BIBLIOGRAPHY PINKIHAN, NORA K. APRIL...
BIBLIOGRAPHY
PINKIHAN, NORA K. APRIL 2008. Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals
Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic Agricultural Courses in the College of
Agriculture. Benguet State University, La Trinidad, Benguet
Adviser: Marife D. Carpio, BSc
ABSTRACT
This study was conducted to evaluate the laboratory manuals produced by
teachers in the College of Agriculture of Benguet State University. It was conducted from
October 2007 to January 2008.
To determine the comprehensibility, attractiveness, accuracy of the manual, and
the effects of the manual to the mode of learning of the students, data were obtained from
the students thru survey questionnaire as well as from interviews with experts on the
subjects concerned.
Results revealed that the laboratory manuals were difficult to understand where in
the students need assistance of teachers, fairly attractive but lack in graphics, accurate but
lack citation of reference, and moderately effective in terms of use as reference, as
reviewer, as guide during lecture, and as information source in each specific topic.
It is recommended that producers should use simpler words and sentences, add
more graphics, combine classroom discussion and laboratory activities, and should cite
references.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Bibliography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
i
Abstract . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
i
Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ii
INTRODUCTION
Rationale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
Statement of the Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2
Objectives of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2
Importance of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3
Scope and Limitations of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Comprehensibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4
Appropriateness of Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5
Instructional Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6
Importance of Manuals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
6
Evaluating
Instructional
Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
8
Visual Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
9
Importance of Citation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
11
METHODOLOGY
Locale and Time of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
12
Respondents of the Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
12
Data Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
15
ii
Data Gathered . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
15
Data Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
15
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
16
Comprehensibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
16
Attractiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
23
Accuracy of the Each Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
27
Effects of the Manual to
29
the Learning of the Students . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performance of Respondents in Each Subject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
31
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
33
Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
33
Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
34
LITERATURE CITED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
36
APPENDICES
Appendix A Letter to Respondents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
39
Appendix B. Survey Questionnaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
41
iii
INTRODUCTION
Rationale
No matter what the vocation is, instructional materials are an important part of our
quest for knowledge and understanding. Instructional materials are essential tool for the
initial training and continuing education of learners, youth and adults alike.
As one of the colleges of Benguet State University, the College of Agriculture
produces instructional and laboratory manuals that are hoped
to
aid students in their studies. As a Center of Excellence in Agriculture Education, it has to
provide quality instructional materials to enhance and develop students’ capabilities,
thereby facilitating academic excellence.
Instructional manuals help students in learning whether it contain classroom,
laboratory or field–based applications of scientific and technological themes in each
course. Cadiz (1991) stated that manuals are the most comprehensive “how-to”
publications. They are useful in showing and explaining procedures or “how-to” topics,
especially when properly illustrated with drawings and pictures to show ideas more
concretely and clearly. The College of Agriculture is producing laboratory manuals in the
subjects Entomology 11, Plant Pathology 11, and Soil Science 11. However, these
laboratory manuals have not been evaluated; hence, there is a need for this study in order
to check that these scholarly works have attained their objectives. This study is guided
by the tenet that evaluation must be built in any communication activity if
communicators want to determine how effective their efforts are. Clearly, the laboratory
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
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manuals are mediums of communication that are aimed at enhancing the teaching-
learning process.
In various studies, it has been found that graphics, lay-out and typography affect
the attractiveness and comprehensibility of a reading material, and the readability along
with the content and design may affect learning. In this case, the researcher would like to
determine the comprehensibility and attractiveness of the manuals as perceived by the
intended users, the accuracy of the manual, and how it was able to affect the students’
learning.
Statement of the Problem
This study answered the following questions:
1. Are the manuals comprehensible?
2. Are the manuals attractive?
3. Are the content of the manuals accurate?
4. How did the manuals affect the learning of the students?
Objectives of the Study
1. To determine the comprehensibility level of the manuals.
2. To determine the attractiveness level of the manuals.
3. To determine the accuracy of the manuals.
4. To determine the effects of the manual to the learning of the students.
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Importance of the Study
This study will serve as a reference and guide in making instructional manuals.
The results may become the basis for future planning and production of teaching aids. It
will give idea to producers for improvement.
Scope and Limitations
Data gathering for the study was on December 2007 to January 2008. The
respondents were College of Agriculture 3rd and 4th year students who took up the basic
subjects such as Entomology 11, Plant Pathology 11 and Soil Science 11.Key informants
were selected to evaluate the accuracy of the manuals.
The study covered laboratory manuals produced by CA teachers for Entomology
11, Plant Pathology 11 and Soil Science 11 laboratory. The study focused only on the
manuals as print materials and not in the context of how they were used in the classes.
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Comprehensibility
Comprehension is dependent on two important cognitive abilities - understanding
of language and understanding of event sequences (Richards et al., 2004).
In the study of Hung and Hsien (2007), it was stated that the learners further
reported that they were not used to long texts and that they either lost patience or their eyes
easily tired from reading online. Comprehensibility dropped as they increasingly struggled
toward the end of the texts. Possibly, instead of using extensive reading strategies, such as
contextual guessing, the participants immediately sought help whenever they stumbled
across words they did not understand. Another explanation is that learners' comprehension
difficulty might derive from sources other than vocabulary, such as complicated sentence
patterns, their limited ability to grasp main ideas or the different contexts and idiomatic
nature of familiar words.
Moreover, Readability and understandability are not synonymous; it is possible to
make use of computerized readability scales and still have a consent form that is difficult
to understand. Sometimes, reducing reading level without providing additional explanatory
aids can lead to vagueness and oversimplification of scientific information, which is
undesirable (NIH, n.d).
In order to easily comprehend a word, it should be spelled correctly. According to
Ehri (2008), when a child struggles with spelling, his writing is much slower than his
thinking. This makes it hard for him to clearly express his knowledge and ideas in written
school assignments. Spelling is especially difficult for students with learning disabilities
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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(LD), so it is important that schools provide explicit, systematic spelling instruction on a
regular basis throughout elementary school for these students.
Appropriateness of Words
To date most dictionaries merely explain the meanings of words. However, they
neither tell users enough about the associations of a word to other word(s), nor do they
provide enough information of the way words combine in a grammatical framework.
Although thesauri provide synonyms and related words in groups of word sense, they are
limited in that users cannot search words for use in a broad grammatical context. If one
looks up synonyms in a thesaurus, she/he may find some words as alternatives. A corpus
holds sets of substitutes of words appropriate in specific grammatical frameworks. To
a
learner of English as a second or foreign language, a word combinatory dictionary offers
an unusual support for the writing of articles that sound more like a native speaker's
writing, because the word combinatory dictionary will help writers check and learn the
appropriateness of words used in combination (Qiao, 1997).
To have a good manual, appropriate topics are needed. A good way of identifying
potential topics for your manual, particularly for policy manuals, is to look at manuals
developed by other organizations. Many organizations have placed their manuals on their
Internet site. Try searching on the general topic of your manual and see what you can find.
If you don’t find what you’re looking for using one search engine, try another. See if the
topics they’ve covered would be appropriate for your manual. Use their manual to
stimulate your thinking (Hunter,n.d).
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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Instructional Materials
Instructional materials play a key role in the changes that move toward inquiry-
centered, standard-based instruction. In 2004, North Thurston School implemented Policy
2311; Selection and Adoption of Instructional Materials which states that the instructional
materials used to support the curriculum of the District serve as valuable resources to
promote student learning and quality teaching. Instructional materials are selected to assist
students in attaining the essential academic learning requirements and the grade level
expectation as required by the State and the District.
They also defined instructional materials as the print or non-print materials used by
students as the principal learning resource to meet the learning standards of a course or
curriculum area shall be considered core materials. These may include textbooks,
multimedia, non-print materials and computer softwares. Core materials constitute
predominant mode of instruction or are materials that all students in the course are required
to use. It is used by the students within a specific school building to meet learning
standards of a course or curriculum that support, enrich, and individualize core materials
are considered supplemental materials (NTS, 2004).
Importance of Manuals
Angligen (2006) cited in her thesis entitled “Source Analysis of Instructional
Manuals Produced by College Teachers of Benguet State University” that Cadiz defined
educational media as objects or devices, which are used to support the process of education
whereby teachers or communicators attempt to, induce learning in students or an audience.
These are also called instructional materials, supplementary teaching aids or teaching
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devices. Instructional materials may be classified according to their form, thus there are
printed materials like textbooks, audio-visual materials like films and community resources
like observation. She also mentioned that the most common used instructional materials in
college are manual.
Manuals are works containing concise background information and directions for
activities, including conducting experiments or diagnostic tests in the laboratory. Also,
laboratory manuals contain descriptions of standard laboratory procedures, current
techniques and safety measures, as well as formulae and other technical information
(NLM, n.d).
According to M. Cadiz and her research mate, manuals are the most comprehensive
"how-to" publication. It is useful in showing and explaining procedures or "how-to" topics,
especially when properly illustrated with drawings and pictures to show ideas more
concretely and clearly. Self-Instructional Materials (SIM) performs the functions of a
teacher, providing guidance, motivation, questioning and feedback (Sharma and Garg).
The importance of manuals certainly extends beyond their use in training and reference. In
some sense (whether this is explicit or implicit) a user must ‘know’ what they are doing to
use a system, and the manual is a representation of what they could know. With the
increasing diversity of students in general education classes, teachers are seeking simple
methods to teach all of their students while maintaining the reliability of the course.
Manuals are an essential part of the system life cycle: from requirements and design,
through usability, to acceptance. A user manual may provide instructions that, if the user
follows them, achieve any of certain objectives as determined by the manual designers
(Addison and Thimbleby, n.d).
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Evaluating Instructional Materials
In instructional materials, the layout is important. Ellington and Earl (n.d.)
explained it is an advantage to divide the content into clearly-defined sections, and to use
a systematic and logical labeling system to tell the reader what these sections are, and
indicate material of different types . Layout is the design and formatting of a page for
publication. Layout used to be done by manually laying the elements of a page in place and
fixing them to the page with wax. Now, most layouts are done onscreen, using a computer
program, and there may never be a hard copy of the page (Computer User, 1997).
Some factors may affect the reader’s interest like the legibility. Zaluksuk (1988)
stated that readability, interest and prior knowledge in the reader are equally important
factors in comprehension and retention of information. Reading is directly influenced by
contextual cues which include the use of personal pronouns, lay-out and design of the text,
typography (use of highlighting and italics), the use of signal words (now, then, but, later).
Readability formulas measure word length or frequency and sentence length.
In relation, Pikulski (n.d) stated that a more reasonable definition of readability
that is in keeping with more recent research and theory is the level of ease or difficulty
with which text material can be understood by a particular reader who is reading that text
for a specific purpose. Readability is dependent upon many characteristics of a text and
many characteristics of readers.
Reading text and graphics is a common issue in lighting design and practice.
Legibility of text and graphics is often measured using the Legibility Index, conventionally
defined as the distance at which material can be read with perfect accuracy (the legibility
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distance) divided by the character height. The ratio equals to the inverse tangent of the
visual angle
V. This definition assumes the material to be read is perpendicular to the
viewer, which is always not true. Off-axis viewing of text and graphics is common in
reality, yet rarely researched (Cai and Green, n.d).
In addition, Addison & Thimbleby ( n.d.) stated that manuals are often improved
by using clear English, careful exposition, pictures and diagrams. It may be the case,
however, that these are cosmetic improvements and the manual could be more significantly
improved by addressing its structure. Certainly, achieving a good style would be
compromised by changes in structure, but not the other way around. Thus getting a good
structure is the primary task, after which refinements can be made.
Visual Design
Visual design is not just about making your application look pretty. Good visual
design is about communication. A well-designed application will make it easy for the user
to understand the information that is being presented, and show them clearly how they can
interact with that information (Benson, 2002).
According to Bix, (2002), the major function of textual messages and graphic
elements is communication. The graphic/text combination can evoke emotional responses
or convey information for purposes as varied as motivating a sale to furthering a cause.
Typography is design and use of typefaces as a means of visual communication
from calligraphy to the ever-developing use of digital type is the broad use of the term
typography. However, the art and practice of typography began with the invention of
moveable type and the printing press. Typography is sometimes seen as encompassing
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many separate fields from the type designer who creates letterforms to the graphic designer
who selects typefaces and arranges them on the page. It is sometimes seen as
encompassing many separate fields from the type designer who creates letterforms to the
graphic designer who selects typefaces and arranges them on the page. Typography
includes text composition or the arrangement of type on the page. These are the tasks
involved in text composition (Bear, 2008).
According to Webster Dictionary (n.d), graphics are product of graphic art. Graphic
representations are pictures, map, or graph used for illustration. It is also pictorial image
displayed on a computer screen
. The art or science of drawing as representation of an
object in two-dimensional surface according to mathematical rules of projection goes with
statements of Wikipedia that graphics are visual presentations on some surface to brand,
inform, illustrate, or entertain. Examples are photographs, drawings, Line Art, graphs,
diagrams, typography, numbers, symbols, geometric designs, maps, engineering drawings,
or other images. Graphics often combine text, illustration, and color.
Communication design is an essential aspect of communication today as exchange
of information. Besides verbal communication, the modern person thinks in pictures. Text
and pictures enhance the perception of information. The area of press and publishing is the
visual design of the media, as for example the print media, with its magazines, books and
general publications. Included also is design for AV media. Here techniques are used from
every area of design, from typography to photography and video. The area of aids for
teaching, learning and information involves presentation of information for scientists and
lay people, from textbooks to visual teaching aids (Hochschule Mannheim, 2004).
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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Meanwhile, Information design is the discipline of developing structures which allow
people to find information that's relevant to them, and use it to make decisions which
enhance their lives (Gray, 2005).
Importance of Citation
According to Hunter (n.d.), citation is important because it is the basis of
academics, that is, the pursuit of knowledge. In the academic endeavor, individuals look at
evidence and reason about that evidence in their own individual ways. That is, taking what
is already known, established, or thought, they use their reasoning power to create new
knowledge. In creating this knowledge, they must cite their sources accurately for three
main reasons: First, citing sources is important because the currency of academia is ideas.
As a result, academics want to accumulate that currency; they want to get credit for their
contributions. When a writer cites ideas, that writer honors those who initiated the ideas.
Second, keeping track of sources is important because, if you use someone else's idea
without giving credit, you violate that person's ownership of the idea. Third, keeping track
of sources is important because academics value being able to trace the way ideas develop.
If another person reads one of the "second generation" ideas, proper citation will
allow that person to explore the original publication to trace the way the idea has
developed. In general, scholars must be able to trace how ideas develop in order to
consider, think about, and test them accurately. So, giving credit to the original source of
ideas is the right thing to do, as well as the basis on which academia is built.
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
METHODOLOGY
Locale and Time of the Study
The study was done in the College of Agriculture. The College of Agriculture is
located at Benguet State University, KM 6 La Trinidad, Benguet. It is in between the
College of Arts and Sciences Annex and College of Teacher Education. Figure 1 shows the
map of the locale of the study.
The university, in order to attain its objectives focuses its endeavors on instruction,
research, extension and production. The College of Agriculture continuously produces
excellent students based on the awards and recorded numbers of graduated students with
honors and scholastic achievements. In 2003 it was declared as a Center of Excellence in
Agriculture by the Commission on Higher Education. Under it, Bachelor of Science in
Agriculture (BSA) and Bachelor of Science in Agribusiness (BSAB passed the Level III
accreditation of the Accrediting Agency of Chartered College and Universities in the
Philippines (AACCUP) in November 2007 and February 2008, respectively.
The study was done from December 2007 to January 2008.
Respondents of the Study
The respondents of the study were a mixture of 3rd and 4th year students from
Bachelor of Science in Development Communication (BSDC), Bachelor of Science in
Agriculture (BSA), and Bachelor of Science in Agribusiness (BSAB) who recently
finished Soil Science 11, Entomology 11 and Plant Pathology 11. Fifty (50) respondents
were taken from the total population of the students who finished the basic subjects from
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
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school year 2006 to 2007. The respondents were chosen through simple random sampling.
Out of 50 respondents, there were 27 (54%) male and 23 (46%) female. Most
(94%) of the respondents were at the age bracket of 19 to 20 years old. For Entomology
11, 7 (14%) of the respondents took the subject during the first semester and 43 (86%) took
it during the second semester; for PP 11, 44 (88%) during the second semester; and for SS
11, 44 (88%) during the first semester and 6(12%) during the second semester. Only 6
(12%) of the respondents took Plant Pathology 11 during the first semester of school year
2007-2008.
For both BSA and BSAB students, all three courses are offered during their second
year. For BSA students, PP 11 and Entomology 11 are regularly offered during the second
semester while SS 11 is offered regularly during the first semester. For BSAB students,
Entomology 11 is offered only in the second semester while PP 11 and SS 11 are offered
during the second semester. BSDC students have these subjects during their third and
fourth years. Entomology 11 is during the first semester and SS 11 in the second semester
of third years, while PP 11 during the first semester of the fourth years.
Key Informants were asked to evaluate the accuracy of the manuals. All the key
informants are from the Benguet State University who are researchers and faculty members
of whom 5 were male and 4 were female. There were three key informants in each major
field. For Plant Pathology, the key informants finished their Masters degree and have been
in the university for more than ten years (i.e. 20 to 25 years). For Entomology and Soil
Science, key informants have finished their Bachelors degree and are currently taking their
Masters degree. They have been with the university as either researchers or teachers for
less than 10 years.
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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W W
E
S
Source: wikipedia
FIGURE 1. Map of Benguet and partial part of BSU showing the locale of the study.
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
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Data Collection
The data were collected through survey questionnaire which was floated to the
students. Students evaluated the manual according to its comprehensibility and
attractiveness. They were also asked to evaluate how the manual was able to help them in
their study of the subjects. The researcher further referred to students’ laboratory grades to
check the effect of the manuals on their understanding of the subject.
Key informants were asked to check the accuracy of the content of the manual. The
key informants were chosen depending on their field.
Readability of the manuals was further evaluated using the Gunning’s Fog Index.
Data Gathered
The data were comprehensibility level, attractiveness level, and effects of the
manuals to the learning of the students. Data on accuracy were derived from the answers of
the key informants.
Data Analysis
The data were tabulated, consolidated, categorized and interpreted according to the
objectives of the study. The data was analyzed thru getting the mean and relative rating
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The Manuals
The Plant Pathology 11 and Entomology 11 manuals are of the same size (short
bond paper/8.5” x 11”), soft bound, and with a green, hard paper for cover. The
Entomology 11 manual is smaller in size (6” x 8.2”) and is covered with white, hard,
glossy paper. The structure of each manual is almost the same wherein they contain an
introductory discussion to each chapter, the learning objectives, the activities required of
the students, the formulas needed and some graphics to illustrate some of the concepts.
Angligen (2006) described in her study the characteristics of instructional manual
developers of BSU to which the authors of these manuals under the study are part of. She
said that half of the faculty members involved in manual development had doctorate
degrees and 36 with master’s degrees.
The three manuals included in this study are all a team effort. Most of the members
of the faculty in each department concerned were involved in the production of the
materials.
Comprehensibility of the Manuals
Tables 1, 2, and 3 show the comprehensibility of each manual. The respondents
were given a rundown of the topics in each manual to refresh their memory and to check
which parts of the manuals were easy or difficult to understand. The mean rate for the
comprehensibility of chapter of each manual were taken and were interpreted: 1 to 1.99 is
DU (Difficult to understand), from 2 t0 2.99 is NENDU (Neither Easy or Difficult to
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
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Understand), and 3 is EU (Easy to Understand). The range for the total mean of each
manual is different from each other because the manuals have different total number of
topics. The Soil Science 11 manual has 11 chapters thus, the highest mean should be 33
for EU (Easy to Understand), 22 is NENDU (Neither Easy nor Difficult to Understand),
and 11 is DU (Difficult to Understand). The Entomology 11 manual has 7 chapters thus,
the highest mean should be 21, EU (Easy to Understand), 14 is NENDU (Neither Easy nor
Difficult to Understand), and the lowest is 7 which would mean difficult to understand.
The Plant Pathology 11 manual has 4 chapters where the highest mean should be 12 for
EU (Easy to Understand), 8 for NENDU (Neither Easy nor Difficult to understand), and
the lowest is 4 for DU (Difficult to Understand).
From the result of the study, the respondents claimed that Plant Pathology 11
(13.78) and Entomology 11 (7.64) laboratory manuals are difficult to understand, while the
Soil Science 11 manual is (21.96) neither difficult nor easy to understand.
In the Soil Science 11 manual, Chapters 1 until 6 are neither easy nor difficult to
understand, while respondents claimed that Chapters 7 to 11 are difficult to understand.
For Entomology 11 manual, there are 3 chapters that are neither easy nor difficult to
understand (Chapters 4, 5 and 7) while the rest are difficult to understand. For Plant
Pathology 11 manual, chapters 2 and 3 are neither easy nor difficult to understand while
Chapters 1 and 4 are difficult to understand.
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Table 1. Comprehensibility of Soil Science 11 manual
CHAPTERS AND TOPICS
MEAN
COMPREHENSIBILITY
LEVEL
1. The soil in perspective: the soil profile
2.16
NENDU
2. Collection and preparation of soil samples
2.4
NENDU
3. Soil-forming rocks and minerals
2.12
NENDU
4. Soil texture
2.24
NENDU
5. Soil structure, particle Density, Bulk density
2.02 NENDU
and Porosity
6. Soil moisture
2.02
NENDU
7. Soil Colloids: their important Characteristics
1.78
DU
8. Cation exchange
1.76
DU
9. Soil reaction: Acidity and alkalinity-Their
1.88 DU
effects on nutrient Solubility and availability
10. Organic Matter decomposition and carbon
1.82 DU
dioxide Evolution
11. Interpretation of soil and topographic maps
1.76
DU
Total
21.96
NENDU
Legend for Soil Science 11 manual:
Mean per Chapter:
Total of Mean:
1 = DU (Difficult to understand)
11
=
DU
2 = NENDU (Neither Easy Nor Difficult to Understand)
22 = NENDU
3 = EU (Easy to Understand)
33
=
EU
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Table 2. Comprehensibility of Entomology 11 manual
CHAPTER AND TOPICS
MEAN COMPREHENSIBILITY LEVEL
1. Insect Metamorphosis
1.96
DU
2. Structure of Insect and Their Function
1.78 DU
3. Classification of Insect
1.98
DU
4. Insect Ecosystem
2.02
NENDU
5. Major Insect Pest of High Value Crops in
2.02 NENDU
the
Philippines
6. Insect Beneficial to Man
1.9
DU
7. Insecticide Screening
2.12
NENDU
Total 13.78
DU
Legend for Entomology 11:
Total of Mean:
Mean per Chapter:
7 = DU
1 = DU (Difficult to understand)
14=
NENDU
2 = NENDU (Neither Easy Nor Difficult to Understand)
21=
EU
3 = EU (Easy to Understand)
Table 3. Comprehensibility of Plant Pathology 11 manual
CHAPTER AND TOPICS
MEAN COMPREHENSIBILITY LEVEL
1. Study of Plant Diseases Caused by Fungi
1.62
DU
2. Study of Plant Diseases Caused by Bacteria
2.04
NENDU
3. Study of Plant Diseases Caused by Nematodes
2.06
NENDU
4. Study of Plant Diseases caused by Viruses
1.92
DU
Total 7.64
DU
Legend for Plant Pathology 11:
Total of Mean:
Mean per Chapter:
4=
DU
1 = DU (Difficult to understand)
8=
NENDU
2 = NENDU (Neither Easy Nor Difficult to Understand)
2=
EU
3 = EU (Easy to Understand)
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Further, the respondents suggested that the producers should use simpler words and
consequently simpler sentences. As Addison & Thimbleby (n.d) said, manuals are often
improved by using clear English, careful exposition, pictures and diagrams. Zaluksuk
(1988) also stated that readability, interest and prior knowledge in the reader are equally
important factors in comprehension and retention of information. Readability is the level of
ease or difficulty with which text material may be comprehended (Samuels, 1983) by a
particular reader who is reading that text for a specific purpose.
It should be noted that people tune out any message that borders on the technical. A
lot of the respondents said that the manuals contain a lot of technical terminologies which
they do not encounter in their day to day dealing with other people. Technical language or
“technical talk” is most commonly referred to as jargon. Jargon becomes a problem when
it stops people understanding the message. When jargon is used (even if unintentionally)
with audiences it is not intended for, people will find it difficult to understand. The ability
to understand or comprehend simple verbal instructions or other work related dialogue is a
necessary requirement in most workplaces across all industries (Mind Tools, 2005).
It was predetermined that readability has something to do with comprehensibility,
thus the readability level of each manual was also derived.
The researcher selected paragraphs/texts in the introduction of each chapter in each
manual. To facilitate this, the website www.onlineutility.org/english/readability_test was
used. The selected paragraphs were inputted in the site and the site generated the results for
the readability using the Gunning Fog Index formula. The indicators for the readability
level based on the Gunning Fog Index are shown in Table 4.
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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Table 4. Indicators for the readability level based on the Gunning Fog Index
READING RANGE
FOG INDEX
GRADE LEVEL
Difficult 17
College graduate
16
College senior
15
College junior
14
College sophomore
13
College freshman
Fairly Easy
12
High school senior
11
High school junior
10
High school sophomore
9
High school freshman
Easy 8
Eighth grade
7
Seventh grade
6
Sixth grade
Source: Lustria, 2001
Table 5 shows the sample on how the fog index is used. A chosen paragraph from
Soil Science 11 in Chapter 1 is included to show how the fog index is used.
“The science of soils is founded on various concepts and principles
that evolved on the application of four basic sciences of chemistry, physics,
biology and geology through decades of countless experimentation and
practical testing. Soil science, therefore, is defined as a body of knowledge
that has accumulated from the study of soils through the application of four
basic sciences. Soil science composed of different divisions as follows: Soil
Chemistry, Soil Physics, Soil Microbiology, Soil Fertility and Management,
Soil Conservation and Management, Soil Taxonomy, Soil Genesis and Soil
Survey and Classification.”
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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Table 5. Sample on how the Fog Index was used
INDICATORS NUMBERS
Number of characters (without spaces)
516.00
Number of words
90.00
Number of sentences
3.00
Average number of characters per word
5.73
Average number of syllables per word
1.93
Indication of the number of years of formal education that
a person requires in order to easily understand the text on
the first reading
Gunning Fog index
21.78
Approximate representation of the U.S. grade level needed
to comprehend the text
Coleman Liau index
16.97
Flesh Kincaid Grade level
18.92
ARI (Automated Readability Index)
20.57
SMOG
19.43
Flesch Reading Ease
12.83
The laboratory manuals have a Fog Index that fall on the difficult reading range
(Table 6) with 16.40 for Soil Science 11 manual, 15.01 for Plant Pathology 11 manual, and
13.06 for Entomology 11 manual. The manuals are difficult but should have been good
enough for college students. The Soil Science 11 manual is good for a College senior, the
Plant Pathology 11 manual for a college junior, and the Entomology 11 manual for a
college freshman. By these observations, the Soil Science 11 manual is the most difficult
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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to understand, especially since Soil Science 11manual is being taken by BSA and BSAB
students during their second year, and by BSDC students during their third year. Note that
the respondents indicated that the manuals are neither difficult nor easy to understand
indicating that they have average understanding of the discussions in the manual thus
additional explanation from the teachers may be needed.
One of the major contributors to a good first impression is how easy your content is
to read (Wilson, 2007). Readability may also be affected by factors that are internal (e.g.
background experiences, knowledge base, and awareness of text structure) and external
(e.g. text topic and structure, environmental characteristics, and the goal imposed on the
reader by an external source) to a reader or learner (Greer, et al. 2003).
Table 6. Fog Index of each manual
MANUALS
FOG INDEX
READING RANGE
GRADE LEVEL
Soil science 11
16.40
Difficult
College senior
Plant Pathology 11
15.01
Difficult
College junior
Entomology 11
13.06
Difficult
College freshmen
Attractiveness of the Manuals
Data in Table 7 shows how the respondents aesthetically viewed the manual in
terms of graphics used, font size and style, and layout. It is indicated that the manuals are
fairly attractive. In terms of their graphics, Soil Science 11 and Plant Pathology 11
manuals are unattractive while Entomology 11 manual is fairly attractive. It was further
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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Table 7. Attractiveness level of each manual
ELEMENTS
BASIC AGRICULTURAL COURSES
SOIL SCIENCE 11
PLANT PATHOLOGY 11
ENTOMOLOGY 11
Mean Level Mean Level Mean
Level
Graphics 1.92
Unattractive
1.96
Unattractive 2.06
Fairly
Attractive
Layout 2.36
Fairly
Attractive
2.22
Fairly Attractive
2.14
Fairly Attractive
Font/ typography
2.78
Fairly Attractive
2.76
Fairly Attractive
2.62
Fairly Attractive
Over-all
7.06
Fairly Attractive
6.94
Fairly Attractive
6.82
Fairly Attractive
Legend:
Level of each Element:
Over-all:
1
=
Unattractive
3 = Unattractive
2 = Fairly Attractive
6 = Fairly Attractive
3= Very Attractive
9 =Very Attractive
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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25
observed by the respondents that there wasn’t enough graphics to illustrate some of the
concepts and processes indicated in the manuals. All the manuals are fairly attractive as to
their lay-out and font size and styles, concepts and processes indicated in the manuals. All
the manuals are fairly attractive as to their lay-out and font size and styles.
Moreover, the respondents suggested that the producers should use more drawings
and graphics to illustrate the topics and methods that are presented in the manuals. They
should also make use of realistic photos so that they will be able to easily discern the
examples given. Some respondents also mentioned about putting a better cover design on
the manuals.
Borland, et al (1997) suggested the possibility that too much written information
might be distracting and that photograph might supplement written text effectively. He
cautioned however that the use of photographs in instructional media raises the issue of
how many might be required for good performance. It is generally assumed that experience
in visual detection tasks improves performance, at least up to some notional performance
ceiling. This would suggest that the provision of more examples than only a couple would
be advantageous.
As Benson (2002) said, visual design is not just about making your application look
pretty. Good visual design is about communication. A well-designed application will make
it easy for the user to understand the information that is being presented, and show them
clearly how they can interact with that information. Moreover, Bix (2002) also stated that
the major function of textual messages and graphic elements is communication. The
graphic/text combination can evoke emotional responses or convey information for
purposes as varied as motivating a sale to furthering a cause. Besides verbal
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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communication, the modern person thinks in pictures. Text and pictures enhance the
perception of information. Here techniques are used from every area of design, from
typography to photography and video. The area of aids for teaching, learning and
information involves presentation of information for scientists and lay people, from
textbooks to visual teaching aids (Hochschule Mannheim, 2004).
Table 8 shows the comments of the respondents on the comprehensibility
and attractiveness of the respondents. The comments may help the producers in improving
the laboratory manuals produced.
Table 8. Comments of respondents on the manuals according to the given criteria
PLANT
SOIL SCIENCE
ENTOMOLOGY
CRITERIA
PATHOLOGY
11
11
11
Authors should use Authors should use
Authors should
Comprehensibility
simpler words
simpler words
use simpler words
Attractiveness
It lacks graphics.
It lacks graphics.
It lacks graphic.
Graphics
Add graphics
Put some graphics
Add graphics
Doesn’t have
Layout
-
-
cover graphics
Font
Readable
Readable
Readable
Accuracy of the Content of the Manuals
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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27
Key informants or experts in the field were further asked to check the accuracy of
the manuals.
As shown in Table 9, the information written in all laboratory manuals under study
are correctly spelled, defined and agrees with other print sources as well as with the
informant’s knowledge of the topics. Thus, in this regard, the manuals are accurate.
Studies have shown that authors’ exhibition of a clear understanding of good grammar
adds credibility to any written information. Further, effectiveness of a communication
medium or any visual design depends on the quality, relevance and integrity of the content
(Rajamanickam, 2001).
However, according to the key informants, the authors of Entomology 11 and Plant
Pathology 11 manual did not cite the sources and suggested references for the students.
Citation of sources contributes to the credibility and reliability of the manuals. Credibility
and reliability of the manual also adds to the accuracy of the manual. Suggested references
may also help the students who don’t understand certain topics in the manual. According
to Hunter (n.d.), citation is important because it is the basis of academics, that is, the
pursuit of knowledge. In the academic endeavor, individuals look at evidence and reason
about that evidence in their own individual ways. That is, taking what is already known,
established, or thought, they use their reasoning power to create new knowledge.
In the Entomology 11 laboratory manual, one of the key informants said that, the
words Paurometabolous or Hemimetabolous used in the manual are not appropriate
because the immature of Hemimetabolous is aquatic while the Paurometabolous is
terrestrial. The term Hemimetabolous is inappropriate in the manual because it has
immature that is aquatic which doesn’t match with what the students are rearing and so to
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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correct the manual, it should be put as ‘Hemimetabolous/Paurometabolous’ to let the
students choose on what they’re going to rear. They only rear hemimetabolous
metamorphosis insects.
Two of the informants said that the activities were appropriate. One of them
however, said that there is an inappropriate activity in the Entomology 11 manual. She said
that she has already called the attention of the Department Chairperson to the particular
activity under the topic on Insecticide Screening and they have agreed that the activity will
be changed in the next publication of the manual.
These comments from the key informants may help the producers to improve the
manuals.
Table 9. Matrix of comments on the accuracy of the manuals
CRITERIA
BASIC AGRICULTURAL COURSES
PLANT
SOIL SCIENCE
ENTOMOLOGY 11
PATHOLOGY 11
11
Spellings of words
Correctly spelled Correctly spelled
Correctly spelled
Definition of words or Correctly defined Correctly defined
Correctly defined
topics
Appropriateness of
Appropriate
Paurometabolous/
Appropriate
words
Hemimetabolous
Appropriateness of
Appropriate Appropriate
Appropriate
topics
Appropriateness of
Appropriate -
Appropriate
activities
Citation of reference
-
Not present in the
Not present in the
manual
manual
Publication year
-
-
Not present in the
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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29
manual
Effect of the Manuals to the Learning of the Respondents
Table 10 shows the effects of the manuals to the learning of the students. It is
indicated that all the manuals are moderately effective. Mean of 1 to 1.99 is equivalent to
NE (Not Effective), mean of 2 to 2.99 is ME (Moderately Effective), and mean of 3 is HE
(Highly Effective). Basing from the answers of the students, the manuals are not that
effective in helping the students in their performance and understanding of the course. It is
also reflected in their laboratory grades that the manuals are slightly effective (shown in
table 5).
All of the manuals are moderately effective as a reference, reviewer and
information material. It was also moderately effective as a guide during lectures and in
providing motivation to students.
Specifically, the Soil Science 11 laboratory manual is moderately effective since all
the ratings are above 2; as a reference (2.34), as reviewer (2.5), as guide during lecture
(2.54) as motivation (2.56) and as information material (2.40) since all the effects has
mean of above 2. For the Plant pathology 11 manual, it is moderately effective as a
reference (2.3), as reviewer (2.48), as guide during lecture (2.52) as motivation (2.52) and
as information material (2.44). For Entomology 11 manual, it is moderately effective as a
reference (2.32), as reviewer (2.42), as guide during lecture (2.38) as motivation (2.54) and
as information material (2.44).
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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30
Table 11 shows the grades of the respondents that may also reflect the effect of
the prepared laboratory manuals. Of the 50 respondents almost half of them got a good
grade in PP 11 (42%) and SS 11 (46%) while half of them got fair grade (50%) in Entom
11. The respondents’ laboratory grades reflect that the manuals are slightly effective.
However, let us not discount that there were other factors that might have affected the
laboratory grades of the respondents which were not involved in this study and that the
researcher did not focus on these other factors.
Table 11. Performance of the respondents in each subject
GRADES
EQUIVALENT PLANT ENTOMOLOGY
SOIL
PATHOLOGY
11
SCIENCE 11
11
No
% No % No %
(n=50)
(n=50)
(n=50)
1.0 to 1.25
Excellent
-
-
-
-
-
-
1.5 to 1.75
Very Good
2
4
3
6
6
12
2.0 to 2.25
Good
21
42
15
30
23
46
2.5 to 2.75
Fair
17
34
25
50
12
24
3.00 Passing
10
20
7
14
9
18
Total
50
100%
50
100%
50
100%
The manuals only contained a brief explanation or introduction to each topic. It
was suggested that the producers should make it as instructional manual or a combination
of instructional manual and laboratory manual to be more useful during reviewing and
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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31
not only during laboratory classes. According to M. Cadiz (1991), manuals are the most
comprehensive "how-to" publication. It is useful in showing and explaining procedures or
"how-to" topics, especially when properly illustrated with drawings and pictures to show
ideas more concretely and clearly. She also defined educational media as objects or
devices, which are used to support the process of education whereby teachers or
communicators attempt to, induce learning in students or an audience. In addition, Self-
Instructional Materials (SIM) performs the functions of a teacher, providing guidance,
motivation, questioning and feedback (Sharma and Garg). In 2004, North Thurston
School implemented Policy 2311, Selection and Adoption of Instructional Materials
which imposes that instructional materials are selected to assist students in attaining the
essential academic learning requirements and the grade level expectation as required by
the State and the District. They also defined instructional materials as the print or non-
print materials used by students as the principal learning resource to meet the learning
standards of a course or curriculum area.
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary
The study was conducted on October 2007 to January 2008 at the College of
Agriculture. The respondents were fifty (50) 3rd and 4th year students of the College of
Agriculture taking up Bachelor of Science in Development Communication (BSDC),
Bachelor of Science in Agriculture (BSA), and Bachelor of Science in Agribusiness
(BSAB) and who recently finished Soil Science 11, Entomology 11 and Plant Pathology
11. They were chosen through simple random sampling. Key informants were selected to
evaluate the accuracy of the manuals. The study covered laboratory manuals produced by
CA teachers for Entomology 11, Plant Pathology 11 and Soil Science 11 laboratory.
The data collected were on the comprehensibility of the manuals, attractiveness,
accuracy of the manual, and the effects of the manual to the learning and performance of
the students in the three subjects. Results of the study were interpreted using mean and
relative rating.
Conclusions
Based on the results of the study, the following conclusions are drawn:
1. the manuals are difficult to understand, hence the students need assistance
of the teachers to explain the discussion in the manuals;
2. the manuals are fairly attractive, however, the manuals lack illustrations
and graphics that help the students to have a better understanding of the
topics and methods in the activities written in the manual;
3. the manuals are accurate in terms of spellings, definitions, the chosen
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
34
topics and the words/terminologies used, but they should use simple
words;
4. citation of references is not present in the manuals;
5. the manuals lack some information that could further aid the students in
understanding the course; and
6. the manuals slightly helped the students in their performance in the
subjects.
Recommendations
Based on the findings, the researcher forwards the following recommendations:
1. The producers should explain the principles (especially the highly technical
concepts) using simpler words and sentences, the help of an editor may be
sought for this purpose.
2. The producers should add more graphics and illustrations in the manual to
explain more the topics and activities to help students to have a better
understanding.
3. The producers should combine classroom discussion and laboratory activities
in one manual so that it will help the students in reviewing the topics of the
subjects. It will be a complete manual in terms of its contents or instructional
manual that will help students and it will also help the teachers in explaining
the lessons. However, the role of the teacher should not be totally disregarded.
4. The producers should cite the source of information used in the manuals to
add credence and to include other materials for the students to refer to about
the specific topics.
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
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Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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SHARMA, R.C. and GARG, S. n.d.
Educational Media Strategy at Indira Gandhi National
Open
University,
India
Commonwealth Learning Studies. Retrieved March 23,
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fromhttp://www.col.org/colweb/webdav/site/myjahiasite/shared/docs/EdMed
UNITED STATES NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE. n.d. Laboratory Manuals.
National Institutes of Health, Health & Human Services. Retrieved February
5,2008 from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/tsd/acquisitions/cdm/
WILSON, C. 2007.Considering Readability when designing. Retrieved February 19, 2008
from
http://www.conorwilson.com2007/03/12/considering_readability
ZAKALUK, B.L. and SAMUELS, S. J.1988
Readability: It's Past, Present, & Future,
published by the International Reading Association, Newark, Delaware, and 1988.
Retrieved March 23, 2007, from http://www.gopdg.com/plainlanguage/readability l
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
39
Appendix A. Letter to Respondents
I. Letter to the respondents
Respondent No _____________
Dear________________
Good day!
I am Nora K. Pinkihan, a senior BS Development Communication student from Benguet
State University, La Trinidad, Benguet. I am currently conducting my undergraduate
research entitled “EVALUATION OF LABORATORY MANUALS IN SELECTED
BASIC AGRICULTURAL COURSES PRODUCED BY TEACHERS IN THE
COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE, BENGUET STATE UNIVERSITY”
In this connection, I will appreciate very much if you will answer this questionnaire. Rest
assured that the information you will provide will be used solely in this study for
academic research and for improvement of the manual.
I look forward to your favorable action on this request. Your cooperation will contribute
a lot to the completion of my thesis.
Thank you very much!
Sincerely, Noted by:
__________ _______________
Nora K. Pinkihan Mrs. Marife D. Carpio
Researcher Research Adviser
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
40
II. Sample of letter to the key informants
Ins. Gemma Sabas
Department of Entomology
College of Agriculture
Benguet State University
Dear Madam:
Good day!
I am Nora K. Pinkihan, a senior BS Development Communication student from Benguet
State University, La Trinidad, Benguet. I am currently conducting my undergraduate
research entitled “EVALUATION OF LABORATORY MANUALS IN SELECTED
BASIC AGRICULTURAL COURSES PRODUCED BY TEACHERS IN THE
COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE, BENGUET STATE UNIVERSITY”.
In this connection, I will appreciate very much if you will answer this questionnaire. Rest
assured that the information you will provide will be used solely in this study for
academic research and for improvement of the manual.
I look forward to your favorable action on this request. Your cooperation will contribute
a lot to the completion of my thesis.
Thank you very much!
Sincerely,
__________
Nora K. Pinkihan
Researcher
Noted by:
_______________
Marife D. Carpio
Research Adviser
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
41
Appendix B. Sample of the Survey Questionnaire
Evaluation form of Entomology Manual
I. Socio-Demographic Profile
Name: __________________________ Age___________ Gender_________
Course ________________________ Major _________________________
II. Comprehensibility of the Manual
1. Please rate the content of the manual in terms of its degree of comprehensibility.
Check the number that corresponds to your answer.
1. Difficult to understand
2. Neither easy nor difficult to understand
3. Easy to understand
Topics 3
2
1
1. Insect Metamorphosis
2. Structure of Insect and Their Function
3. Classification of Insect
4. Insect Ecosystem
5. Major Insect Pest of High Value Crops in the Philippines
6. Insect Beneficial to Man
7. Insecticide Screening
2. What can you suggest to further improve the comprehensibility or understanding of
the manual’s content?
__________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
III. Attractiveness of the Manual
1. Are the photographs in the manual appealing to you?
_____ Yes _____ No _____ can’t say
2. Do you like the charts and drawings used in this manual?
_____ Yes _____ No _____ can’t say
3. Are the font sizes large enough to be read clearly?
_____ Yes _____ No _____ can’t say
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
42
4. Is the font style pleasing to the eye?
_____ Yes _____ No _____ can’t say
If you answered NO in a or b, what are your suggestions?
__________________________________________________________________
5. Do you think that the cover, photographs, charts, and diagrams suit the topics in the
manual?
_____ Yes _____ No _____ can’t say
6. Is there unity or harmony in the layout used?
_____ Yes _____ No _____ can’t say
7. Is/are there any visual element/s (e.g. illustrations, diagrams or photos) that you don’t
like?
_____ Yes _____ No _____ can’t say
8. What can you suggest to make the manual more attractive?
__________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
IV. Effect to Users
Please put a Check on your answer.
Effect to the Mode of Learning of Students
YES No
1. The manual can be easily understood even without assistance.
2. The manual can be used for reference because it is complete.
3. Can be used for review because the sentences were shortened and
simplified.
4. It motivates the students.
5. Got high score during quiz because of the manual.
6. Can understand the lesson well because of the manual.
7. I can easily relate with the lesson because of the manual.
8. I easily memorize the lesson whenever I study due to the manual.
9. I don’t worry whenever I didn’t jot down notes because I can rely on
my manual.
10. The manual met my information needs with regard to the subject.
What can you suggest to improve the effectiveness of the manual?
________________________________________________________________
What can you suggest for the improvement of the manual as a whole?
_________________________________________________________________
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
43
For the Key Informants for the:
ACCURACY OF THE ENTOMOLOGY MANUAL
Name: __________________________ Field of specialization__________________
Position in work __________________________
1. Are there any mistakes in the definition given in the manual?
_______Yes __________None
If yes, please give the defined word._____________________________
2. Are there misspelled words in the manual?
_______Yes __________None
If yes, please give the misspelled word._____________________________
3. Is there any inappropriate word you found in the manual?
_______Yes __________None
If yes, please give the word._____________________________
4. Are the topics appropriate?
_______Yes __________No
If no, please give the inappropriate word._____________________________
5. Are there inappropriate topics?
_______Yes __________None
If yes, please give word._____________________________
6. Are the activities appropriate to the topic given?
_______Yes __________No
If no, please give the activity and the topic._____________________________
7. Does the information presented agree with what you know?
_______Yes __________No
8. Does the information agree with other sources, especially print sources?
_______Yes __________No
9. Does the author provide sources or cite references?
_______Yes __________No
10. Is the information cited correctly?
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
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44
_______Yes __________No
11. Does the author suggest other resources?
_______Yes __________No
12. Does the manual have the publishing year?
______Yes ________No
Given the rating scale below, please rate the content of the manual in terms of its
appropriateness and correctness of topics.
1) inappropriate
A. Wrong
2) Neither appropriate nor inappropriate
B. Neither correct nor wrong
3) appropriate
C. Correct
Topics appropriateness
correctness
3 2 1 A B C
1. Insect
Metamorphosis
2. Structure of Insect and Their Function
3. Classification of Insect
4. Insect
Ecosystem
5. Major Insect Pest of High Value Crops in
the Philippines
6. Insect Beneficial to Man
7. Insecticide
Screening
Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic
Agricultural Courses in the College of Agriculture / Nora K. Pinkihan. 2008
Document Outline
- Evaluation of Laboratory Manuals
Produced by Teachers in Selected Basic Agricultural Courses in the College of
Agriculture
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
- ABSTRACT
- TABLE OF CONTENTS
- INTRODUCTION
- Rationale
- Statement of the Problem
- Objectives of the Study
- Importance of the Study
- Scope and Limitations
- REVIEW OF LITERATURE
- Comprehensibility
- Appropriateness of Words
- Instructional Materials
- Importance of Manuals
- Evaluating Instructional Materials
- Visual Design
- Importance of Citation
- METHODOLOGY
- Locale and Time of the Study
- Respondents of the Study
- Data Collection
- Data Gathered
- Data Analysis
- RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
- The Manuals
- Comprehensibility of the Manuals
- Attractiveness of the Manuals
- Accuracy of the Content of the Manuals
- Effect of the Manuals to the Learning of the Respondents
- SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
- Summary
- Conclusions
- Recommendations
- LITERATURE CITED
- APPENDICES