"Am I not enough!?

"; The Factors of Comparing Students to their Predecessors

INTRODUCTION

Student comparison is when a teacher compares a student to another student for various

reasons, but the research is comparison to predecessors, meaning the students before them. It may be

that the goal of the teacher is to make his/her students to perform more actively in class by encouraging

them, but is there a right way of student comparison? And what does some teachers often use?

According to Pushpa B.R.(2018), Teachers need to remember that they are comparing in order to

appreciate a student. Comparison should never be done to insult or bring down the confidence and skills

of a child. This being said, the teacher should never compare students to humiliate or insult them. But

still, many of the teachers still use comparison the other way around. Some compares the whole class

like "Of all the batch I have handled, you are the most irresponsible students I have ever seen!". Some

teachers say to their last year's pupils are way smarter than the students they teach now.

Although sometimes, the cause of student comparison is the students themselves. Some

students in a classroom have different behavior to another. Some of these immature, irritating, or

thoughtless behaviors or “classroom incivilities” include: lateness or leaving early, inappropriate

cellphone and laptop usage in class, side conversations, disregard for deadlines, grade grubbing, sniping

remarks, cheating (www.cmu.edu). So, knowing this makes the two sides more easy to read, teachers

continue student comparisons because of their attitudes & behavior, and students that have these

behavior becomes more inactive in class.

 Student's skills are the most important part to them to be enhanced. Because their skills and

abilities are the most powerful tool they can use in life. And, the only place aside from home where they

can sharpen their skills and abilities is in school. Unfortunately, some students are losing their interest in

learning knowing they didn't meet expectations. And, this results to students having low grades and it

also add up more stress in the side of some parents that wanted their sons/daughters to aquire or have a

high grade. To prevent this, The National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT) has asked

teachers and parents not to "label" students on the basis of their performance or compare their grades

with those of others.

Based on the observation of the researchers, some of these cases also occurs in San Fabian

National High School. Many teachers also compare students in a humiliating way even if they didn't

know it. We ourselves have also been compared to our predecessors by our teachers in our class many

times now that we are in the 2nd quarter of school year, and although some of these were motivational,

we cannot deny that some of these comparisons to their previous students that have been done to us is

truly humiliating for us, and to be true, we didn't really meet the expectations of our teachers. But we

don't think that this will stay this way. Being shy is over, The self introduce is done at these times, these

are times where many of us are supposed to show our true skills and work harder in the class.

So, We decided to conduct this research to know the different factors of students upon being

compared to their Predecessors. Because even though we already experienced these comparisons, we

also want to know the different results of other students who experienced the same.

Statement of the Problem

 This research aims to know the Results of Comparing students to their Predecessors.

Specifically, this research aims to answer the following:

1. How do students feel when they are compared?

2. What are the reasons which causes comparison?

3. What can they suggest for comparison to be encouraging?

Methodology

Research Design

This Qualitative Research is a process of naturalistic inquiry that seek in-depth understanding of

social phenomena within their natural setting. This problem will investigate the "what" rather the" why".

Besides this, the researchers will also examine the phenomenon through observations. Along with

questionnaires that will be given out to respondents for statistical representation of the findings in the

study, interviews with the respondents and a few experts in the field will be conducted.

This study will use Case Study which will describe and interpret the different emotions of students

upon being compared to their predecessors. Data will be gathered through the use of questionnaires,

which will be prepared by the researchers.

The respondents will asked to give their preferred response by answering the questions based on

their personal perceptions

Participants and Research Site

The researchers will choose to investigate this problem to explore the life of the students who

experienced student comparison to their predecessor.

The participants of this study will be all the Grade levels of San Fabian National High School S.Y.

2019-2020. We will take five individuals for every top section of a grade level where expectations is set

high. Researchers will conduct a research to the students who had experienced Student Comparison to

their Predecessors on our campus.

Instrumentation & Data Collection

This Qualitative research will use the method of the vertical triangulation for instrumentation

and data collection, it includes: Open-minded questionnaires, Semi-structured interview, and Direct

Observation.

The open-minded questionnaires is a questionnaire that leaves a blank section for respondents

to write in an answers. Questions on this will be a interview guide to validate the answer of the

respondents. Semi-structured interview, this type of interview, the researchers wants to know the

specific information which can be compared and contrasted within information gained in other

interview. Direct observation involves the observation of a subject on certain situation. It is the method

that the researchers will use to observe the participants.

Questionnaire
Name:

Section:

1. Have you/your class ever experienced being compared to your Predecessors at school? How did you

react?

2. How did you feel being compared?

3. Why were you compared?

4. What do you think is the goal of the teachers when they compare you?

5. Is there a change in your perspective in learning upon being compared? What are those changes?

6. What can you suggest for Student Comparison to be motivational?