Exploring the Strategies of Secondary English Teachers in Enhancing Students' Literacy Skills: A Case Study
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Abstract
Background and Aim: Literacy underachievement remains a persistent problem in Philippine basic education, with Filipino learners ranking among the lowest in the 2018 PISA reading comprehension results (Librea et al., 2023). While much existing research quantifies the effectiveness of individual literacy strategies through experimental designs, comparatively few qualitative studies explore how secondary English teachers themselves experience, select, and adapt these strategies within their own classrooms. This case study addresses that gap by exploring the strategies secondary English teachers employ to enhance their students' literacy skills, and the reasoning behind these strategies, within a single Philippine public secondary school.
Materials and Methods: A single bounded qualitative case study design was employed, with the case defined as the group of eight English teachers at Tambulig National High School, Tambulig District, treated as one bounded unit of analysis. Participants were purposively selected based on current English teaching assignment, active engagement in literacy instruction, and at least three years of teaching experience. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in Cebuanong Binisaya using a guide validated by three experts, then transcribed, translated into English, and validated through member checking. Data were analyzed following Merriam and Tisdell's (2016) case study procedures, involving familiarization, coding, thematic categorization, and interpretation.
Results: Five interrelated themes emerged, corresponding to the study's Input-Process-Output conceptual framework: (1) input factors, including students' persistent literacy needs and teachers' varied professional backgrounds; (2) strategies employed, converging around structured reading, writing, and vocabulary approaches; (3) the influence of pedagogical content knowledge, ranging from theory-articulated to experience-derived adaptation; (4) challenges encountered, including mixed-ability classrooms, time constraints, and insufficient materials, met through collaborative and resourceful coping mechanisms; and (5) outcomes, reflecting genuine but uneven gains in students' comprehension, writing, and confidence.
Conclusion: Secondary teachers enhance their students' literacy skills through a structured, adaptive process shaped by persistent input constraints and sustained through individual resourcefulness, but this process appears to reach a practical ceiling absent broader institutional support. The study recommends institutionalizing shared literacy frameworks, structural support for mixed-ability instruction, a school-based materials bank, and institutional investment as a necessary precondition for durable, school-wide literacy improvement.
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