EXPLORING THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS IN WRITING QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to discover the experiences of senior high school students in writing qualitative research. This study was anchored on the Cognitive Process Theory of Writing by Linda Flower and John Hayes (1981), Collaborative Learning Theory by Lev Vygotsky’s (1934), and Self-efficacy theory by Albert Bandura (1986). A total of 20 senior high school students from the secondary public schools in the Municipality of Braulio E. Dujali participated, where half of them were engaged in the in-depth interview, and the others were invited to a focus group discussion. The interview revealed their experiences including gaining knowledge in writing qualitative research, having difficulty in working as a group, having insufficient resources, having time constraints, and encountering difficulty during the process of writing qualitative research. This lead the students to apply certain coping mechanisms for themselves in writing qualitative research. The findings further revealed that seeking assistance, doing time management practices, delegating research tasks, and utilizing online resources, related studies and readings are helpful in writing qualitative research. Finally, their insights expressed that rationalizing the relevance of qualitative research through experiences, developing the right attitude in qualitative research writing, emphasizing the importance of time management, and developing the students’ 21st-century learning skills are essential in writing qualitative research. KEYWORDS: senior high school students, qualitative research, qualitative-phenomenological study, Braulio E. Dujali, Davao del Norte