Development and Validation of an Instructional Module in STS during COVID-19 Pandemic in the Tertiary Education Curriculum

This study intends to evaluate the efficacy of a designed STS educational module based on the 2018 revisions to tertiary education curriculum and its applicability when used online. The Central Bicol State University of Agriculture (CBSUA) changed its teaching approach during the COVID-19 epidemic by using the Virtual Learning Portal as a higher education institution. The study employed a descriptive correlation approach. In the second semester of 2020–2021, the research was done at CBSUA in San Jose, Pili, Camarines Sur. 35 Bachelor of Secondary Education (BSEd) students, including 13 men and 22 women, used the produced STS instructional module that was posted to the university's Virtual Learning Portal (VLP). The most recent CHED Memorandum Orders (CMOs) of the teacher education curriculum served as the foundation for the IMs' competences. Pre-tests and post-tests were included for each of the 15 modules' three evaluations. Through the use of means and t-tests, the data were tabulated.

Results showed that the evaluator's overall rating on the developed instructional module, with a mean of 4.42, signified a good evaluation of its validity. Further, there is a significant difference between the pre-test and post-test means, with the absolute value of the computed t-stat (-5.515) being greater than the t-stat tabular/critical for a one-tail distribution (1.771) and two-tail distribution (2.160). Further, the mean of the post-test (6.538) is significantly higher than that of the pre-test (5.987), reflecting the improvement of the cognitive aspect of students. The designed STS training module is regarded favorably and is hence legitimate. The results of the pre- and post-tests reveal if the instructional module was successful in enhancing students' learning in Science, Technology, and Society (STS). It may be sufficient to state that the produced educational module is an effective resource for students studying STS as a general education course after using it during the epidemic and having it uploaded through the VLP.