A.

Purpose

B. Definition of Terms
1. A4 - A letter-sized paper with the dimensions of 8.3” x 11.7" or 210mm x 297mm

2. Blank Line - The vertical distance between paragraphs or text in your paper will be
measured using lines. A blank line is created when you press the “enter” button in a word
document. Therefore, if the document asks you to make two blank lines in between paragraphs,
you make 2 blank lines in between the paragraphs by hitting the enter button twice. Take note
that these lines must follow the paragraph specifications found in section D.IV.
Important note: When making blank lines, do not forget that you start typing on
the next line after the blank lines. To simplify, if the document asks you to make four blank lines,
press the enter button four times to make four blank lines, then press the enter button again
before you start typing new text.

3. Default font - The default font of your research will be defined as Calibri; size 11,
regular.

4. Final Paper - The final submission of every BERF grantee. This refers to every part of
the final paper which can be found in section C of this manual.

5. Inverted Triangle - This is only applicable if the group of text covers more than 1 line
and is center aligned. This format dictates that the measure of the line of text decreases after
each line.

6. Line - One horizontal line of text in your word document. This is created when you
press the “Enter” button or if your text exceeds the capacity of your current line.
Example:
You are currently reading line 1 of this paragraph. (Line 1)
By clicking the enter button, I am now in line 2 of this paragraph. (Line 2)
C. Research Outline

I. Research Proposal Outline

Your research proposal must contain, and follow the order of the following:

i. Preliminaries
a. Title Page
b. Table of Contents
c. List of Tables and Figures

ii. Body
Basic Research
Chapter 1: Introduction
a. Background of the Study
b. Rationale
c. Research Questions
d. Scope and Limitation

Chapter 2: Review of Related Literature

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

a. Sampling
b. Data Collection
c. Ethical Issues
d. Plan for Data Analysis

Action Research
Chapter 1: Introduction
a. Context
b. Rationale
c. Action Research Questions
d. Proposed Innovation, Intervention, and Strategy

Chapter 2: Methods
a. Participants and/or other Sources of Data and Information
b. Data Gathering Methods
c. Data Analysis Plan
d. Action Research Work Plan and Timelines

iii. End Matter

a. Research Application Form
b. Declaration of Anti-Plagiarism
c. Declaration of Absence of Conflict of Interest
 d. Proposed Lesson Plan, Research Instruments, and/or Final Document for
Innovation
e. Cost Estimate

II. Final Research Paper Outline

Your research paper must contain, and follow the order of the following:

i. Preliminaries
a. Title Page
b. Letter of Acceptance
c. Acknowledgement
d. Abstract
e. Table of Contents
f. List of Tables and Figures

ii. Body
Basic Research:
Chapter 1: Introduction
a. Introduction and Rationale
b. Research Questions
c. Scope and Limitation

Chapter 2: Review of Related Literature

Chapter 3: Research Methodology
a. Sampling
b. Data Collection

Chapter 4: Results and Discussion

a. Results
b. Discussion

Chapter 5: Conclusions and Recommendations

a. Conclusion
b. Recommendation
c. Dissemination of Advocacy Plans
Action Research
Chapter 1: Introduction
a. Context and Rationale
b. Action Research Questions
c. Innovation, Intervention and Strategy

Chapter 2: Action Research Methods

a. Participants and/or Other Sources of Data and Information
b. Data Gathering Methods
c. Plans for Dissemination and Utilization

Chapter 3: Results and Discussion

a. Results
b. Discussion

Chapter 4: Conclusion and Reflection

a. Conclusion
b. Reflection
c. Action plan

iii. End Matter

1. References
2. Appendices - Your appendices must be arranged in this order:
a. Copy of the Letter of Acceptance of the research proposal (Don’t forget to
highlight your name).
b. Research Application Form
c. Declaration of Anti-Plagiarism
d. Declaration of Absence of Conflict of Interest
e. Validated Lesson Plan, Research Instruments, and/or Final Document for
Innovation
f. Data Sets (if applicable) in Excel Format
g. Photos of researcher’s intervention in action, improved innovation, and/or
actual teaching strategy (4 photos, 3x5in size)
h. Liquidation Report of BERF Grantees
3. Curriculum Vitae
 D. General Rules
I. Paper Size
Your final paper must be printed on A4 paper.

II. Margins
To change your margin setting, on MS Word, click the Layout tab. On the layout tab,
click on margins, followed by custom margins. Every page under the body (C.II.) of your final
paper must follow the following margins:
Top of page: 1.5 inches
Bottom and right of page: 1.5 inches
Left: 2 inches
Gutter: 0
Gutter Position: Left

Take note that these margins must be based on the size of A4 paper.

III. Font
Every form of text in the body of your final paper must use the Calibri font. If there is no
instruction to format the font as bold, or in italics, or if there is no instruction on the font size of
the text, this means that the font setting is regular, size 11 (also known as default font).

IV. Paragraph Setting and Blank Lines

When writing your final paper, your paragraph (right click within the document and click
“paragraph”) setting must always be:
Alignment: Left
Indentation
Left: 0 cm
Right: 0 cm
Special: None

Spacing
Before: 0 pt
After: 0 pt
Line Spacing: Single

Font size: 11

Whenever the manual tells you to make “blank lines” which is defined in B.2, the blank
lines in between your text must follow these specifications. We used the blank line specification
rather than inches because it simplifies the paper writing process.

If you start to notice that your paragraph setting does not follow the specifications above,
highlight the text that does not follow the paragraph specification, right click within the
document, click “paragraph”, and input the setting stated above.
 V. Page Numbers
You shall be using the following setting for the page numbers. This is based on the
Microsoft Word software:

On the “Insert” tab, click the “Page Number” button. On the “Page number” setting, click
“Top of page”. After clicking the “Top of page” setting, select “Plain number 3”. The page
number at the header shall then appear at the upper right corner. Set the font as Calibri, size
11.

Page 1 of your research paper must start after the table of contents portion of your final
paper.

VI. Writing Paragraphs

The default font will be used for the majority of your paragraphs. DepEd NCR, however,
recognizes the freedom of the author to bold, underline, or italicize portions of the text to add
emphasis.

When writing paragraphs, always indent the first line (This is done by pressing the “Tab”
button). The entire paragraph must be justified and always make one blank line before
beginning the next paragraph.
 E. Format
In these formats, make sure that your document is set to the specified margins. Each
part will be discussed starting at the very beginning of the page (after the 1.5” top margin) and
will be presented via steps.

To have a visual representation of these parts, please refer to the link attached on
section I __ or see the sample researches on section H.

I. Title Page
General Rule: Every text in this part is center-aligned.
The blank line font size for this part is 14.

Step 1: Research Title

Type your research title. This must follow the inverted triangle format if your
research will cover more than one line. The maximum number of lines used for your
research title is three; bold, all caps, font size 14

Step 2: Make 8 blank lines.

Step 3: Presentation
Type in the following:
Line 1: (An Action / A Basic) Research Presented to the
Line 2: Department of Education as Grantee of
Line 3: Basic Education Research Fund of (Year as grantee)
Format: Font size 14

Step 5: Make 6 blank lines.

Step 6: Presenter Information

General rule: Set the font size to 14
a. One author
1. Type your full name.
2. On the next line, type the full title of your institution.

b. Two or more authors

i. Every researcher works in the same institution
1. The format of typing names is first name followed by surname.
2. Always start with typing the lead researcher’s name. Then type the
names of the co-researchers in the same line by alphabetical order of their
surnames. Their names will be separated with commas.
Example: Victoria Mayo, and Warren Ramos
Victoria Mayo, Jai Javier, and Warren Ramos
In the second example, Victoria Mayo’s name goes
first since she is the lead researcher despite Javier being first alphabetically.
 3. On the next line, type the full title of your institution.

ii. Researchers work in different institutions

1. The names of researchers who work in the same institution must
always be in the same line. Their names will be separated with commas.
2. Always start with the lead researcher’s name. If a co-researcher works
in the same institution, include the researcher’s name in the same line.
3. On the next line, type the full title of your institution.
4. Make one blank line.

ii.a Co-Researchers work in the same institution

5. Type the name of the co-researchers who work in a different institution.
If the co-researchers work in the same institution, their names must be in the
same line, arranged alphabetically by surname. If the co-researchers work in
different institutions, follow Step 7.
6. On the next line, type the full title of the institution.

ii.b Co-Researchers work in different institutions

5. If the co-researchers work at separate institutions, after step 4, type the
name of the co-researcher. Take note that you must arrange your co-
researcher’s names in alphabetical order according to their surname. So if your
co-reseachers’ names, for example, are “Warren Ramos” and “Victoria Mayo”,
Victoria Mayo’s information must come first.
6. On the next line, type the institution.
7. Make one blank line.
8. Type the name of the third co-researcher.
9. On the next line, type the institution

Step 7: Make 6 blank lines

Step 8: Month and year of submission; bold, all caps, font size 14

Note: If this takes up more than one page, check your paper size (D.I), margins (D.2),
and paragraph setting (D.4). It must adhere to all those specifications

II. Acknowledgement
Step 1: Type “ACKNOWLEDGEMENT”; all caps, bold, center aligned.
Step 2: Make one blank line
Step 3: Write your acknowledgement. Your acknowledgement must not exceed one
page.
III. Abstract
Step 1: Title
Type your research title. This must follow the inverted triangle format if your
research will cover more than one line; bold, center aligned, all caps, Size 14

Step 2: Make 2 blank lines

Step 3: Presenter Information

Rules:
General rule: Center-aligned, all names are in font size 14
a. One author
1. Type your full name; bold, font size 14
2. Type your email address; default font
3. On the next line, type the full title of your institution; default font.

b. Two or more authors

i. Every researcher works in the same institution
1. The format of typing names is first name followed by surname.
2. Always start with typing the lead researcher’s name. Then type the
names of the co-researchers in the same line by alphabetical order of their
surnames. Their names will be separated with commas.
Example: Victoria Mayo, and Warren Ramos
Victoria Mayo, Jai Javier, and Warren Ramos
3. On the next line, type the email addresses, arranged in the same
manner with the names; default font.
4. On the next line, type your institution; default font

ii. Researchers work in different institutions

1. Always start with the lead researcher’s name. If a co-researcher works
in the same institution, include the co-researcher’s name in the same line.
2. On the next line, type the email addresses, arranged in the same
manner with the names; default font.
3. On the next line, type the full title of your institution; default font.
4. Make one blank line.

ii.a Co-researchers work in the same institution

5. Type the name of the co-researchers who work in a different institution.
If the co-researchers works in the same institution, their names must be in the same line,
arranged alphabetically by surname. If the co-researchers work in separate institutions,
proceed to ii.b
6. On the next line, type the email addresses, arranged in the same
manner with the names; default font.
 7. On the next line, type his institution; default font

Ii.b Co-researchers work in different institutions

5. If the co-researchers work in separate institutions, after step 4, type the
name of the co-researcher. Take note that you must arrange your co-researcher’s
names in alphabetical order according to their surname. So if your co-reseachers’
names, for example, are “Warren Ramos” and “Victoria Mayo”, Victoria Mayo’s
information must come first.
6. On the next line, type his email address, arranged in the same manner
with the names; default font.
7. On the next line, type his institution; default font
8. Make on blank line.
9. Type the name of the third co-researcher.
10.On the next line, type his email address; default font
11. On the next line, type his institution; default font

Step 4: Make 2 blank lines

Step 5: Type “ABSTRACT”; bold, center aligned, all caps

Step 6: Make 1 blank line

Step 7: Type in the abstract of your research. The minimum word limit of your abstract is
200 words with the maximum at 250; align left, default font

Step 8: Make 1 blank line

Step 9: Type “Keywords:”; Bold, italicize, align left

This will be followed by 5 - 10 keywords that can be found in your abstract;
italicize, align left

IV. Table of Contents

Step 1: Type “TABLE OF CONTENTS”; bold, all caps, center aligned

Step 2: Make 1 blank line

Step 3: Type “Page”; align right, default font

Step 4: Make 1 blank line

Step 5: Follow the following rules when making your table of contents:
i. For chapters that contain sub-chapters:
 Step 1: Type ‘Chapter’ and the chapter number (e.g. “Chapter 1); bold
Step 2: Press the “tab” button
Step 3: Type the chapter name; all caps, bold
Step 4: Make one blank line
Step 5: Type in the sub-chapters, one line per sub-chapter. The
sub-chapters must be aligned with the chapter name; default font.
Step 6: On the same line of the sub-chapters, type the page number
where the sub-chapters can be found in the body of your final research.
The page number must be aligned with the “Page” text that you made in
Step 3 (E.4.Step 3); default font.
Step 7: At the end of the final sub-chapter of the current chapter you’re
working on, make one blank line before typing the next chapter.

ii. For chapters that do not contain sub-chapters.

Step 1: Type ‘Chapter’ and the chapter number (e.g. “Chapter 1); bold
Step 2: Press the “tab” button
Step 3: Type the chapter name; all caps, bold
Step 4: On the same line of the chapter name, type the page number
where the chapter name can be found in the body of your final research.
The page number must be aligned with the “Page” text that you made in
Step 3 (E.4.Step 3); default font
Step 5: Make one blank line before typing the next chapter.

V. Body
Step 1: Type “Chapter” along with the chapter number (e.g. “Chapter 1”); Center aligned,
bold.
Step 2: On the next line, type the chapter name; All caps, center aligned, bold.
Step 3: Make one blank line.
Step 4: Type the sub-chapter name; All caps, align left, bold. Ignore this step if the
chapter contains no sub-chapter/s.
Step 5: Make one blank line. Ignore this step if the chapter contains no sub-chapter/s.
Step 6: Type the content of the chapter.

F. Referencing
I. In-text Citation

a. Definition of terms
i. First citation
The very first instance of citing the source material in your text.
ii. Subsequent citation
Citing from the same source material after its first citation regardless of
chapter.
 iii. Direct quotation
Citing from a source in verbatim.

b. Parenthetical vs non-parenthetical format

You might notice in the table that will be provided below that there are two ways
in which you can cite in-text. These two ways are parenthetical and non-parenthetical.

You use the parenthetical format if the author/s are not a part of the constructed
sentence.

Example:
It is important to understand the meaning behind your data in order to make the proper
interpretation (Ramos, 2016).

The non-parenthetical format is then used if the author/s are a part of the constructed
sentence.

Example:
According to Ramos (2016), it is important to understand the meaning behind your data
in order to make the proper interpretation

These rules must be applied in the use of both direct or indirect citation. It is important to
always use in-text citation to avoid plagiarism.

c. In-text citation rules

The table below are the rules that must be observed when making in-text citations.

Rules:
1. “Author” will always be written with just the author’s family name.
2. “Year” will always mean the year where the author’s work was published in 4-digit
format.
3. “Abbr” in this case means the abbreviated version of the group’s name.
4. When “identical” is stated in the table, it means the format for subsequent citations is
similar to the first citation.
5. Fill in the information given while following the format, particularly the placement of the
comma and the parenthesis.
6. In every circumstance wherein you directly quote (direct quotation) the author, always
include the page number in which this quote can be initially found. This means that if the
quote covers 2 or more pages, just type the page where the quote starts. This is
formatted by adding a comma and the page number (represented as “p.”) after the year
of publication.
Example:
Ramos (2016, p. 4)
(Ramos, Mayo, & Cabral, 2016, p. 25)
Type of First citation, Subsequent First Citation, non- Subsequent
Citation parenthetical citation, parenthetical Citation, non-
parenthetical parenthetical

One author (Author, year) Identical Author (year) Identical

Two authors (Author & Identical Author and Author Identical

Author, year) (year)

Three authors (Author, Author, (Author et al., Author, Author, Author et al. (year)
& Author, year) year) and Author (year)

Four authors (Author, Author, (Author et al., Author, Author, Author et al. (year)
Author, & year) Author, and
Author, year) Author (year)

Five authors (Author, Author, (Author et al., Author, Author, Author et al. (year)
Author, Author year) Author, Author,
& Author, year) and Author (year)

Six or more (Author et al., Identical Author et al. (year) Identical

authors year)

Groups with (Group [Abbr], (Abbr, year) Complete name of Abbr (year)
abbreviation year) group (Abbr, year)
as authors

Groups with (Group, year) Identical Group (year) Identical

no
abbreviation
as authors

Unknown (Title, year) Title (year)

Author with a
book or report
as source

Unknown (“Title”, year) “Title” (year)

Author with
articles,
chapters, or
web pages as
source

II. Referencing
Every reference in your bibliography must strictly follow the American Psychological
Association 6th Edition (APA 6th) format.
G. Tables
Written below are the steps to take when attaching tables on the body of your table.

Step 1: Type “Table” followed by the chapter number and the numerical order of the
table within that chapter; center-aligned
Example:
Table 1.1
This means the table is in chapter 1 and is the first table that can be seen in that
chapter.
Table 3.4
The table is in chapter 3 and is the 4th table in that chapter.

Step 2: On the next line, type the title of the table. Don’t forget to use proper
capitalization when writing titles; center-align, italicize

Step 3: Make on blank line.

Step 4: Make your table.

Written below are the rules to follow when making tables.

1. Only use horizontal lines to separate table headers and titles, and to separate major
subtopics within your table.
2. Do not use vertical lines. Make sure that the distance between your data vertically
clearly shows the separation between the data. We suggest pressing the “Tab” button
once or twice instead of pressing the spacebar multiple times when making the
separation.
3. If you want to make a note, below your table, make one blank space. After, type
“Note” in italics followed by the information that needs to be stated in default font.

H. Sample Research

I. Important Links