THE RESEARCH PROBLEM
Background of the Study
Science education is an integral part of the school education. So, the quality of science teaching is to be developed considerably so as to achieve its purposes and objectives (Haclao, 2008). Science teaching should enable the students to acquire knowledge that they can use in explaining, understanding and interpreting natural phenomena in the environment.
Among the basics of science, Physics is the most fundamental and all inclusive of all the sciences. It is one of the subjects that need careful re‐examination to determine what improvement could be made to fully develop the students’ potentials in the subject. It’s being tagged as a difficult subject is almost a prophetic statement as shown in the performance of the Filipino students in various international assessments like in the Third International Science and Mathematics Study-Repeat (TIMSS-R) and in the International Assessment of the Students Achievement in Science (Physics) and Mathematics conducted in 2004, Filipino students ranked 36th out of 38 participating countries. (Angell et al.2004). This study shows that the Science performance of the Filipino students specifically physics are deteriorating, hence, need a holistic approach, reforms and coordinated efforts of people concerned to improved their performance (Alcober, 2009).
The declining performance of students is not only revealed in the International Assessments but also at the National Level and down to Division Level as well. For instance, the academic achievement of Hampipila National High School which is the main study of the researcher.
These poor student achievements have prompted and encouraged educational researchers worldwide and the researchers to seek the factors which lead to student’s low performance in physics and optimize those which will lead to improved achievement of the students. Alcober (2009) stresses that this decline in the students’ performance in science