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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Choosing a career is never the easiest thing to do nor will the decision be

final and absolute. A career choice is essential though because it will determine a

person’s success in the next stage of his/her life. The students have a task to

search and explore their tertiary career options. There are numerous factors that

may affect their decision in choosing your track. It may include their family,

friends, passion, financial capabilities or past experiences. Identifying these

factors would give the parents a sense of reassurance or an idea where the

students place their faith in selecting their career choice. According to Boyer

(1987), “in taking a course, one of the life’s major decisions is being made. A lot

of time, money, and effort will be involved. The shape and excellence of the

students’ life may rest on the result.” The students will choose a career that they

will take for four years in college and partake in supplementary classes that will

help them gain knowledge and hone their skills for the future. The decision-

making process is something not to be taken for granted. Even though the

decision is the farthest thing from the minds of the students, especially those

who just graduated from high school.

Deciding on a strand/track implies that there are choices to be considered,

and in many cases the students want to identify different alternatives as much as
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possible, but in the end, to choose the one that is most fitting with their goals,

objectives, values and so on. One decision may greatly affect the impact of the

quality of life one desires in his/her lives. Each and every person has his/her

own subtle or blatant differences such as a person who has great academic

capabilities, a person who is talented in sports, and a person who is in the

creative sector. From observations, students would prefer to take a course that

would not greatly affect their grades and to minimize their stress. Sometimes

they also have a difficult time in deciding what to choose so they let their parents

decide for them. In other cases, it may work out but if the choices do not coincide

with their interest, they will quickly lose interest and will impact their grades

tremendously, hence the shifting of another course takes place. Therefore, the

performance of the students will affect their grades if the career choice is to be

taken for granted. This is where the K-12 curriculum comes in. Senior High

School is two years of specialized upper secondary education; students may

choose a specialization based on aptitude, interests, and school capacity.

Becoming professionally prepared for the career path choice the students have

settled for the future will ultimately lead to their success and stability in life. In

the process of selecting a career choice, there should be a constant, honest self-

evaluation of their interests, skills, and abilities.

The success of a student’s career can be attained through proper guidance

and encouragement from the people surrounding them. Another way is by

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supporting the choices of the student by integrating career plans and create

careers that are best suited to each and every one’s diverse personalities. This is a

collaborative effort of the school administration, guidance counselor and parents

that should provide a healthy and growing environment for the learners, so they

can have access in whatever course they would choose to make in the future. The

purpose of the study is to identify factors that influence the students’ choices. For

the persistence of this study, the researchers will conduct a case study by

selecting a certain age group of students in Silliman University. The target age

group will be grade 11 students.

Statement of the Problem

Choosing a track is one of the toughest decisions a student has to make. It

requires a lot of thinking and consideration, especially that there are many

factors that may influence and affect the student’s decision. This study aims to

find out the different factors that affect the decisions of Grade 11 students in

choosing their track.

1. What is the profile of the respondents in terms of:

1.1. Name (optional)

1.2. Gender

1.3. Strand/Track?

2. What are the different factors that affects the decisions of the Grade 11
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students in choosing their strand with regards to:

2.2. Personal choice

2.3. Parent's Decision

2.3. Financial Capability

2.4. Facilities?

3. How does these different factors affect the students in terms of:

3.3. Behavior

3.2. Academic performance?

Significance of the Study

There has a been a great change in the Philippines education system,

mainly the K-12 curriculum otherwise known as Senior High. This is the target

group that will benefit the most from this study since they will have to make a

decision on where to go in their specialized tracks for their college courses. As

this has been adapted in the Philippines, parents and students have a hard time

to make decisions. This system caused a big impact to students especially to

Grade 11 students while picking their specialized track. This will also be

beneficial to their parents and high school counselors in providing insights into

college selection process. Moreover, the findings may provide a useful tool for

self-discovery and self-assessment by providing a framework for assessing

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appropriate college choices. The outcome of this study is to find out what are the

factors affecting the decisions of Grade 11 students in Silliman University.

Students. This study will help the students determine the different factors

that influenced their decision in choosing their individual track. Most of the time,

students make wrong decisions because they do not lend much time to decision

making. This study will be a big help to the students who are still confused and

undecided on what track and strand they will choose. This study will help them

develop their decision-making ability.

Parents. This would help the parents know the different factors that

influenced their child decision in choosing a particular track and know how

these different factors affected their child. Parents want their child to be happy

and one of the factors that influences happiness and success is a career choice.

This study will help them understand more about their children and what their

person wants.

Teachers. This study will enlighten them on how to properly assess and

guide the students. Proper guidance from the teachers and counselors will

greatly impact the success rate of each student. This study will enable them to

find different ways to improve the students’ abilities and skills that would enable

them to pursue meaningful careers. This study will also help the teachers create a

better learning experience for the students.

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School. The results of this study will serve as reference in the

materialization of the K-12 Senior High School curriculum. This study will help

the school determine why there is a big difference in the number of enrollees in

various track. This study will give them insights in designing and implementing

a curriculum that will teach the students of Senior High School skills and

knowledge that is essential for their future career.

Future Researchers. This study will serve as a reference that would help

future researchers in conducting their own research studies. This study will serve

as guide that will aide future researcher in their studies.

Scope and Delimitation

The study will be conducted at Silliman University School Year 2017-2018.

The main focus of this study is to give information of the factors which affect the

Grade 11 students’ decision on choosing a track for Senior High School. Grade 11

students of Silliman University Senior High school are expected to participate in

the study.

This study is limited to only gathering information and facts that prove

the validity of the topic which will take about a week or two. Also, the

researchers anticipate the probability that some of the respondents will not fully

cooperate and answer the survey questionnaire truthfully and seriously. Not to

mention that some of these respondents may also be absent and cannot answer

the survey.
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Definition of Terms

For clarification, the important terms used in this study have been

operationally defined.

Grade 11- the eleventh year of school/senior high school, when students are 16

or 17 years old

Track- there are 4 kinds of track in senior high school; Sports Track, Arts and

Design Track, Technical-Vocational Livelihood Track, Academic Track

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CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Career Selection

Career selection is one of many important choices students will make in

deepening future plans. This decision will impact them throughout their lives.

The essence of who the student is will revolve and what the student wants to do

with their life-long work (Basavage, 1996). There are a number of factors that will

play a significant role in the student’s career development. The more they gain

knowledge, experience and control over these factors, the better they will

manage what they do and what happens to them in the future. People need to

make plans ahead of time. This may be time consuming but rewarding as it is

more structured. There are some who are spontaneous, and they do not plan

their decisions ahead of time. The worst scenario is not knowing there is a

decision before them or failing to see it on the horizon and not following

sufficient time to identity and consider the options. Everything we plan now

affects our future and standing in life. We have only one chance to do everything

right. One chance to make our life right (Burnett, 2010). They should be aware of

their interests, values and achievements are, so they are able to make decisions

by themselves with a full understanding of what can be achieved or strive to

achieve in the future (Ibe, 2001).

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According to Ferry (2006), it further asserts that adolescent occupational

choice is influenced by many factors, including the context, personal aptitudes,

and educational attainment. Attending a college where one undergoes self-

awareness and a self-transformation of one’s self is a critical part when one is

faced with the task of decision making. Sometimes, the course one chooses is not

always the right one since they do not enjoy the subjects they are currently

taking.

Benefits of K-12 Curriculum

Senior High School is two years of specialized upper secondary education;

students may choose a specialization based on aptitude, interests, and school

capacity. The choice of career track will define the content of the subjects a

student will take in Grades 11 and 12. While there are many controversies and

complaints from parents and students alike, the researchers believe that the

government delivered a well-made decision concerning about the education

system in the country. For its part, the Department of Education (DepEd) stresses

that the country is prepared for a big shift in education system. In fact, it has

worked to fulfill the gaps on the number of classrooms, teachers, and textbooks.

Also, it has finished the planning phases along with stakeholders. With the

adaption of K-12, the students are more prepared for tertiary education. They

will also be a few years older when they will graduate from college, which

means that the students will be more mentally and educationally equipped for
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their future jobs since they acquired two more years of learning. On the contrary

from the old system, the new system gives the students a choice whether they

will continue to pursue a tertiary education, or they will immediately join the

work force they wish to pursue. K-12 system aims to improve Filipino students’

mathematical, scientific, and linguistic competence. With the new curriculum,

DepEd promised to offer higher quality education through tracks. Each track will

give students enough time to master a field and enhance their skills. In the end,

K-12 graduates will become globally competitive and are set to obtain spot in the

stiff labor market. SHS subjects fall under the Core Curriculum of specific tracks

(Gazette, 2012).

Demand for Jobs and Choice of School

The hospitality and tourism industries are the largest and fastest growing

industries in the world (Walker, 2010). These industries are one of the most

diverse, challenging, and exceptional industries as of the present as they both

generate career opportunities that are mostly in demand in today’s market. The

tourism and hospitality industry are interconnected to each other.

Identifying the possible factors that may influence the student’s decision

in choosing an institution for higher education has been one of the issues that has

peaked the interest of British universities. Recently a survey was conducted and

is showed that student’s choices were limited by distance and travel cost leading

to some of them choosing a school that is within their hometown. It was stated
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that the location of the institution is one of the factors that was needed to be

considered since it was directly linked to the financial capacity of the student.

According to the results, both were said to be very influencing factors in the

decisions of the student because of the lack of transportation and expenses to go

to a school that is very far from their own homes. Without the financial capacity

and convenience to travel, this would negatively affect the decision of a student

in going to a school of their own choice. There are cases that the student has to

think of a different course to take since there are schools that do not have the

courses they previously wished to take.

Observations on Knowledge, Attitude and Behavior

According to Dietrich (2010), there are several factors that influence

decision making. These factors create a big impact in the process of finalizing a

decision. Some of these factors are past experiences, a variety of cognitive biases,

an escalation of commitment and sunk outcomes, individual differences,

including age and socioeconomic status and a belief in personal relevance.

Other Factors Affecting Career Selection:

a. Past Experiences

Their past experiences can affect their decision making. There can either

be two ways on how their past experiences can influence their decision making,

it may show that people will approach a decision similarly to how they did in the
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past or they may tend to avoid making the same mistakes they previously did in

the past. Having positive experiences and role models working in specific careers

may influence the set of careers they consider as options for themselves. One

aspect of Social Cognitive Career Theory addresses the fact that people are likely

to consider continuing a particular task if they have had a positive experience

doing it. In this way, they focus on areas in which we have had proven success

and achieved positive self-esteem.

b. Cognitive Thinking

Furthermore, cognitive biases also influence decision making. Cognitive

biases are thinking patterns based on observations and universal thinking that

will lead to faulty memory, inaccurate decisions and unreliable logic. In decision

making, it influences people by making them more reliant and dependent to

their conventional observations and previous knowledge. As a result, people

dismiss other ideas and information that they may distinguish as uncertain.

c. An Escalation of Commitment and Sunk Outcomes

In addition to past experiences and cognitive biases, decision making can

also be influenced by an escalation of commitment and sunk outcomes. People

make decisions based on commitments, and they become emotionally invested

towards them. They spend more time, money and effort for the future they

decided to be committed to. Some individual differences may influence their

decision making. There have been indications in research that says age,

socioeconomic status and cognitive abilities influence decision making. Since the
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performance of an individual may be affected by one’s age, cognitive functions

may decline due to the increase of age since the ability to make acceptable

decisions have decreased at the same time both of the two did as well.

d. Family

According to Pafili et al. (2009) “The family is one of the major factors that

affects the decisions of a person. Specifically, the person influences the child in

his/her point of view. That is because they are the ones whom the child first

interacts with. They serve as role models and create aspirations for their children.

Through the parents, the child develops an understanding about the advantages

and disadvantages of their profession. This explains why most family members

have the same occupation.” The family is indeed one of the major factors that

affects the decisions of a person. In fact, in every decision a person makes,

he/she consults his/her family first. Other than that, some families also make

decision for its members. But, the most important reason which supports this

idea is that the child grows up around these people and observes them. A child

in a family of doctors is expected to also become a doctor when he/she grows up

as well as a child who grows up in a family of engineers is expected to also

become an engineer in the future. The family possesses a great impact in the

decision-making process of humans as they are the role model which a child

looks up to and in which a child bases his/her decisions. As students engage in

their career choices, they are influenced by the context, personal aptitudes, and
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educational attainment in which the students have a hard time choosing the right

track for their future. Each individual undertaking includes on which on what is

the right track to take or pursue something that does not have a relevance for the

specified student. Well, students got to be analytical also as time goes by; they

need to see what is the relevance of the specified track that they are going to pick

so they will not be pressured by time and this would stabilize their future work

and social placement in life.

Strategy or Systematic Process

According to Suttle (n.d.), this is considered as the most influencing factor

in making a decision. The students require a lot of time to process their thoughts

and need to make preparation for the future. They need to manage and weigh

their different options in order to determine what kind of future they would

want for their lives. The person making the decision is also an important factor in

influencing the decisions being made. The said person needs to generate the best

alternatives, so they can examine all the variable choices needed to make a

decision. There are some options that weigh better than some and that is why it

is up to person to make sure to that they weigh the disadvantages and risks of

various of alternatives.

e. Socioeconomic Status

Many students believe that to live a comfortable lifestyle they need to be

financially and economically stable. When some students look into a career path
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in life, they make sure to seek out a higher salary jobs or look for majors that

involve a secure and complacent style of living. Students consider jobs that have

a higher earning potential, opportunities and advancement depending on their

financial situation. Given the current years, there may or may not be some that

want to make sure they are secure for the rest of their lives.

f. Age

Age is only one of the many individual differences that can affect the

decision making of a person. Students who have less access to education and its

resources are more vulnerable to experiencing a poor quality of life, which is the

result of poor decision-making skills.

g. Belief in Personal Relevance

Another influence on decision making is the belief in personal relevance. It

is when people believe that something truly matters, and they are more likely to

act upon their decision. Students will research their chosen career path and will

explore everything about it. The salary and benefits do not play a role in this

decision. In this world today, students are more interested in with the amount of

money they can earn. However, they are some who seek to chase their dreams.
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CHAPTER III

Research Methodology

Research Design

This study seeks to find the factors affecting the decisions of the Grade 11

students of Silliman University in relation to choosing their track. The study will

employ a survey type of descriptive research. It will involve gathering,

distinguishing and analyzing data. Our research will answer and highlight the

main questions "what", "why", and "how" for it focuses on the different factors

that influenced the decisions of the Grade 11 students.

Research Environment

The study will be conducted at Silliman University particularly at the

Senior High School department. The said university is known to be the first

American school in the country. It was founded on the year 1901 and it is

sometimes called "Campus by the Sea". The researchers chose this location

because Silliman University is home to more or less a thousand Senior High

School students enrolled in different tracks. The said institution offers Academic,

Sports and Technical-Vocational track.

Research Respondents and Sampling Procedure

The respondents of this study will be the selected Grade 11 students of

Silliman University Senior High School. There are 6 strands namely STEAM,
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ABM, HUMMS, Sports, Arts & Design and Tech-voc.

To obtain the respondents for the survey, the researchers will apply

random sampling procedure to choose the respondents. Since there are more or

less 40 students in each section and there are more than 30 sections and 6 strands,

the researchers have decided to limit the respondents to a maximum of 10

students per strand. The final section where the study will be conducted will

also be obtained using the random sampling procedure. The researcher will also

secure the list of students who are enrolled in that section and it will be obtained

from the class representative or from the Senior High School office.

Since there are 6 strands and a maximum of 10 respondents will be taken

from each strand, there will be a total of 60 respondents for the survey and 3

interviewees for the interview. There would be a total of 63 respondents all in all.

Research Instruments

To achieve the objectives of this study, a survey will be conducted to

provide the needed information. Ten students from a selected section will be

provided one questionnaire each in order to collect the data for the research. The

questionnaire to be used will be in English language to make it understandable

to all respondents.

The questionnaire will be divided into 3 sections, namely the respondents

profile, the different factors that affect the decisions of the Grade 11 students in
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choosing their strand, and how these different factors affect the students.

Since the study is all about the different factors that affect the decisions of

the Grade 11 students in choosing their strand, the questionnaires will consist of

different situational questions that are to be answered according to their own

preferences.

The first section of the questionnaire aims to find out the respondents age,

sex and strand. For each item, a space will be provided for the respondent’s

answers. The second section of the questionnaires highlights the different

possible factors that may have affected the decision of the students in choosing

their track. This portion will consist of different choices pertaining to what and

why the different factors affected the student’s decision. A space will be

provided for the respondent’s answers that are needed to be specified.

The third section of the questionnaire focuses on how the different factors

affected the students in different aspects. This part will show the impact of their

choice through their behavior and academic performance. The questions to be

asked will be about both the positive and negative effects of the student’s choice.

Again, a space will be provided if ever the respondent has another answer.

Aside from conducting a survey, an interview will also be conducted.

There would be a total of 10 questions for the interviewee. The said interview

would be documented, and it will be allotted 3-5 minutes per person. The
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interviewee will answer the questions according to their opinion and preference.

The questionnaire will evaluate the person’s background and their

opinion to the different factors that affects the decisions of the students and the

impact of these factors.

Data Collection Procedure

Prior to data collection procedure, a formal letter will be sent to the Senior

High School Principal to ask permission to conduct the said study that will

involve the Grade 11 students and the guidance counselors for the interview.

Since each section do not have class adviser, the letter will then be given to the

class representatives of the selected section of each strand to inform them of the

study instead. A letter of consent will also be sent to the guidance counselors to

inform them that they are subject to be interviewed for the study.

Ten students will be selected from a chosen section randomly per strand.

To do this, the researcher will have to do the draw lots for the selection. The

study will be conducted in the month of March 2018. Informed consent forms

signed by the respondents will be obtained prior to data collection.

The survey will be done inside the classroom of the selected section of

STEAM, ABM, HUMMS, Sports, Arts & Design, and TVL wherein the

questionnaire will be distributed to the respondents. The researchers will instruct

and aid the respondents how to answer the said questionnaire. To ensure that the
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gathered data remains confidential, the respondents will be given the option to

whether indicate their name in the questionnaire or not.

During the survey, the respondents will be given 5-10 minutes to answer

the questionnaire. The questionnaires will be retrieved immediately after

answering to avoid losing or misplacing the questionnaires.

The data gathered from the survey will be recorded and updated

simultaneously as the responses will be received. The results will be tallied

accordingly. The interview will be done inside the guidance office wherein the

guidance counselors will be asked ten questions about the different factors and

its impact. The interview will take about 3-5 minutes per person. The whole

interview will be documented and recorded. The interviewee must answer every

question according to their preference and option.

Data Analysis Procedure

To analyze the data gathered, the researchers will use content analysis for

the interview and discourse analysis for the survey.

A. Content analysis

This type of analysis refers to analyzing data through a process of

categorizing verbal or behavioral data in order to classify, summarize and

tabulate the data.

1. Identifying patterns and relationships

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Since no qualitative research generate the same results, the researcher’s

analytical and critical thinking skills are very crucial in this particular step.

Nevertheless, the researchers will use the following techniques and methods to

interpret the data gathered such as primary and secondary data comparisons,

where the researchers will compare the findings of the interview and discuss the

differences between the different interview with the aid of the review of

literature.

B. Discourse analysis

This type of analysis refers to analyzing data which are all written text. It

focuses on the language used and what the implicit, underlying, taken-for-

granted or concealed meanings might be.

1. Developing and applying codes.

The researchers will categorize the data obtained from the survey. We will

try to organize the raw data gathered and try to make sense out of it. The

researchers will try to connect and link the data gathered by assigning codes.

2. Identifying patterns and relationships

The researchers will use the method of words and phrase repetitions,

wherein we will look for common words and phrases used by the respondents

and interpret them. The researchers will also find the similarities and differences

from the data gathered.

3. Summarizing the data

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The researchers will link the findings from the data gathered to the

hypothesis or objective of the study. The researchers will highlight the major

themes and contradictions within the findings and give a conclusion.

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