PowerPoint and Video Presentations as Aides in Boosting Students’ Academic Confidence Level in Time of Pandemic

Abstract

On the onslaught of COVID -19, one of the sectors that were devastated was the education sector. In the Philippines, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila was among the universities that experienced difficulties in hurdling the situation. In the class of Interdisiplinaryong Pagbasa at Pagsulat Tungo sa Mabisang Pagpapahayag or Interdisiciplinary Reading and Writing Leading to an Effective Discourse, 42 students taking Bachelor of Science Major in Chemical Engineering (BSChE) were treated as respondents of this research endeavor of easing their stress as brought about by academic requirements as such, they were given PowerPoint and video presentations to help them in their self-study session during the month of April. The conclusions of the study are the following: First, the month of May has become more stressful on the part of students as compared to the month of April. This could be attributed to the fact that synchronous classes were reinstated, and the month of May is the set schedule for Mid Term Examination aside from the fact that students need to meet the deadline as regards the submission of their requirements. Second, though the PowerPoint and video presentations were deemed by the students very useful (wherein the latter was seen to be more useful), in enabling students to go about their Mid Term Paper, Final Term lessons, and Final Term paper; these are not enough to reduce the stress level of students from April to May. On the contrary, students became more stressful on the month of May. Third, the assistance given by the PowerPoint and video presentations in boosting the confidence level of students of thinking that they would get higher mark in the course is not enough. The students claimed that they are just fairly confident in obtaining a higher mark in the course thru the assistance provided by the PowerPoint and video presentations. Fourth, aside from the academic assistance provided by the professor in terms of the PowerPoint and video presentations during asynchronous classes, another thing to look into is the students’ mental wellness.