Needs Assessment

for Educational Broadcasts in English

for High School Students of Bayawan City
EMMA HERNANDEZ-ARTES, MDC
DIVISION COORDINATOR ENGLISH, SDO BAYAWAN CITY
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION

educational broadcasting as a learning

reinforcement tool to aid high school students in
Bayawan City Division with focus on the English
learning competencies

Despite schools difficulties in catching up with the

tide of technological breakthroughs in the
Philippines (particularly in Bayawan City, in 2012),
high school learners in the locality express their
need for supplementary materials delivered to
them through print, internet, and radio
broadcasts.
ABSTRACT

This paper assesses the need for educational broadcasts that can be delivered through
a cost-effective medium to help secondary students of Bayawan City, Negros
Oriental improve their English language competencies. With the low academic
performance rating of DepEd Division of Bayawan City, reinforcement tools for students
comprehension in the English language are needed for them to cope with other learning areas.
Based from the focus group discussions of secondary English teachers in the division and the
responses to descriptive survey conducted to selected students from three high schools
BNHS (in urban barangay), KHS, and TPCHS (in rural barangays) educational broadcasts in
English should be developed with focus on vocabulary for the first three year levels and
grammar for the fourth year. The internet is found to be the most preferred and could
be a cost-effective means of delivery considering its accessibility to the target clients.
METHODS

Focus of the Study: The Viability of an English instructional

broadcast series (IBS) for secondary school students of Bayawan
City, Negros Oriental.

This study specifically aims at determining the level of interest/attitude of

the target audience towards IBS as well as their preferred delivery
medium, and at identifying specific topics/competencies in English that
need to be reinforced through IBS.
METHODS

DESCRIPTIVE SURVEY AND DIRECT OBSERVATIONS

TOOLS USED
Needs Assessment Survey
Focus Group Discussion with Teachers of English
Interview with Supervisor in English and focal persons

STATISTICAL TREATMENT and DATA ANALYSIS

Stratified Random Sampling (student-respondents) and Purposive Sampling (teacher-
respondents)
Ranking and Composite Ranking
Frequency count
Content Analysis
RESULTS

Needs Survey among High School Students on Assistance in

Studying for English Subject

3%

Need assistance in Studying for English

Subject

Do not need assistance in Studying for

97% English subject
RESULTS

TOPICS PERCEIVED TO BE TOP RESPONDENTS

DIFFICULT

Idiomatic Expressions First and Second Year High School

Students
Vocabulary Third Year High School Students

Grammar Fourth Year High School Students

Research Writing Mechanics Fourth Year High School Students

RESULTS

In the survey, financial concerns appear to be the most influential factor that
affects their English language competencies especially to the second, third, and
fourth year.
Lack of access to materials and resources at home and in school to help them improve
their communication and linguistic skills is one specific example of this as observed by
teachers.
For most of the freshmen, they considered socialization as the main factor that affect
their English learning competencies.
For some specified answers, family, personal, and teacher concerns were identified
factors also.
DISCUSSIONS (CONCLUSIONS)

Although the student respondents considered English as not so difficult one, secondary students of the
DepEd-Division of Bayawan City recognize their need for supplementary materials/reinforcing
tools in learning and developing their English competence in various topics.
With this, it can be expected that the students also recognize the importance of developing their
English communicative and linguistic skills in a more functional aspect at a global perspective.
Considering the major topics, skills, and competencies in the English learning area, students with the
guidance of their teachers would therefore be able to improve on these since these are the
competencies/topics that are given to all high school students at varying levels, i.e., first, second, third and
fourth year.
DISCUSSIONS (CONCLUSIONS)

With DepEds program on establishing internet connections in school as well as the

proliferation of internet cafes and in some households, and even mobile internet
connections, students have access to and are so familiar with the web.
Apparently, students are still comfortable with the print media probably because they
have been accustomed to its use. Although their internet skills are easily developed, their
association with it is not yet academic and educational.
TPCHS respondents preference of radio broadcast next to internet is relatively due to
its being a rural school which is approximately 30 kilometers from the City proper. Most
of the people rely on radio broadcast as their source of information.
DISCUSSIONS (CONCLUSIONS)

In terms of accessibility to the learners, it may be observed that information and communications
technology (ICT) tools are common to students nowadays, that it seems to be their primary concern in
life. Robin Horn, in his blog posted at blogs.worldbank.org (Janurary 18, 2012), says that :
education leaders from developing and emerging countries desperately want to leapfrog out of their
educational dilemmas with modern technology. Rather than working on improving the quality of
education by slogging through incremental reforms built upon 20th century or even 19th century
practice and norms, education leaders in developing and emerging economies want to take the
proverbial giant leap forward by using new and innovative (though usually unevaluated) technologies.
One provision in distance learning is that materials are tailored in ways that content is brought to
students in the most efficient and effective way possible (Kanas, Jane, nd).
DISCUSSIONS (CONCLUSIONS)

On this basis of Bayawan City students accessibility to all the media options for High
School English IBS, cost-effectiveness of the media for its delivery could not be a question
later. The cost that matters would be of IBS content development and production costs.
With these findings, the target IBS to improve English language competency through a
cost-effective media delivery system somehow could become an initial step towards
achieving an improved academic performance of secondary students of Bayawan City.
CRITIQUE

Development of the English IBS as a supplementary materials to DepEd English Language

Arts Curriuculum
Needs assessment of English IBS for the working learners (those that are already in the
workforce and learning the basics of English is a requirement at work)
A study on the (universal) nature of learners to support policies for provision of
appropriate learning tools and further studies for suited teaching techniques and
approaches