New Normal: A Phenomenological Research on the lives of SPED

Teachers this time of New Normal Education.

Chapter III: Methodology

A qualitative research design is used to gather information needed for the

researchers study. It is a type of research that focuses more on quality over quantity.

It is used to gather quantifiable data and involves collecting and analyzing non-

numerical data (e.g., text, video, or audio) to understand concepts, opinions, or

experiences. Furthermore, it can be used to gather in-depth insight into a problem or

generate new ideas for research: (1) determining research questions, since focused

question is the heart or brain in actionable qualitative research; (2) designing the

study; (3) collecting data, wherein the researcher should assume the role of an

unobtrusive observer and have an impact on the settings being observed; (4)observe

for ethical issues, since the participants is being interview, research participants

should not be subjected to harm in any ways whatsoever. Respect for the dignity of

research participants should be prioritized; (5) analyzing data by creating a system of

coding and notable quotes, which helps speed up the process in research.

Research Design
New Normal: A Phenomenological Research on the lives of SPED
Teachers this time of New Normal Education.

The researcher used phenomenology as her qualitative research design.

Phenomenology is a study that attempts to understand people’s perception,

perspective, and understanding of a particular situation. It is a descriptive study of

how individuals share their “live experience”. Experience as they lived. It is also a

systematic subjective approach to gain insight; explore the depth, richness, and

complexity inherent in the phenomenon. Phenomenology is appropriate for this

research because the researcher is seeking for lived experiences of the SPED

teachers in new normal education.

Sampling

The participants will be ten (10) SPED teachers who’s we are going to

interview how their lives experience teaching in normal education. They will be

selected via purposive sampling method regardless of where region they came from,

gender, and socioeconomic status. They will be selected with the following criteria:

a) the participants must be SPED teacher/s who’s teaching in new normal.

In line with this, purposive sampling, also known as judgmental, selective, or

subjective sampling, is a form of non-probability sampling in which researchers rely

on their judgment when choosing members of the population to participate in their

study. (Foley, 2018)

The researcher will make use of this type of sampling method because she

focuses on particular characteristics of a population that are of interest, which will

best enable to answer research questions.

Instrument

For the instrumentation, the researcher gathers data through online platforms

via messenger and Google Forms. With regards to the COVID-19 situation, a non-

face-to-face interview is much more effective for this study as it is more precise,

accurate and allows the researcher the ability to have interviewers gather detailed

information about attitudes and behavior towards this topic that will help a lot in the

data collection process. The researcher gave questions in the form of non-face-to-

face interview through online platforms in assessing the participant’s lived

experiences, work performances and perceptions. The researcher gave leading

questionnaires that will be answered individually.

As for the validity of the instrument, according to (Denzin and Lincoln, 2005),

validity is the extent to which an instrument measures what it is supposed to

measure and performs as it is designed to perform. In this study, the researcher

accumulated and collected information to end up with her own set of questions.

DATA COLLECTION

The researcher began her data gathering procedure with an initial survey. The

initial survey of the researcher was composed of three (3) questions; a) What are

the hardships you encountered in teaching your students during new normal

education? b) How well prepared the SPED teachers in the sudden new normal

teaching methods? c) What was it like teaching between home and in school?

The researcher then asked permission from the participants to cooperate with

the research study. Considering the pandemic situation, the researcher gathered

data in a form of a non-face-to face interview. The data collection procedures started
New Normal: A Phenomenological Research on the lives of SPED
Teachers this time of New Normal Education.

by sending an official letter to Ms. Lyn M. Esguerra, the principal of the Pampanga

High School. Subsequent to that, a  form of instrument validation was relayed to Mr.

Carlo D. Villamor a research teacher at the said institution, and conclusively to the

participants of the aforesaid study, students of the Pampanga High School.

Afterward, with the confirmation of the participants sent back to the researchers,

questionnaires and surveys using Google Forms were developed. The researchers

collected data and information by sending surveys and questionnaires via Google

Forms to a range of social media sites because it is the most easy and secure

option for us to properly execute our research paper.

ETHICAL ISSUE

In compliance with ethical considerations during the research, the

participants' privacy and the respondents' voluntary participation are both

assured. Honesty, respect, and transparency are applied to all research

communications. Personal consent was sought to have legal representation

protecting the participants’ identities is confidentiality. For the respondents' and

researchers' protection and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, data was

gathered online with no face-to-face interactions.

DATA ANALYSIS

The findings of a qualitative study usually depend on the researcher’s

evaluation. As the researchers adapted a phenomenological approach as their

research design, they made use of thematic analysis for the gathered data.

Thematic analysis is defined as a method of analyzing qualitative data. It is usually

applied to a set of texts, such as an interview or transcripts. The researcher closely

examines the data to identify common themes – topics, ideas and patterns of

meaning that come up repeatedly. There are various approaches to conducting

thematic analysis, but the most common form follows a six-step process:

familiarization, coding, generating themes, reviewing themes, defining and naming

themes, and writing up. However, thematic analysis is a flexible method that can be

adapted to many different kinds of research. (Caulfield, 2019). In light of this, the

researchers may infringe on various interpretations and reasonings for the study that
New Normal: A Phenomenological Research on the lives of SPED
Teachers this time of New Normal Education.

are molded by the participants' responses. As an outcome, the study's results could

be crafted from their responses, and the problem would be disclosed accordingly.