Writing Chapter 2: Review of Related Literature and Studies

As soon as the research problem has been chosen and approved by your teacher, you can now start looking for references to determine what materials are available on your topic. This will comprise your working bibliography, a list of possible sources of data. Aside from the library, computer websites are also a rich source of this list of references. Prepare the list and decide which ones you will include in your review. Make sure you have enough potential sources. A good number to start with would be 10 to 15 references. While preparing your list, you can start getting copies of these materials by printout or copy machines, or download them in your USB, so that when you’re ready to read them, they are already available.

1.1 The Introductory Paragraph1.2 Foreign Literature1.3 Local Literature1.4 Foreign Studies1.5 Local Studies

Selecting and Reviewing Related Literature and Studies

From your working bibliography and stored copies of materials, choose which ones are closely related to your study and read them for your review of related literature and studies.

A review of related literature and studies is helpful in knowing the ideas of others interested in the research question, similar or related, to the study you are undertaking in order to find out if it is an original work or merely an extension of work done a long time ago. This will enable you to narrow down your study to a specific well-defined manageable problem.

Related literature consists of discussions of facts and principles to which your study is related. These materials are usually found in books, encyclopedias, journals, magazines, and newspapers from printed or online sources. If printed in the Philippines, they are local; if printed outside of the country, they are foreign regardless of the citizenship of the author.

Related studies are inquiries, investigations, researches already conducted to which your proposed study is related or has some bearing. They are usually unpublished materials such as manuscripts, theses, and dissertations. They are local if the inquiry was done in the Philippines; foreign, if done outside of the country.

Three things must be done in the review.

1. It should make a critical evaluation of the studies and examine the appropriateness of their research designs to the present study.

2. It should show how the methodology of the previous study is replicated, modified, or improved in the present study.

3. It should show how the present study will contribute to existing literature and studies.

The review of related literature and studies was mentioned earlier in this lesson—its importance in any research undertaken, the distinction between literature and studies, and between foreign and local ones.

In writing Chapter 2, you need to classify your presentation first into literature and studies and sub-classify each into foreign and local. Foreign literature is first discussed, followed by local literature, and then foreign studies followed by local studies.

At the end of each section, do not forget to show how the materials relate to your study, the differences as well as the similarities between their work and yours. At the end of the chapter, state how the materials reviewed contributed to the preparation of your research.

Minimum of 10 and maximum of 15 pages are required in undergraduate theses and maximum of 20 pages for graduate studies.

Sample CHAPTER 2

CHAPTER 2

Review of Related Literature and Studies

This chapter includes the review of related literature and studies which

the researchers have perused to shed light on the topic under study.

Foreign Literature

Shiela Allan (2012) in her article “Positive Impact of Internet on

Communication Skills,” discussed that the Internet is a powerful tool that is

revolutionizing children’s learning, communication and play. If properly used,

the Internet can serve as a medium for acceptable social interaction. The

Internet allows children to socialize with other children through the use of

email, chat rooms, and instant messaging, increasing the development of

communication and social skills. As children use the Internet to connect with

places around the world and exchange mail with electronic pen pals, they are

able to share different cultures and traditions.

This literature is closely related to the current study for it directly

mentions the role of internet specifically websites to enhance the individuals’

communication and social skills. The present study like the article reviewed

aims to establish a connection on the various websites used by the students

and their impact on their communication skills.

Local Literature

The NNN-AMIC Special Report of Lara P. Lina (2012) revealed that the

Philippines is experiencing 75 per cent mobile penetration. One-fifth of its population can

also be found online. That means more than 24 million Filipinos are able to log into their

Facebook, Twitter, Friendster and Plurk accounts regularly. The Filipino’s familiarity and

mastery over the English language could be the reason behind Philippine online

popularity.

Many Filipinos are active communicators in both SMS and internet. The

researchers assume that the websites often visited by the users definitely have an impact in

their lives particularly in the way they communicate.

Foreign Studies

Thitthongkam (2011) conducted a study about the development of English writing

skills using communicative exercises on the Internet. The research results indicated that

communicative exercises on the internet supported improving students’ writing skills, and

assisted 99 percent of the samples to pass the course based on the university criteria.

Based on the information from student behavior observation, it indicated that students had

better motivation in studying English, and always performed writing skills. The learning

effectiveness is significant at the level of .05. Satisfaction with studying English after

using communicative exercise was positive. The student satisfaction with learning English

after using the communicative exercises on the Internet was at the level of strong

satisfaction (mean=4.319) or 86.38 percent.

This is similar to the present study because it both discussed the benefits that the

students get from using the Internet in their studies. It showed the improvement on the

communication skills of the students after performing different exercises on the Internet.

Local Studies

Opina (2010) developed and validated instructional modules in

college English. She concluded that online learning is a competitive

alternative in teaching English 11 for college level. She also

mentioned that the use of online games and exercises is an

innovation to teaching language skills. Success in online learning

depends on strict compliance of timetable and schedule and regular

interaction with teacher. In addition, students with convenient access

to a computer and modem, sound reading and writing skills, and at

the same time with motivation, and self-discipline to participate

regularly, are most likely to succeed.

It was also concluded in her study that although learning is

achievable using the most available resources in the module and

Internet, the teacher is still the most important component in online

learning upon whom the students rely.

Her study was relevant to the present research in that it tackled

online teaching. However, she dealt mostly on the comparison of the

effectiveness between virtual teaching and traditional teaching

methods using her proposed module, while this study concerns more

on the use of free websites in enhancing the competencies of the

students in oral and written communications.