General Education of Grade 11 Students in Relation to Confidence and Creativity as Perceived by Faculty and Students of Balayan Senior High School

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Students often view courses that fulfill a general education requirement as unnecessary or not related to their interests or major. They do not see the relevance of such courses and sometimes contribute minimal effort to understanding the material and making connections to other fields of study, including their own academic major. This study may enlighten the students to revitalize the significance of these subjects to their lives. Also, this study may be a basis of the teachers' improvement of their teaching delivery of the general education subjects.

METHODS

The descriptive design with the quantitative approach of research was employed in this study. The researcher utilized a self-constructed questionnaire as the major tool in gathering data. One hundred Grade 11 students and 13 faculty members teaching general education in Balayan Senior High School in the SY 2017-2018 were the subjects of the study. A semi-structured interview was also undertaken in order to have deeper understanding of the gathered data and the topic being studied.

RESULTS

Student and faculty-respondents perceived general education subjects to enable the students to become proficient and effective in communication such as in writing and in speaking. Moreover, the student-respondents agreed that general education gave them the capability to investigate and analyze information, materials, problems and texts using a variety of techniques; while the faculty-respondents attested that general education promoted their students' higher level of textual and visual comprehension.

DISCUSSIONS

The findings suggested that general education teachers reported to be using instructional strategies in enhancing the communication skills of the students. Besides, the general education teachers were reckoned to engage the students in discussion and activities that enhance their analytical thinking, problem solving, and textual, and visual understanding.