that learning centers on real-world skills and competency development.

Programs are designed around competencies that are needed for a particular career

ensuring that the material is relevant.

Side by side, Marasigan (2019) hold that considering the fact that changes in the

curriculum happen every now and then, it is of prime significance that a teacher must

learn how to be flexible and must employ strategic innovations to develop his/her own

set of instructional materials consonant to the needs of the students.

Theory Model

The present study considers the Knirk and Gustafson Instructional Design Model
(1986) which includes problem determination, design and development as shown in
Figrure1.

Figure 1: The Knirk and Gustafson Instructional Design Model (1986)

The Kirk & Gustafson Instructional Design Model is done in three phases: the problem
determination stage, the design stage and the developmental stage. Each of the three
phases in the Knirk and Gustafson Instructional and Design Model can be broken into
specific objectives in order to complete the required project.

The Problem Determination Stage

Identification of the problem
Conduct a needs assessment and task analysis to determine the objectives that
are required to solve the problem
Learner’s Entry Level Skills
Determine knowledge base of the learner, their communication skills, their
learning styles and their health and wellbeing.
Instructional Goals
Identify general instructional goals. It also highlights the issues to be addressed
via the needs assessment and task analysis.
Organize
Problem Determination stage aids in the organization of instructional
development, by planning, organizing, coordinating, evaluating and reporting on
the results of the aforesaid assessments and analysis in order to pick a suitable
method for design.
The Design Stage
Develop Objective
Cognitive, affective and psychomotor. Terminal and enabling
Specify Strategies
Choose strategies based on the learner, content and available resources.
Specify Media
Media characteristics & Media selection evaluating available resources matching
objectives and strategies and cost effectiveness of the system. Along with
aforesaid choices, suitable activities, materials and multimedia components are
needed to resolve the problem and seal the performance gap.
The Development Stage
Selection Development Materials
Develop existing materials and/or evaluating materials. Materials should attain
the objectives.
Analyze Results
Formative Evaluation, Summative Evaluation, Product and Process
Revise Materials
 Check if objectives are met. Modification of data, Revaluation. Stop Revision if
objectives are met.
Impletentation
Data gathered from formative and summative. Evaluation is used to revise
program. Check if the objectives are met.

Conceptual Framework
The conceptual framework of the study, is an adoption of Knirk and Gustafson
Instructional Design Model (1986) is shown in the Figure 2.

 Level of performance in the study of

Mathematics of grade 2 learners in SY.
2018-2019 in terms of:
-Diagnostic Test
-Quarterly Test and
-Final Grade

 Measures undertaken by the teachers

themselves to increase the level of
performance in numeracy in terms of:
-Integration of educational games
-Collaborative Learning
-Remediation and
-Peer Tutoring

 Difficulties experienced by the Grade 2

learners as assessed by the teacher
themselves on measures undertaken in
terms of: PROBLEM SOLVING BASED
-Attention Span LEARNING MATERIAL IN
-Dependency
-Retention and MATHEMATICS FOR GRADE 2
-Creativity

 Problem solving based material in terms

of:

-Result based Outcome

-Competency based Contents
-Problem solving based learning
activities and
-Evaluation of competency based
learning

 The effectiveness of the developed and

evaluated learning material based on the
result of the pretest and posttest of the
Grade 2 learners.
Figure 2. The Conceptual Framework of the study, is an adoption of Knirk and Gustafson

Instructional Design Model (1986).

The first frame depicts the Problem Determination: the level of performance in the study

of Mathematics of Grade 2 learners in School Year 2018-2019 in terms of Diagnostic

test, knowing where the learners are in view of what they know and what they do not

know; Quarterly test, reveals the mastery learning of the Grade 2 in achieving the

desired competencies in numeracy; Final Grade, the total performance of learners in

Mathematics Grade 2. The measures undertaken by the teachers themselves to

increase the level of performance in numeracy in terms of Integration of Educational

Games, help learners in expanding concepts and reinforce fun-filled learning activities;

Collaborative Learning, an educational approach that involves groups of learners

working together to solve a problem and complete a task; Remediation, to assist

learners to achieve expected competencies in numeracy; and Peer Tutoring, is a

strategy where learners learn together as tutor and tutees. The difficulties experienced

by the Grade 2 learners as assessed by the teacher themselves on the measures

undertaken to increase the level of performance in terms of Attention Span, the

amount of concentrated time a learner can spend on a task without distraction;

Dependency, relaying on others for learning; Retention, ability to retain knowledge in

mind; and Creativity, the ability of the learners to re-think for the new knowledge

leading to creation of new things.

Also in Design, the problem solving based material in terms of Result based

Outcomes, the three domains of learning - cognitive or knowledge development,

affective or education of the emotions, and psychomotor or skill; Competency based

Contents, the specified learning topics as indicated in the DepEd Curriculum Guide;

Problem solving based learning activities, the conceived learning activities by the

researcher for reinforcement and enhancement of the basic skills in numeracy; and

Evaluation of competency based learning , the result of the teaching learning time

The last problem, the effectiveness of the developed and evaluated material

based on the result of the pretest and posttest of Grade 2 learners.

The arrow at the middle pointed the result oriented research, PROBLEM

SOLVING BASED LEARNING MATERIAL IN MATHEMATICS FOR GRADE 2.

Statement of the Problem

The main problem of the study is to develop and evaluate problem solving based

learning material in Mathematics for Grade 2 learners at San Gabriel Elementary

School.

Specifically, the study seeks answers to the following questions:

1. What is the level of performance in the study of Mathematics of Grade 2 learners

in SY 2018-2019 in terms of:

1.1 Diagnostic test

 1.2 Quarterly test and

1.3 Final grade?

2. What are the measures undertaken by the teachers themselves to increase the

level of performance in numeracy in terms of:

2.1 Integration of Educational Games

2.2 Collaborative Learning

2.3 Remediation and

2.4 Peer Tutoring?

3. What are the difficulties experienced by the Grade 2 learners as assessed by the

teacher themselves on the measures undertaken to increase the level of

performance in terms of:

3.1 Attention Span

3.2 Dependency

3.3 Retention and

3.4 Creativity?

4. What problem solving based material can be developed, evaluated by the expert,

and proposed for numeracy learning in terms of:

4.1 Result based Outcomes

4.2 Competency based Contents

4.3 Problem solving based learning activities and

4.4 Evaluation of competency based outcome?

5. Is there a significant difference between pretest and posttest?

6. What is the effectiveness of the developed and evaluated learning material

based on the result of the pretest and posttest of the Grade 2 learners?
 CHAPTER II

METHOD

This chapter specifies the research design, participants of the study, instrument,

data gathering procedure and data analysis.

Research Design

The study will utilize a descriptive and experimental method. Descriptive

describes the characteristics of the population or phenomenon that is being study.(Adi

Bhat 2020) Descriptive method will be used for the measures undertaken by the

teachers and difficulties experienced by the Grade 2 learners as assessed by the

teacher themselves on the measures undertaken to increase the level of performance in

numeracy. Experimental method determine the cause and effect relationship and

identify or define key variables, formulate a hypothesis, manipulate the variables and

collect data on the results (Cherry, 2019). Experimental method will be used to test the

effectiveness of the developed Problem Solving Based Learning Material in

Mathematics for Grade 2.

 Participants of the Study

There will be 2 sections to be used with 30 learners each, with total of 60

learners and 19 Grade 2 mathematics teachers.

Instrument

The researcher made questionnaire will be the main instrument of the study. It

comprised of two parts. First part, the measures of undertaken by the teachers

themselves to increase the level of performance in numeracy. Second part, the

difficulties experienced by the Grade 2 learners as assessed by the teacher themselves

on the measures undertaken to increase the level of performance in numeracy.

(Appendix)

Data Gathering Procedure

A letter of request to conduct the study will be forwarded to the school

superintendent and the principal of San Gabriel Elementary School (Appendix), upon

approval the distribution and retrieval of the questionnaire will be done.

Data Analysis

For Problem 1, frequency distribution and percentage will be used.

For Problems 2 and 3, weighted mean will be applied.

For Problem 4, t-test will be applied.