Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region XII
Division of South Cotabato
UPPER MACULAN NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE RECORD (IPR): A GRADING

TRANSPARENCY TOOL MOTIVATING STUDENT EFFORT IN
LEARNING ENGAGEMENT

ACTION RESEARCH
Funded by
Basic Education Research Fund (BERF)
REGION XII
Carpenter Hill, Koronadal City

Author: ARLENE P. NORICO, M.A.Ed.

SHS Teacher II

Co-Author: MARITES C. FACIOLAN, Ed.D.

Head Teacher I

March 8, 2020

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. TITLE PAGE…………………………………………………….. i

II. TABLE OF CONTENTS………………………………………… ii

III. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT………………………………………. iii-iv

IV. ABSTRACT…………………………………………………….. 1-2

V. CONTEXT AND RATIONALE…………………………………. 3-8

VI. INNOVATION, INTERVENTION AND STRATEGY……….. 8-9

VII. ACTION RESEARCH QUESTIONS………………………… 9

VIII. ACTION RESEARCH METHODS…………………………. 9 - 10

IX. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS………………………….. .. 10 -11

X. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION………………… 12

XI. REFERENCE……………………………………………….…. 13

XII. SAMPLE IPR…………………………………………………. 14

XIII. ACTION RESEARCH WORKPLAN AND TIMELINE…… 15-16

XIV. FINANCIAL REPORT

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 III. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am taking this opportunity to express my gratitude to the following

persons who had unselfishly supported me throughout this journey of

research.

First and foremost, to our Almighty Father who vested upon me the

knowledge and wisdom, good health and provision, and surrounded me with

people who inspired and motivated me to finish this study;

To my Senior High School students, batches 2018 to 2020, thank you

for showing me your interest in using our tool. Your smiles and your

eagerness to participate and learn had motivated to continue inspiring you

toward your life’s goals, dreams and aspirations. May you continue your

journey and enjoy success in your respective chosen career,

To my family, especially my son, Radene Joshua P. Norico who

inspired me to continue my research. Your own research with our students

become one of my references in this study,

To my co-author, my ever supportive School Head, Marites C.

Faciolan for her guidance and inspiring humility,

To our Principal In-charge, Maria Vilma H. Somodio who in one way or

another, encouraged me to become a performing teacher by giving me inputs

and insights, Ma’am, my heartfelt gratitude!

To my colleagues at Upper Maculan National High School, your smiles

and your thumbs up has become my motivation,

To the Basic Education Research Fund (BERF) committee particularly

to Dr. Glenn A. Bisnar, our Regional Research Coordinator, to Sir Cristopher

Frusa, our Division Research Coordinator and the evaluating team for their

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efforts in checking the deliverable of this study and giving us this opportunity

to develop our profession,

To the Department of Education family, both the division and regional,

me and my co-author both are in deep gratitude to all of you for giving us this

opportunity to come up with this realization of our dreams to become

catalysts of change.

To all of you, thank you!

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 IV. ABSTRACT

This study aims to explore the different lived experiences of the Senior

high School students of Upper Maculan National High School using Individual

Performance Record (IPR) in writing their scores every after a performance

task, written task and after periodical exam. This tool has been used by the

Senior High School students and their teachers for three years now. IPR is a

grading transparency tool developed by the teacher/researcher upon

discovering that almost half of her students are uncooperative, reluctant and

unmotivated that led them to have poor grades and to worst, absenteeism

and dropping out from the class became a dilemma of the teacher and the

school. With the study conducted by a former teacher, parents are clamoring

about how their children are being graded since they only receive their child’s

report card at the end of the school year. To come extent, despite of not

having their scores seen, students were so confident that even they do not

perform well in class still they will be promoted due to this zero drop out of the

department. Senior High School students also demonstrated the same

attitude which at first becomes the problem of the teachers. This is the

reason why the teacher, at the same time the researcher innovate a grading

tool where the student himself records his score manually every after a

performance is done and countersigned by the subject teacher.

With the use of this tool, the teacher observed that the students

become motivated, active and cooperative. Learning engagement become

smooth and absenteeism slowly being minimized. Further study shows that

the students become more responsible in keeping their tool for monitoring of

their performance whether they will succeed and to some when they found

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 out that their grade is about to fail, they come to their teacher and ask for a

remedial. Thus, the tool also served as an immediate reference whenever

intervention is needed to be applied.

KEYWORDS: Individual Performance Record (IPR), Learning Engagement,

motivated, Performance tasks, transparency

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 IV. CONTEXT AND RATIONALE

Several papers have proposed that grading system affects students’

incentives to exert effort. In particular, previous literature has compared student

effort under relative and absolute grading systems but the results are mixed and in

implications of the models have not been empirically tested. (Paredes, 2017).

May teachers spend hours arguing with students and parents about final

grades every term. Grading discrepancies happen when a student, expecting a high

score, gets surprised by a sudden drop. With no more time to correct the issue with

extra credit or in-class assignments, they often consider arguing to be their only path

left. When students can not see their progress and performance throughout the

year, they may not realize how low their grade has fallen Even when students

realize they are at-risk, they rarely share the information with their parents. If the

grade drop happened after mid-terms, parents might find out about a failing grade

until the final report card hits the mail. However, one straightforward and elegant

solution to grade shock is improved transparency. (Senior Systems, 2016)

An American comedian, George Carlin said, “Honesty is the best policy”.

This motto is so simple that most of the time truth of it is being disregarded. It is

where this research proposal is founded. When we build trust, and values, good

character follows.

I have been teaching in an Indigenous Peoples schools at Lake Sebu, South

Cotabato for seven years now. I was able to teach in the elementary grade at Upper

Maculan Elementary School for almost four years and now presently teaching in the

Senior High, both are Tboli schools. My experience in teaching in elementary had

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moved me to study more about their culture. I was not able to pursue this aspiration

until I was moved to the Senior High of Upper Maculan National High School.

My first day in the Senior High had become a great challenge knowing that in

my list of enrollee, there are thirty-five (35) enrolled in the first semester and that

time there were only twenty (20) left attending their classes. I found out that there

were students who dropped due to habitual absences and lack of interest, and yet

there were still inside the school just around trying to escape and hide themselves

from their teachers. Right away, I called up their attention and to my surprise, there

were seven of them who said that they were interested to learn but they lost their

interest because there was no permanent teacher guiding them and encouraging

them to attend their classes. Knowing their reasons, I was so downhearted. I then

encouraged them and religiously, I never get out of my room even if another subject

teacher came for their class. I had always want to be visible to them.

That actions I had demonstrated to them helped them to stay in class but still,

another problem I had observed was their reluctance. Most of them were not

participating, inactive, introvert and unmotivated. When being asked why most of

them demonstrated such actuation, one of the vocal student without hesitation

answered, “Pasado lang man mi gyapon mam biskan indi kami magparticipate, para

ano nga mag-effort pa kami?” (“We still pass and promoted even we do not

participate why should we effort then?”). This moved my heart so sad. This was the

reason why I looked for an innovation to change their minds from this negative

notion.

After a week of observations and study on their behaviour, I come up

with an innovation which I believed will motivate them to participate. I

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conducted study and one of the research which I came up with was the

grading transparency which will move the learner more active and participate.

I developed tool, a manual record system which the learner himself would

write his score and daily he would monitor his grade. Giving them this tool, I

observed that participation become alive and learners demonstrated active

and motivated.

We used the tool for two years and found out that our Senior High

School students become participative and their interest in doing performance

tasks improved.

With the help of my co-author, my School Head, we conducted the this

research and made some revisions on the manual record system and further

named it, the Individual Performance Record (IPR) tool. Components to

this tool are the Written Tasks, Performance Tasks and Periodical

Examination with the corresponding percentage (differently in every subject)

based on the K to 12 grading system. After their recording, the teacher would

gather and countersign the score confirming that it is recorded in the

teacher’s e-class record. The tool also serves as their monitoring form

whether they would pass or fail the subject. Remedial could then be given

after the score being analyzed.

What is Grading Transparency? For a lot of parents, the focus on

transparency comes from a desire for a more fair grading system. Parents

want to make sure their child is being graded along the same lines as every

other student. With grading policies that include intangibles like classroom

participation, though, it can be difficult to ensure that every grade is “fair”.

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From an administrative standpoint, transparency gives each grade an added

validity. Teachers can point to cumulative cause and effect for each resulting

grade. Added transparency does not have to remove the subjectivity of

grading, but it should communicate grade changes more quickly and clearly.

How does Grade Transparency work? In a system where parents

and students have near-instant access to grades, they can see test results,

scores on essay assignments and areas where a student is under performing.

There is no need to wait for mid-terms to address a problem or deal with

grade shock at the end of the year. Instead, parents can instantly identify

problem areas and work with teachers to create a plan for bringing grades

back up.

Many independent schools already have online grading in place. At

the beginning of the year, instructors upload a list of everything that students

are expected to turn in during the term. That list might include major projects,

tests, quizzes, homework assignments, classwork and anything else that can

affect a final grade. Some schools include attendance as part of the final

score. With everything clearly posted, kids can see there they are on their

way to a passing score or what they need to do to bring their grade up to an

A. By laying things out clearly, teachers show students exactly what they

need to do to earn their desired grade.

Transparency = Communication. When parents and students can

see their current average grade, it gives them the motivation to communicate

directly with instructors. Parents will be more diligent about getting their

children to complete their homework assignments when they can see every

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missed assignment. Parents can also see assignments and due dates ahead

of time, helping them keep students on task throughout the semester. By

giving parents and students greater access to grading as it happens, you

avoid the end-of-the-year rush or missed assignments. Seeing grades help

improve the otherwise adversarial relationship that can often develop

between parents and school administrators. Instead, all of the adults in the

situation can work toward their shared goal: student achievement. (Senior

Systems, 2016)

All learners lean best when they are motivated. (Sogunru, 2014)

The researchers with the desire to ensure success of their students,

they need to know what factors affecting their students’ poor participation and

hence, develop a motivating tool which motivates them extrinsically and may

further create a new seed towards intrinsic motivation. Based on the study,

there includes motivating factors which may affect students’ performance,

they are quality of instruction, quality of curriculum, relevance and

pragmatism, interactive classrooms and effective management practices,

progressive assessment and timely feedback, self-directness, conducive

learning environment and effective academic advising practices. By

discussing that given factors, the tool, Individual Performance Record (IPR)

falls on progressive assessment and timely feedback and effective academic

advising practices.

Quality Instruction. The delivery of an instruction in a way that

evokes students’ interest, critical thinking, and learning in a meaningful way, it

makes students become curious and excited about what they are doing and

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 consequently enabling them to discover learning and take ownership of their

own education. (Sogunru 2017)

V. INNOVATION, INTERVENTION AND STRATEGY

As stated earlier, and Individual Performance Record (IPR) tool was

developed by the researchers to give solution to the problem on the learning

engagement of the Senior High School students of Upper Maculan National High

School. It is the researchers’ innovation based on the e-class record (Teacher’s

record of the learner’s grades). It is a half-sized of a pad paper cut in lengthwise

where the learners are guided through a table of specifications, the Written Task,

Performance Task or Periodical Exam with corresponding percentage. At the end of

the quarter or grading period, the learner can easily identify his status either he pass

or fail.

IPR is an intervention reference. It is where the learner monitor his progress

and in case of failing grade due to lack of performance task, the learner or the

teacher then can agree on an intervention. Once an intervention is made or

performed, the grade can be adjusted before it will become final.

IPR is a strategy where the teacher can also use as motivating factor for a

performance or achievement of the learner. It is a strategy in the case that both the

learner and the teacher easily monitor the progress.

Further, the researcher believed that this could be included as one of the best

practices of the school in promoting honesty and trust between the teachers and the

students in order to achieve better learning and teaching environment. Cases of

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drop outs and absenteeism (due to lack of interest, inferiority, introvert behaviors

and reluctance) are one of the targets to be minimized using such tool.

VI. ACTION RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. What is Individual Performance Record or IPR tool? What are its contents and

how is score/grade recorded?

2. How does it affect the academic performance or learning engagement of the

Senior High School students of Upper Maculan National High School?

3. What are positive behaviors being observed as they manually and personally

record their scores in their IPR?

4. What are negative behaviors demonstrated by the students? How will the subject

teacher handle such behavior?

5. What are the participants’ different perceptions on using the Individual

Performance Record in monitoring the scores? How does it affect their behavior

towards learning engagement?

VII. ACTION RESEARCH METHODS

A total of 70 Senior High School Students from the school year 2017-2018 to

present, with different gender and age, ribe, philosophies and achievements were

selected to be the beneficiaries of this study. 20 out of 70 were already graduated

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and presently enrolled in different academic schools in the nearing

municipalities/cities and the rest are presently enrolled in Upper Maculan National

High School, 20 from the Grade 11 and 30 from the Grade 12. 85% of them belong

to Tboli tribe which informed consent was signed by the beneficiaries and their

parents and even with the approval of the tribal heads. 15% were non-Tboli’s who

voluntarily submitted themselves to be involved in this study. Two Senior High

School teachers who applied the tool were also interviewed on their observations

and experiences which considered this tool be used as a research instrument in

motivating the students towards learning engagement and even further be

strengthened.

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 VIII. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

With the use of a researcher developed questionnaire, the participants were

asked to write their experiences on the use of the IPR and how do they feel about it

as part of their academic endeavour. After the writing, a Focus Group discussion

was conducted together with their subject teachers. With the data gathered, here

are the three different responses of the participants summarized into three

categories, namely;

1. The Individual Performance Record (IPR) is our Academic Booster

IPR to 34 out of 70 participants is one that boosts their academic

performance due to the fact that they have increased in their grades. They

were motivated to join group activities and the more they study to get high

scores in quizzes and other sort of evaluation.

2. IPR is our Best Friend.

10 participants wrote and said that they treat IPR as one of their best

friends for it serves as their motivator, challenger and inspirations especially

when they get high grades.

3. IPR is Life.

Five of the participants answered that IPR is giving them life every

time they are in school. It energizes them to participate and do their best for

their grade to become better.

There are answers not clearly stated whether they like the IPR or not. On the

negative side, there are two students who said that some of their classmates do not

write the correct scores. But this problem is being addressed by immediate call and

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recording in the e-class record by the subject teachers. Initial of the teacher is also

affixed to conform with the written score.

IX. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

With the above findings, the researchers concluded that the use of the

Individual Performance Record (IPR) in the Senior High School of Upper Maculan

National High School is one of the effective ways to boost efforts of the learners

toward learning engagement.

Further, the researchers would like to recommend the said tool be used also

in other grade levels like the Junior High School and Elementary grades in the

district of Lake Sebu East II and even in all schools of the Region XII.

We would like to recommend this tool be modified by the ICT experts into an

application for online learning and recording.

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X. REFERENCE

Lagrange.edu. 2020. [online] Available at:

<https://www.lagrange.edu/resources/pdf/citations08/GRADEINFLATION.
pdf> [Accessed 1 November 2020].

Depedsouthcotabato.org. 2020. [online] Available at:

<http://depedsouthcotabato.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Region-
Memo-PPRD-24-BERF-Research-Proposal-.pdf> [Accessed 1 November
2020].

Birkett, M., 2015. Sandra Goss Lucas and Douglas A. Bernstein, Teaching
Psychology: A Step-by-Step Guide, 2nd edition. Psychology Learning &
Teaching, 14(2), pp.199-201.

Senior, R., Bartholomew, P., Soor, A., Shepperd, D., Bartholomew, N. and
Senior, C., 2018. “The Rules of Engagement”: Student Engagement and
Motivation to Improve the Quality of Undergraduate Learning. Frontiers in
Education, 3.

McCarthy, C., 2016. Life cycle of engagement model boosts enrollment,

advancement, student success. Student Affairs Today, 19(9), pp.1-3.

Senior-systems.com. 2020. Grading Transparency Boosts Student

Engagement – School Solutions For Independent Schools. [online] Available
at: <https://www.senior-systems.com/grading-transparency-boosts-
student-engagement/> [Accessed 1 November 2020].

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 UPPER MACULAN NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
School Year 2019-2020

NAME:___________________________________ GRADE:__________
SUBJECT:__________________ TEACHER:_______________________
WRITTEN TASKS ________%
Teacher’s
DATE ACTIVITY SCORE ITEM
Initial

A. Sub-Total (Score/Item)___%= _____________ TI_____________

PERFORMANCE TASKS ________%
Teacher’s
DATE ACTIVITY SCORE ITEM
Initial

B. Sub-Total (Score/Item)___% =_____________ TI_____________

PERIODICAL EXAM ________%
Teacher’s
DATE ACTIVITY SCORE ITEM
Initial

C. Sub-Total (Score/Item)___% =_____________ TI_____________

TOTAL: (A+B+C)= __________ Final Grade:___________ TI_________

TEACHER’S REMARKS:________________________________

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X. ACTION RESEARCH WORK PLAN AND TIMELINES

WORKPLAN ON IMPLEMENTING ACTION RESEARHC ON INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE RECORD (IPR) TOOL: A Grading Transparency Tool Motivating Student
Effort in Learning Engagement of the Senior High School of Upper Maculan National High School

ACTIVITIES TIME PERSONS RESOURCES BUDGET SOURCE EXPECTED

FRAME INVOLVED NEEDED OF FUND OUTPUT
A. PRE-IMPLEMENTATION PLAN October School Head/ Division/District Approved
a. Download and print 2019 Proponents Memorandum P100.00 Self-help proposed Action
regional/division Research Plan
memorandum
b. Conduct action research
proposal
- Conduct a two-hour orientation First to Proponents and Instructional Participants’
on the use of Individual second the Grade 11 Materials P800.00 MOOE knowledge on
Performance Record (IPR) as week of Senior High School (activity sheets how to record,
participants score monitoring November Students of Upper and solve and assess
tool Maculan National questionnaire) their own
High School performance
output using the
tool.
- Create a data collection 3rd week School Head and Questionnaires, Prepared data
instruments and data analysis of Proponent checklist, P200.00 Self-help gathering
methodology and ensure November journals materials
trustworthiness
B. DURING IMPLEMENTATION 4th week School Individual P200.00 Self-help IPR forms
Implement the use of IPR in two of Head/Proponents Performance reproduced and
or three subjects of Grade 11 for November and Grade 11 Record Form 3 disseminated to
the 2nd semester. students copies for three the participants
subjects/student

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 - Conduct a story telling using 1st week School Instructional 1,000.00 MOOE Written outputs
the given researcher’s of Head/Proponents materials such of the
enhanced questionnaire December and Grade 11 as pad paper participants on
students and pen
Snacks
C. DATA ANALYSIS 1st week School Write ups of the 200.00 Self-help Data analyzed
- CODING of themes from the of head/proponents participants
write ups of the participants December Journals
Checklist
Coding template
D. REVIEW ON RELATED LITERATURE 2nd week Proponent Related P200.00 Self-help Completed the
of Researches review on related
December about the literature,
monitoring conclusion and
tool/grading recommendations
transparency finalized
E. COMPLETED ACTION RESEARCH 2nd week Proponents Documentation P1,000.00 MOOE Completed action
of and research
December reproduction

PREPARED BY:

ARLENE P. NORICO MARITES C. FACIOLAN

SHS Teacher II Head Teacher I
Lead Proponent Co-Proponent

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