RESEARCH

The study attempted to determine the effectiveness of high order problems in developing the interest and ability of the Grade VI-SPED pupils of Sanchez Mira Central Elementary School during the school year 2016-2017.

At present, the condition of the Grade VI-SPED class at Sanchez Mira Central Elementary School in terms of their ability in solving word problems during the school year 2016-2017 is quite not good. This is reflected on the pretest results. The Grade Six-SPED pupils have performed very poorly during the pretest conducted.

The prevailing problem in Mathematics is the poor performance level of pupils in solving word problems. The possible causes based on initial study are as follows: (1) lack of interest of pupils in the subject (2) poor performance level of pupils in solving word problems (3) inadequate and inappropriate teaching aid and strategy to fully support the Math instruction.

Based on the aforementioned problems, the use of high order problems was conceived. The use of high order problems is just one of the many techniques in teaching lessons on word problems. The use of high order problems can stimulate critical thinking and familiarity with the concepts taught. With these, Mathematics teachers can create instructional materials to enhance their teaching competence. Solving high order problems make activities in Math more interesting and provides richer learning experiences. Once the pupils are exposed to various word problems, they will use it in their everyday living.

The pupils were given 20 high order problems as pretest and were given an an assignment every other day. A strip of bond paper was given to every pupil containing a high order problem. The assignment was checked after the Mathematics class with thorough explanation on how to arrive at the correct answer. All the assignments of the pupils’ were recorded. Posttest was given after all the assignments were checked and explained. A questionnaire followed to assess the interest of pupils in solving high order problems.

After a thorough implementation of the use of high order problems in developing interest and ability in solving word problems among the Grade VI-SPED pupils for a period of three (3) months, the following salient findings are presented: (1) The poor pupils’ performance level in the pretest was indicative of their low interest and ability in solving word problems (2) Majority of the pupils have improved their ability in solving high order problems after the posttest (3) The significant increase on the number of pupils who solved the problem correctly and the apparent decrease on the number of pupils who solved the high order problems incorrectly is highly attributed to the use of high order problems (4) The improvement difference of pre-test and posttest showed significant results on the progress of the pupils ability in problem solving, thus, the use of high order problems is indeed effective in developing pupils interest and ability in solving word problem.

Based on the findings of the study, it is highly recommended that the plan of actions stipulated in this study be used by each grade level in every elementary school to develop the pupil’s interest and ability in solving word problem in Math. Moreover, the study also recommended the conduct of other strategies and intervention programs geared towards the development of pupil’s interest and ability in solving word problem.

The positive results of this study served as the primary consolation of the researcher after he had painstakingly sacrificed his time and effort during the conduct of the research.