EFFECTIVENESS OF THE ALTERNATIVE LEARNING SYSTEM

AMONG THE SELECTED BARANGAYS IN THE CITY OF

DASMARIÑAS
1
NICOLE KAEZLLE VALEZA, 2HYUNGMIN CHOI, 3JOHANNA KAYE SANTILLANA
1,2,3
Social Sciences Department, De La Salle University - Dasmariñas
Email: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]
1

Abstract - This study evaluates the effectiveness of the Alternative Learning System (ALS) program conducted
by the Arnold Janssen Catholic Mission Foundation (AJCMF) among the selected barangays in Dasmariñas
City. It cites specific barangays that are currently providing the learning centers for the program, and the
demographic profiles of both learners who are enrolled in the program and their instructional managers.
Moreover, it determines and evaluates the motivation factors of the ALS learners which will acquaint their
objectives and aspirations through the program. Drop-out factors among the ALS learners which contributes to
the challenges of the current system were also discussed. Furthermore, it deliberates the effectiveness on the
learning standards of the program and how those standards are achieved as evaluated by the learners and
instructional managers. The following are the key findings: First, there is no significant relationship between the
effectiveness of the ALS program and the demographic profile of learners. Second, the primary motivation and
objective of the ALS learners is to have the opportunity in attaining a job. Third, lack of interest is the primal
cognitive which prompts ALS learners to drop out of the program. Finally, both learners and instructional
managers deems the program effective overall. However, the learners evaluated it as moderately effective while
the instructional managers consider the program highly effective. Therefore, the study recommends to revamp
the module to suit the difference in learners’ capacities and capabilities.

Keywords - Alternative Learning System, Drop out, Effectiveness Motivation

I. INTRODUCTION To address this matter, the international development

community in 1990, conceived a massive global
According to the United Nation Educational, education initiative called Education for All 2015
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), (EFA 2015), which aims to meet the learning needs
literacy is a fundamental human right and the of all children, youth and adults by 2015 (UNESCO,
foundation for lifelong learning. It is a prerequisite 2015). Most countries of the world have pledged and
for ensuing an evolving global society and signified their commitments to the EFA goals,
contributes national and human development. especially in tackling literacy rates and school drops
Countries that are successful in giving their (Arzadon & Nato, 2015). One of these countries is
population with literacy and lifelong skills are usually the Philippines and in 2001, the country has also
in a better position to meet the economic demands of supported Millennium Development Goals (MDG),
operating in a globalized information economy and the Decade for Literacy in 2003.
(Apao, Dayagbil & Abao, 2014). With this context, For past decades, the Philippines had made
individuals must be literate to become globally improvements when it comes to the quality of
competitive but to accomplish this lies in the education but at the same time, the country’s
education process. education system has confronted several challenges.
Education is more than just transmitting knowledge While the literacy rate is between 94 to 96 percent,
from one source to another, it is a vital element in the functional illiteracy is relatively high (Pinca, 2015).
development of skills and capabilities in all essential There is also a disturbingly high number of students
areas in a certain extent. To improve a country’s who drop out of school. The most prominent
education is strengthening the skills of its citizens reasoning behind this is that most individuals have
hence their total potential may be exploited to the been assailed with economic crisis impelled by
nation’s advantage. Yet several young illiterate poverty which are credited to illiteracy. Given the
adolescents are not able to attend or complete basic lack of education as the unwarranted situation that
education. caused poverty, illiteracy continues to occur among
To weaken social injustice, diminish social disparities the poor and the marginalized.
and strengthening economic growth is to equalize The Philippine government subsequently
education among individuals. To uphold the right to implemented the Alternative Learning System (ALS)
education of those who are not enrolled in schools, under the jurisdiction of the Department of Education
diverse forms of provision through different learning as a necessary component of Philippine education
pathways are required (Yasunaga, 2014). system to provide each and every Filipinos with
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 Effectiveness of the Alternative Learning System among the Selected Barangays in the City of Dasmarinas

unrestricted access to basic education to decrease the institutions and fifty-seven (57) CLCs in every area in
illiteracy rate as proposed in the Education for All Dasmariñas City.
(EFA) 2015 Philippine Plan of Action.
The Alternative Learning System is conceptualized as The primary focus of this study is to assess the
a non-formal modular education program which implementation of the Alternative Learning System
caters to the learning needs of non-schoolers, drop- conducted by the Arnold Janssen Catholic Mission
outs, illiterate adults and other learners from Foundation at the Area C of Dasmariñas City in the
marginalized groups who have never experienced Province of Cavite, Philippines. Furthermore, this
formal education but can learn in an out of school study intends to find out the effectiveness of the
setting. In the study conducted by Apao, on the program and determine whether it’s objectives on
implementation of the alternative learning system improving the provision of life skills, literacy and the
program along provision of life skills, increased program outcome of quality of living have been
literacy and quality of living which was revealed that achieved.
the provision of life skills was attained to a great
extent. II. METHODOLODY

The Philippine Department of Education further 2.1. Research Design

expanded the ALS program through establishing The descriptive method of research employed in this
partnerships with non-government organizations in study. This method of research can be defined as a
order to deliver the program’s objective in ensuring critical process of observing, describing, analyzing
that all individuals, especially the indigenous and the and documenting quantifiable information. This
marginalized, have access to quality non-formal method can also be a mixed research, in which
education and skills training. quantitative and qualitative methods, techniques, or
other paradigm characteristics are mixed in one
The program is conducted either in school campuses overall study. With this approach, researchers used
and community halls or on private places depending the qualitative research paradigm for one phase of a
on the delivery of instructions provided by research study and the quantitative research paradigm
government-paid instructors or by private non- for another phase of the study.
government organizations.
The methods of data collection for this descriptive
The Arnold Janssen Catholic Mission Foundation, research are utilized in several combinations and
Inc. (AJCMFI), a non-profit international aid arrangement based on the formulated research
organization operated and funded by the Societas questions. Various common data collection methods
Verbi Divini (Society of the Divine Word), is funding or techniques within the field of descriptive mixed
several Community Learning Centers located in research include surveys, interviews, portfolios and
Cavite and Palawan. The Foundation started with its observations. This study in particular used the
first established learning center in Dasmariñas, Cavite collective approach of using surveys and interviews
with the Sagip Dunong Learning Center, which to collect data. The collected data were analyzed in
attends to illiterate youth and adults who did not order to formulate and recommend specific
complete their elementary or high school education approaches or strategies to further improve the
but are eager to undergo and finish the ALS program subject of this study, which is the Alternative
as an alternative method to acquire a diploma. Learning System conducted by the Arnold Janssen
The Foundation is currently focusing on the literacy Foundation in Area C of Dasmariñas City, Cavite.
improvement of out of school individuals and the
indigenous communities. At present, AJCMFI has a 2.2. Sampling
total of ninety-four (94) learning centers under its A non-random quota sampling design was used for
supervision in the National Capital Region (Manila the study. A quota sampling is the critical process of
and Quezon City), Province of Cavite (Dasmariñas selecting or gathering representative data from the
City, Bacoor, and Tagaytay City), and in the southern population chosen by the researchers. As of 2016, the
Palawan Province (Rio Tuba and Balabac Island). AJMF Inc. supervised one hundred ten (110)
The Local Government Unit (LGU) of Dasmariñas community learning centers, fifty-one (51) of which
City has been a partner of the Foundation in the are located at the Dasmariñas City. This study was
formation of Functional Community Learning conducted at only thirteen (13) learning centers in
Centers (CLCs) in every community or barangay by Area C of the Dasmariñas City. The respondents of
providing funding assistance. The LGU of this study were learners who enrolled in the ALS
Dasmariñas City distributes and assigns a specific program at Area C from the year 2016 to 2017, and
reasonable segments of its Special Education Fund their Instructional Managers (IMs) as well. All
(SEF) to finance Alternative Learning System (ALS) learner respondents were in the secondary level, three
programs and projects. There are eleven (11) (3) learners from each learning center were selected
by their Instructional managers (IMs) to be surveyed

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 Effectiveness of the Alternative Learning System among the Selected Barangays in the City of Dasmarinas

and interviewed. Thus, a total of thirty-nine (39) home, further pushing their decreasing interest in
learners and five (5) instructional managers answered studying lower.
the survey questionnaires and be interviewed. Another factor is the module, while the lessons were
relatively easy to follow for most students, especially
2.3. Method of gathering data for those who halt their studies for a long time, the
For the purpose of this research, self-made survey module is a little dragging for some, especially to
questionnaires and in-depth interviews were used. young ones eager to learn more in preparation for the
The survey questionnaires were designed differently university.
for the learners and instructional managers. After the
surveys were answered, in-depth interviews were 3.2 Demographic Profile of Learners and
immediately followed and conducted. This method Instructional Managers
was particularly used in order to collect additional There are more female learners than male learners in
data and to further assess the effectiveness of ALS the ALS in Area C, Dasmariñas (Fig 3). The
program as perceived by both students and teachers. plausible reason for thismay be that females are more
In-depth interviews were personal and unstructured emboldened to continue and complete their studies in
interviews that intended to classify the emotions, order to help their relatives than males. Similar to the
experiences and opinions of the respondents about a findings of Fernandez (2013), there are more female
specific subject of study.The questionnaires were learners than male learners. Majority of the learners
divided into five (5) parts in accordance with the five belongs to the age group between 16 to 18 years old
(5) main statement problems of this study. The first with 33 percent and the age group between 19 to 21
part was about defining the learning centers in Area years old with 26 percent. The mean age of total
C. The second part was about the profile or learner respondents is 22 years old. With regard to
background of learners and instructional managers. their marital and employment status, respondents are
The third part was about the reasons behind the drop- mostly single and not employed. This indicates that
outs from the ALS program. The fourth part was single and unemployed learners are more emboldened
about the learners’ motivation to enroll in the ALS to enroll and actively participate in the program. They
program. Lastly, the fifth part was about the have more significant amount of time to actively
achievement of the learning standards of ALS participate in the program due to not having any
program as perceived by learners and instructional occupation that will consume most of their time. This
managers. may also imply that married individuals are less
likely to enroll in the program due to family
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION responsibilities and other responsibilities that may not
apply to single learners. Furthermore, majority of the
3.1 Dreams and Promises Dotting the Map learners attained high school level education in
There is a total of 13 barangays in the Area C of formal school, specifically up to the third year of high
Dasmarinas that have ALS under AJMF (Fig 1). The school.This implies that learners who have attained
ALS learning centers in Area C are mainly located at secondary level still aspires to continue their studies,
the vacant room in each barangay hall. The total despite not being able to finish formal schooling.
number of enrollees in all the barangay in Area C is
two hundred and two (212) while those who Fig 4 shows that there are more male instructional
completed the program was reduced into half, with a managers than female instructional managers in Area
total number of 106 (Fig 2). The total number of C, Dasmariñas. This indicates that males are more
Instructional Managers in all the barangays in Area is vigorous in teaching than females, disaffirming the
five (5). claims of Benseman (2003) that education and
teaching is a female-dominated world. It also
While most of the rooms were located in a good dissimilar to the findings of Fernandez (2013), that
environment where the rooms were isolated and the majority of teachers in ALS are females. It is
quiet, there are some who were located at a crowded revealed that majority of instructional managers are
area where there are houses and a basketball hall single. This indicates that single individuals are more
nearby, and there are times where the rooms are open likely to pursue education and teaching as a
so you could hear the noises from the outside. profession. This may also imply that single
Nevertheless, most of the learning centers have good Instructional Managers are more common due to the
rooms, good ventilation and good environment. needed personal immersion needed for the job. All
instructional managers are college graduate. It is also
Another is the availability of learning centers, revealed that majority of the instructional managers
instructional managers and learners tend to transfer are working for 5 to 6 days in one week, and for 7 to
from one place to another, depending on the 9 hours in one day. Most of them have been teaching
availability, since they do not have their own ALS for the 4 to 5 years. This implies that the
facilities. This might affect the learner’s capacity to instructional managers are knowledgeable and
attend classes as some places is a little far from their competent enough to teach a group of learners.

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 Effectiveness of the Alternative Learning System among the Selected Barangays in the City of Dasmarinas

3.3 ALS: Opening Up Closed Doors of learners who enrolled in ALS program dropped
Majority of the learner respondents stated that the out, while only 32.95% of learners completed the
main source which informed or introduced them to program. They revealed that the primary factor of
the program are their relatives or friends as shown in learners decided to drop out from ALS program is
Fig 5. While the second most common channel is lack of interest on modules, similarly with this study,
their instructional managers with the frequency of 10. the researchers also found out the most common
Whereas social media was stated as the source with factor of dropout among ALS learner is also lack of
the lowest frequency of 4. While World Bank (2016) interest. Since the major factor motivated learners to
found that the most common source where ALS enroll in ALS program is ‘To have an opportunity in
enrollees are informed about the program is generally obtaining a job’, this result may imply that learners
from the field visiting by ALS implementers, and the do not feel interests on learning in ALS program
second main source is their family members, friends, because they cannot find several relations between
and peers. It is also mentioned that the other channels the ALS modules and their future employment. And
such as posters are not very important. financial problem that learners are struggling pushes
Fig 6 shows the motivational factors wherein the them to use their time to work instead of learning
learner-respondents rated three (3) factors similarly; although the work gives lower salary.
to continue studying in a university/college, to have
an opportunity in obtaining a job, and to just get a 3.5 Effectiveness: A Wine-Toasted Victory or a
secondary level diploma. Whist ‘to obtain basic Bitter Sigh of Defeat?
literacy skills’ was stated to be the lowest frequency. Generally, responses from both the learners and
However, World Bank (2016) found that the primary instructional managers have been favorable. Based
factor of motivation for the majority of ALS learners from the research interview, learners generally
in general is to continue schooling in the formal perceive the system of ALS moderately effective, as
system while only 17 percent of learners enrolled the “It gives them a second chance to education and in
program to improve chances for employment. life.” While instructional managers perceive the
Most of the learners still have the driving force to system as highly effective. Thus, the researchers
continue their studies in order to enter or attend their could conclude that the Alternative Learning System
desired university or college. The plausible reason for has been effective in terms of helping the students go
this finding is that the learners crave to have a better back to education, as it is approachable and
opportunity to attain better employment and future. accessible to the variation of learners.
As shown in Fig 7, Instructional manager respondents Fig 10 shows the total percentage of the passers from
stated that all factors given researchers motivated to 2011 to 2015 is only 46.05%. Though it showed signs
their learners to enroll at the ALS program, but ‘to of improvement from the year 2014, especially at
have an opportunity in obtaining a job’ was stated the year 2015, with a total percentage of 69.70%, there
highest among the factors. Based on the interviews, highest rating ever, but still, the gap between the
the Instructional managers views that their learners number of takers and passers is huge despite the fact
only enrolled to program due to wanting to attain that they are already conducting a qualifying exam to
better employment since most of the enrolled learners filter those before they take the accreditation and
are from poor and marginalized communities. equivalency test. In addition to that, not everyone was
given the chance to take the A&E Test because of the
3.4 Drop Out: A Silent Epidemic qualifying exam that ALS conduct for them “to
Majority of the learners as shown in Fig 8, maintain the high percentage of their passers.”
stated that lack of interest, financial problem and time Though they are showing signs of improvement
management as the drop out factors of their peers in through the years, there is still a lot to polish
ALS with the highest frequency of 16, while they especially in terms of their system in taking the test.’
stated the long distance from residence to the learning
center with the lowest frequency of 5. Some ALS
learners who drop out of the program also cited some
other reasons; the family problem, becoming
pregnant, and peer pressure.
Fig 9 shows that the Instructional manager
respondents stated that lack of interest is the first
reason with highest frequency (4). The second reason
is that learners were employed so that they couldn’t
continue the ALS program. But instructional manager
did not think the distance from residence to the
learning center is drop-out factors for the learners.
The large numbers of drop out learners is a
challenge of ALS from its beginning. Atilano,
Desipeda, Domingo et al. (2016) found that majority Fig 1.Name and Location of ALS learning centers in Area C,
Dasmariñas

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 Effectiveness of the Alternative Learning System among the Selected Barangays in the City of Dasmarinas

Fig 5. Sources that informed learners about the ALS program

Fig 6. Motivational Factors of learners to enroll at the ALS

program as perceived by learners

Fig 2. Number of enrollees and completers in secondary level

from 2016 – 2017 per learning center
Fig 7. Motivational Factors of learners to enroll at the ALS
program as perceived by IMs

Fig 8. Factors that contribute to the learners to drop out of the

ALS program as perceived by learners

Fig 9. Factors that contribute to the learners to drop out of the

ALS program as perceived by IMs

Fig 3. Demographic Information of ALS Learners

Fig 10. Number of enrollees, registrants, takers and passers

and passing percentage from 2011to 2015

CONCLUSIONS

This study is intended to assess the effectiveness of

Alternative Learning System under the supervision of
Arnold Janssen Catholic Mission Foundation
(AJCMF) among selected barangays in Area C, City
of Dasmariñas, Philippines in order to support the
said foundation by identifying the factors of
motivation and drop out as well as evaluating the
effectiveness on specific learning standards this
program provides.Perceptively, the Alternative
Learning System is effective for learners since
majority of learner respondents stated that the
program is moderately effective and instructional
manager respondents evaluated it is highly effective
in terms of the attainment of twenty one (21) specific
skills under the learning standards of communication
skills, problem solving and critical thinking skills,
sustainable use of resources and productivity,
Fig 4. Demographic Information of Instructional Managers development of self and a sense of community and
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 Effectiveness of the Alternative Learning System among the Selected Barangays in the City of Dasmarinas

expanding one’s world vision. Statistically, the [6] Chan, C. (2016, October 24). Assessment Framework in the
Alternative Learning System: A Systemic Educational
Alternative Learning System is not effective since the
Change and Sustainability. ResearchGate.
overall passing rate of Accreditation and Equivalency [7] Fernandez, R. M. (2013). TEACHERS’ COMPETENCE
test from the beginning of its implementation to AND LEARNERS’ PERFORMANCE IN THE
current year is still below 50 percent. It shows that ALTERNATIVE LEARNING SYSTEM TOWARDS AN
ENRICHED INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM . International
more than half of ALS learners could not accomplish
Journal of Information Technology and Business
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completed the whole modules of ALS. However, it is [8] Guererro, C. (2007). Country profile prepared for the
remarkable that the passing rate of A&E test at 2015 Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2008 Education
reached 69.7% because it proved the ALS under for All by 2015: will we make it? . UNESCO.
[9] Ma. Mercedes Arzadon & Rogelio Nato, J. (2015). The
AJMF has improved. Philippine alternative learning system: expanding the
educational future of the deprived, depressed, and
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS underserved', Institute for Adult Learning, Singapore, paper
presented at the 9th International Conference on Researchi.
9th International Conference on Researching Work and
The researchers would like to acknowledge Ms. Learning. Institute for Adult Learning, Singapore.
Merlyn Disamparo Prestosa, the instructional [10] Mercado, I. P. (2015). Problems Encountered in the
managers and learners of the ALS program ofArea C Alternative Learning System in Tanauan City. International
Journal of Education and Social Science, Vol. 2 No. 8.
for participating and allowing the researchers to
[11] National Education for All Committee. (2014). Philippines
conduct the study. Dr. Maria Virginia Aguilar and education for all 2015 plan of action: an assessment of
Prof. Aquino Garcia for their support and the progress made in achieving the EFA goals. the Philippines:
perpetual reminders for the development of this National Education for All Committee.
study. [12] Pinca, E. C. (2015). The Mobile Teachers’ Profile,
Competencies, Performance And Problems In The
Department Of Education, Division Of Northern Samar,
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