CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY

INTRODUCTION

Students and young learners around the world are affected by school closures due to

the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. Schools have remained closed for

weeks, and no one knows for certain when the people will come out of the lockdowns, as the

pandemic shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. In the Philippines, Covid-19 crisis

has affected millions of students, teachers and non- teaching staffs, as well as the families of

the learners. The Department of Education (DepEd) announced that the classes will start but

there will be no physical return to school. DepEd is offering schools a menu of alternative

learning methods that includes online learning and offline methods, such as take- home

readings and activities.

The pandemic has forced the adoption of online learning in schools. Teacher training

is also a major consideration that would require schools to readjust their budget allocation in

order to respond to this emerging needs. Online teaching involves a lot of preparation and

teachers now find themselves using different apps, tools and gadgets they are not familiar

with. Regardless of the boundaries and limitation, teachers are expected to deliver the lesson

effectively and ensure that the learners acquired all the knowledge they need even through

online. It is very difficult knowing that there are several factors may affect the quality of

learning through online class. Nevertheless, the integration of teaching methods in online

classroom set-up can somehow give assistance to the teachers from these difficulties.

Selecting appropriate teaching method or technique is vital for the comprehensive

learning of the students. The teachers must have the knowledge about the advantages as

well as the disadvantages of that particular method and it should correlate with the objectives

of the learning. Bringing this particular teaching method and incorporate it through online

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class can increase the learning of the learners just like in a normal classroom set-up despite

of this major adjustment.

Manipulatives are considered models used to teach an abstract topic or difficult

content, which can be vital to students because the hands-on materials are an active way to

learn the subject matter and to increase student engagement for science-related topics.

According to the National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics (2013) “manipulatives used

in classroom instruction are physical objects handled by individual students and small

groups”. This means physical manipulatives should be used in the classroom because

research indicates it’s a beneficial educational tool as it aids learning about abstract ideas.

Moreover, educators have been using manipulatives in the classroom. Martin, Shaw, and

Daughenbaugh (2014) found in a survey that teachers indicated their frequent use of

manipulatives included a shown interest by the students, the belief that hands-on activities

are beneficial for students, and acknowledgement of differing learning styles among students.

One of the teachers responded that “manipulatives and hands on activities are some of the

ways science teachers enforce concepts with their students”. Another educator shared that “It

is very motivational to know they will have an opportunity to ’play’ with the science”.

Models are useful tools in learning science which can be used to improve

explanations, generate discussion, make predictions, provide visual representations of

abstract concepts and generate mental models (Treagust, Chittleborough and Mamiala

2003). When the learners use manipulatives, it supports their retention and recall of important

facts and understandings when manipulatives are provided. Models provide representations

of scientific concepts that can make the ideas more understandable to learners (Huddle,

White and Rogers, 2000). Also, when learners used manipulatives to produce, record,

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organize, and share their ideas, they begin to develop a more positive science disposition

and take ownership of their own learning. The use of manipulatives in the science classroom

increases student’s interest. In a study conducted by Swarat, Ortony and Revelle (2012)

about students’ interest in science learning teachers and students stated that “activities that

were ‘hands-on’ in nature and allowed for engagement with technology elicited higher

interest” (p. 515).

The pandemic set the mind to become more creative and innovative. This integration

of manipulatives in teaching can increase the learning of the students and their competencies

as shown by different researches about using manipulatives. The set-up may be different this

time because of the current situation but when this teaching strategy is integrated through

online, it may show favorable outcome.

In Tanza National Trade School, there are two modes of learning was implemented,

through Online Distance learning and Modular Distance Learning. The learners have a

freedom to choose between Online Distance Learning and Modular Distance Learning.

Online Learning encompasses a range of technologies such as the World Wide Web, email,

chat, new groups and texts, audio and video conferencing delivered over computer networks

to impart education (Arora et al., 2019). Online Distance Learning is facilitated through

various information- communication technologies such as Moodle, Google Classroom,

Google Meet and Zoom. In contrary, Modular Distance Learning defined as individualized

instruction that allows learners to use self-learning modules (SLMs) in print or digital

format/electronic copy, whichever is applicable to the learner (Malaya, 2020).

The researchers will propose an efficient intervention that would augment the current

new normal education approach into much easier and manageable system in learning “Plate

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Boundaries” with the use of manipulatives from Tanza National Trade School who chose

Online Distance Learning as a mode of learning.

The main intent of this research is to give a significant impact to the learner’s

education, amplify their skills, strengthen and support their understanding and meet the

expectations of the spiral progression by the effectiveness of manipulatives as a teaching

strategy to enlighten the Grade 10 learners about plate boundaries. The success of

integration of manipulatives through online depends on how the tool is demonstrated to the

class, the material must be associated to the topic and the thing that must to consider is the

availability of the student’s material.

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A. General

The effectiveness of using manipulatives in teaching Plate Boundaries in an online class of

Grade 10 Students

B. Specific

This research aims to find evidences to the effectiveness of using manipulatives in teaching

Plate Boundaries during the online class of Grade 10 Students. More specifically it seeks to

find the answer to the following questions:

1. Does the use of manipulatives effective as a strategic method in teaching plate

boundaries to Grade 10 students?

2. Is there any improvement in Grade 10 learner's performance after using

manipulatives in teaching?

3. Is there a significant difference in the performance of Grade 10 students who

undergo treatment and with those who did not undergo treatment?

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C. Scopes And Limitations

This study will be conducted to investigate the effectiveness of using manipulatives in

teaching plate boundaries in an online class of Grade10 learners at Tanza National Trade

School. This will be conducted on November 2020 when competencies on identifying and

differentiating the (3) three types of plate boundaries will be taught.

D. Significance Of The Study

This action research study is anticipated to contribute information to the following individuals:

Students-They may be able to grasp the effectiveness of having manipulatives in learning

the plate boundaries during their online class. This study may also help the students

assessing their selves.

Teachers- Through this study, the teachers will know the effectiveness of teaching plates

boundaries with or without using manipulatives. Teachers will be able to know the importance

of using manipulatives in terms of relating the physical objects to their scientific concept.

Moreover, this study may help the teachers to find their own way on how they execute their

manipulatives when they teach plate boundaries through online class.

Researchers- The researchers themselves will benefit from the results and findings of this

paper and they will also gain the knowledge and experience in conducting an action

research.

Future Researchers- This study may serve as a reference for developing theories, research,

and studies about the Effectiveness of using Manipulatives in Teaching Plate Boundaries

During the Online Class of Grade 10 Students.

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CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

The Action or The Intervention

The researchers will be using manipulatives in teaching plate boundaries in an online class of

G10 learners. Manipulatives are models or any available objects that are used to teach an

abstract topic or difficult content. For this research, books, notebooks, and a cookie sandwich

will be used.

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Research Paradigm

Hypothesis
1. There will be no significant difference on the performance of learners exposed and
not exposed to manipulatives during the online class of Grade 10 students at Tanza National
Trade School.

Operational Definition of Variables

Plate Boundaries - are the edges where two plates meet. Most geologic activities, including

volcanoes, earthquakes, and mountain building, take place at plate boundaries.

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Manipulatives - the researchers define manipulatives as physical objects that are used as

teaching tools in order to help students understand mathematical and scientific concepts.

Physical Manipulatives- any physical object could potentially function as a manipulative, such

as box, paper, Oreo etc.

Virtual Manipulatives - Any virtual materials, such as computer-based simulations.

Online Learning – is the newest and most popular form of distance education today. Where in

online learning is an education that takes place over the Internet. It is often referred to as

“eLearning” among other terms.

Online Class- An online class is a course conducted over the Internet.

Research Design

In conducting this study, researchers will be using The Randomized Pretest- Posttest

Control Group Design.

The Respondents

The respondents in this study will be twenty randomly picked students from two (2) different

sections from Grade 10 students at Tanza National Trade School. They will be chosen

because they are the learners attending an online class

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Treatment of Data

The researchers will be using the following statistical tools to interpret and evaluate the data.

Mean. According to Dudovskiy (n.d), the mean implies average and it is the sum of a set of

data divided by the number of data. It is represented by the symbol (μ).

Variance. The variance is a measurement of the spread between numbers in a data set

(Hayes, 2019). It is represented by the symbol (σ²).

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T-test. According to Kenton (2020), t-test is a type of inferential statistic used to determine if

there is a significant difference between the means of two groups, which may be related in

certain features.

n= sample size

s= standard deviation

REFERENCES :
John Dudovskiy, J. (n.d.). Mean, Mode and Median - Research-Methodology. Retrieved
October 18, 2020, from https://research-methodology.net/research-
methods/quantitative research/mean-mode-and-median/
Hayes, A. (2020, September 16). Using the Variance Equation. Retrieved October 18, 2020,
from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/v/variance.asp
Kenton, W. (2020, September 15). T-Test Definition. Retrieved October 18, 2020, from
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/t-test.asp
John Dudovskiy, J. (n.d.). Mean, Mode and Median - Research-Methodology. Retrieved
October 18, 2020, from https://research-methodology.net/research-
methods/quantitative research/mean-mode-and-median/
Hayes, A. (2020, September 16). Using the Variance Equation. Retrieved October 18, 2020,
from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/v/variance.asp
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Kenton, W. (2020, September 15). T-Test Definition. Retrieved October 18, 2020, from
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/t-test.asp

Malaya, B. (2020, August 13). Modular Distance Learning: Here's what you need to know.
Retrieved October 27, 2020, from https://www.whatalife.ph/modular-distance-learning-
heres-what-you-need-to-know/

Dhull, I., & Arora, S. (2019, May 03). (PDF) Online Learning. Retrieved October 27, 2020,
from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/332833360_Online_Learning

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