Abstract :

This phenomenological study sought to explore the lived experiences of the low-performing students in terms of the benefits, challenges, and coping strategies in a modular distance learning modality. The focused group interview was used with the purposively chosen respondents and employed triangulation of data to validate their responses. Results show that flexibility of learning, self-paced learning, access to technology, and simplified concepts and outputs were the benefits of MDL. However, lack of interaction with teachers and procrastination are the common challenges that these students have encountered and tried to cope up with. They have adopted positive methods and strategies to manage their difficulty in learning mathematics like self-motivation, seeking support, online information sources, and time management have been essential in studying in this modality. Learning mathematics is formally learned best in school but some of the students displayed positive engagement with MDL and further research should be conducted in that regard.

---

Keywords :

Academically challenged, Coping strategy, Modality, Modular distance learning

---

References :

1. Acharya, B. R. (2017). Factors affecting difficulties in learning mathematics by mathematics learners. International Journal of Elementary Education, 6(2), 8-15.
2. Al‐Qahtani, A. A., & Higgins, S. E. (2013). Effects of traditional, blended and e‐learning on students’ achievement in higher education. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 29(3), 220-234. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2729.2012.00490.x
3. Anney, V.N. (2014). Ensuring Quality Qualitative Through Trustworthiness. Journal of Emerging Trends in Educational Research and Policy Studies (JETERAPS), 5(2), 272-281
4. Ambayon, E. E., & Millenes, C. (2020). Modular-based approach and students’ achievement in literature. Available at SSRN 3723644.
5. American Leadership on the SDGs. (2021, October 8). Unfoundation.Org. https://unfoundation.org/what-we-do/issues/sustainable-development-goals/u-s-leadership-on-the-sdgs/?gclid=CjwKCAjw2P-KBhByEiwADBYWCpVJKVM3Rx6tw4BEbjpFxuT9R9yEDFP7brKFg4Gei1YSus9NaCmgvhoC7iMQAvD_BwE
6. Aron, L. Y. (2003). Towards a Typology of Alternative Education Programs: A Compilation of Elements from the Literature.
7. Arora, A. K., & Srinivasan, R. (2020). Impact of pandemic COVID-19 on the teaching–learning process: A study of higher education teachers. Prabandhan: Indian journal of management, 13(4), 43-56.
8. Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191-215. doi: 10.1037//0033-295X.84.2.191
9. Balentyne, P., & Varga, M. A. (2016). The effects of self-paced blended learning of mathematics. Journal of Computers in Mathematics and Science Teaching, 35(3), 201-223.
10. Bernard, H. R. (2002). Research methods in anthropology: Qualitative and quantitative approaches (3rd ed.). Walnut Creek, CA: Alta Mira Press.
11. Bhamani, S., Makhdoom, A. Z., Bharuchi, V., Ali, N., Kaleem, S., & Ahmed, D. (2020). Home learning in times of COVID: Experiences of parents. Journal of Education and Educational Development, 7(1), 9-26.
12. Bulger, S., & Watson, D. (2006). Broadening the definition of at-risk students. The Community College Enterprise, 12(2), 23-32.
13. Chand, S., Chaudhary, K. C., Prasad, A., & Chand, V. (2021). Perceived Causes of Students’ Poor Performance in Mathematics: A Case Study at Ba and Tavua Secondary Schools. Frontiers in Applied Mathematics and Statistics, 7, NA.
14. Chen, D. J., & Lai, A. F. (2005). Internet and education. New Taipei, Taiwan: National Open University.
15. Cvencek, D., Meltzoff, A. N., & Greenwald, A. G. (2011). Math–gender stereotypes in elementary school children. Child development, 82(3), 766-779.
16. Cos, F. L., Duero, M. C., & Paguia, M. R. S. (2021). The Viability of Deped Textbooks as the Primary Material for the Modular Distance Learning Modality of Carrascal National High School. Journal of Innovations in Teaching and Learning, 1(2), 69-75.
17. COVID-19: Schools for more than 168 million children globally have been completely closed for almost a full year, says UNICEF. (n.d.). Https://Www.Unicef.Org/. Retrieved October 7, 2021, from https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/schools-more-168-million-children-globally-have-been-completely-closed
18. Creswell, J.W. (2013). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches (4^th). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE
19. Davies, P. J. & Hersh, R. (2012). The Mathematical Experience. Boston:Mifflin Company
20. DepEd: Most students prefer “modular learning over online. (2020, July 3). Manila Bulleting. https://mb.com.ph/2020/07/03/deped-most-students-prefer-modular-learning-over-online/
21. Dogruer, N., Eyyam, R., & Menevis, I. (2011). The use of the internet for educational purposes. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 28, 606-611.
22. (2020, June 28). PISA 2018 Worldwide Ranking – average score of mathematics, science and reading. FactsMaps. https://factsmaps.com/pisa-2018-worldwide-ranking-average-score-of-mathematics-science-reading/
23. Fong, C. J., & Kremer, K. P. (2020). An expectancy-value approach to math underachievement: Examining high school achievement, college attendance, and STEM interest. Gifted Child Quarterly, 64(2), 67-84.
24. Gallagher, P. A., & McCormick, K. (1999). Student satisfaction with two-way interactive distance learning for delivery of early childhood special education coursework. Journal of Special Education Technology, 14(1), 32-47.
25. Glesne, C. & Peshkin, A. (1992) Becoming Qualitative Researchers: An introduction New York: Longman
26. Gopalan, V., Bakar, J. A. A., Zulkifli, A. N., Alwi, A., & Mat, R. C. (2017, October). A review of the motivation theories in learning. In AIP Conference Proceedings(Vol. 1891, No. 1, p. 020043). AIP Publishing LLC
27. GUİAMALON, T. (2021). Teaches Issues and Concerns on the Use of Modular Learning Modality. IJASOS-International E-journal of Advances in Social Sciences, 7(20), 457-469
28. Hernando-Malipot (2020). DepEd: Most students prefer “modular” learning over online. Manila Bulletin. Retrieved July,3.
29. Jayaprakash, S. M., Moody, E. W., Lauría, E. J., Regan, J. R., & Baron, J. D. (2014). Early alert of academically at-risk students: An open source analytics initiative. Journal of Learning Analytics, 1(1), 6-47.
30. Kandarp, D., & Principal, S. (2013). Modular Method of teaching.  J. Res. Educ., 2(2), 169-171.
31. Kimotho, M. M. (2018). A review of the coping strategies used by male and female open and distance learning students. African Research Journal of Education and Social Sciences, 5(3), 2312-0134.
32. Lincoln, Y., & Guba, E. (1985). Naturalistic Inquiry. Beverly Hills, Calif, London: SAGE
33. Loughran, J., Gunstone, R., Berry, A., Milroy, P., & Mulhall, P. (2000). Science Cases in Action: Developing an Understanding of Science Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge.
34. Martin, Nancy, K. (1997). Connecting Instruction and Management in a Student-Centered Classroom. Middle School Journal 28 (4), 3-9
35. Marshall, C., & Rossman, G. (2016). Designing qualitative research (6^th). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE
36. McLafferty, I. (2004). Focus group interviews as a data collecting strategy. Journal of advanced nursing, 48(2), 187-194.
37. Miles, M.B., & Huberman, M.A. (1994). Qualitative Data Analysis (2^nd). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE
38. Mohamed, L., & Waheed, H. (2011). Secondary students’ attitude towards mathematics in a selected school of Maldives. International Journal of humanities and social science, 1(15), 277-281.
39. Opolot-Okurut, C. (2010). Classroom learning environment and motivation towards mathematics among secondary school students in Uganda. Learning Environments Research, 13(3), 267-277.
40. Plaxton, K. (2017, December 19). 10 Reasons Why High School Students Procrastinate. The Milford Messenger. https://www.themilfordmessenger.com/uncategorized/2017/12/19/10-reasons-why-high-school-students-procrastinate
41. Peteros, E., Gamboa, A., Etcuban, J. O., Dinauanao, A., Sitoy, R., & Arcadio, R. (2019). Factors affecting mathematics performance of junior high school students. International Electronic Journal of Mathematics Education, 15(1), em0556.
42. Rahmatika, R., Yusuf, M., & Agung, L. (2021). The Effectiveness of Youtube as an Online Learning Media. Journal of Education Technology, 5(1), 152-158.
43. Reysio-Cruz, M. (2019). Worst PH ranking in math, science, reading prompts DepEd review. INQUIRER.Net. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1198208/worst-ph-ranking-in-math-science-reading-prompts-deped-review
44. Robson, C (1993) Real World Research A Resource for social Scientists and PractitionerResearchers Oxford: Blackwell
45. Sadiq, S., & Zamir, S. (2014). Effectiveness of modular approach in teaching at university level. Journal of Education and Practice, 5(17), 103-109.
46. Salmons, J. (2014). Qualitative online interviews: Strategies, design, and skills. Sage Publications.
47. Sejpal, K. (2013). Modular method of teaching. International Journal for Research in Education, volume 2, p. 169 – 171
48. Simsek, H., & Yildirim, A. (2001). The reform of pre-service teacher education in Turkey.
49. Shin, J., Lee, H., & Kim, Y. (2009). Student and school factors affecting mathematics achievement: International comparisons between Korea, Japan and the USA. School Psychology International, 30(5), 520-537.
50. Shurville, S., O’Grady, T. B., & Mayall, P. (2008). Educational and institutional flexibility of Australian educational software. Campus-Wide Information Systems.
51. Soland, J. M. K. (2021, February 12). The impact of COVID-19 on student achievement and what it may mean for educators. Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/blog/brown-center-chalkboard/2020/05/27/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-student-achievement-and-what-it-may-mean-for-educators/
52. Sree, K. J. (2010). Methods of teaching science. Discovery Publishing House.
53. Swanson, A. (2016). The real reasons you procrastinate—And how to stop. The Washington Post.
54. US Department of Education (ED). (1983.). Archived: A Nation At Risk. Https://Www2.Ed.Gov/. Retrieved October 7, 2021, from https://www2.ed.gov/pubs/NatAtRisk/risk.html
55. Wenner, J. M., Burn, H. E., & Baer, E. M. (2011). The Math You Need, when You Need It: Online Modules that Remediate Mathematical Skills in Introductory Geoscience Courses. Journal of College Science Teaching, 41(1), 16- 24.
56. Zhou, N., & Stahl, G. (2007). Towards building a math discourse community: Investigating collaborative information behavior. Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Online Communities and Social Computing, Springer-Verlag Berlin, Heidelberg, 509 – 518.
57. Zsoldos-Marchis, I. (2015). Changing pre-service primary-school teachers’ attitude towards Mathematics by collaborative problem solving. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 186, 174-182.