THE INFLUENCE OF CLIQUES ON THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF

THE GRADE 9 STUDENTS OF STEFTI S.Y. 2019-2020

Chapter 1

A. Introduction

In the 21st century, there has been a growing need among

adolescents to be in a social clique. According to Erikson (1968),

participating in peer groups play a critical role in adolescent development

and experience. Therefore, the significance of peer groups in human

development is likely important through one's lifespan. Social cliques affect

attitudes, beliefs, and behavior; and at middle adolescence (14-16), it

appears to be at its most influential (Winiarski-Jones, 1988). During this

period, an adolescent will look to the friendship clique to find loyalty and

someone who will not betray their trust (Douvan and Adelson, 1966) in

order to find other people who the individual can feel a sense of belonging

with.

Essentially, a clique is observed as an exclusive circle or group of

individuals in interaction that share common interests, purposes, views, or

beliefs. These groups are commonly found within local communities and

establishments and often express, through their strict code of membership,

that certain standards must be met in order for an individual to fit in their

crowd.

The formation of student friendship cliques is more closely linked to

classroom characteristics (Hallinan, 1989). Moreover, the analysis indicates

that the process governing the establishment of cliques changes over the

school year at different features of the classroom experience and become

more salient to the students. In short, clique memberships affect the

students’ overall academic performance as well as the way they behave in

their respective norms; in attempts to fit in and please their peers.

The frequent interaction between different people promote peer

influence which help shape one's attitudes and behaviors, cultivating their

learning and, therefore, creating a positive impact in the academic

performance of a student. However, social cliques may also become

problematic when the influence is driven towards negative values and

practices. For example, the Grade 9 students of STEFTI. According to

observations by Mrs. Nadia Mamita, the head of the Grade 9 department,

students are often influenced by their peers and the totality of their

academic standing may depend on the people they surround themselves

with.

This study will be conducted for several reasons. First, in order to

identify the different cliques present within the grade level, specifically the
Grade 9 students of STEFTI; second, to discover the positive and negative

aspects that come with these cliques; third, to determine whether the

students are aware of the influences that these cliques bring; and lastly, to

further understand the situation in order for remedial measures to be taken.

By conducting this research, the researchers will be able to come up with

recommendations that will essentially guide the student as to how these

social cliques may or may not affect their academic performance; in

attempts to help them thrive academically.

Influence given off by social cliques are uncertain. They may be a

reason as to why students are pushed towards their full potentials. When

surrounded by positive influence, they may even exceed what they expect of

themselves. Although, when a student is surrounded by negative influence,

social cliques may result to a student’s downfall.

The Grade 9 students of STEFTI who are a part of cliques may suffer

academically for various reasons, many of them linked to the influence that

social cliques give off. For instance, some students find difficulty in balancing

their social life alongside their academics. When students prioritize the

relationship they have with their peers, they lose sight of their priorities and

sabotage the improvement of their academic performance. Another reason is

the lack of motivation a student may have to improve their current standing.

When a student is surrounded by individuals who take no interest in their

studies, they tend to inherit the negative mindset that their peers have,

resulting to a decline in their academic performance.

With this in mind, the researchers aim to have a more profound

understanding of the situation so that we may properly give out the

necessary information to the respondents; as well as be in the right position

to initiate remedial measures. Aside from this, it is the researchers’ goal to

find better ways on improving the students’ academic performances despite

their clique membership. This study may serve as a guide to not only the

Grade 9 students of STEFTI, but as well as the other batches who face the

same struggles.

In the Grade 9 students’ age group, social cliques are at their most

influential since at this age, individuals are in the means of discovering who

they really are. And because of this reason, the researchers especially felt

the need to conduct this study in order to determine the aspects within

cliques and how they affect a student’s overall performance. Ultimately, the

study is intended to serve as a guide to help the grade 9 students choose to

surround themselves with influences that will push them towards

outstanding academic achievement.

B. Statement of the Problem

This study will be conducted to investigate the influence of cliques on

the academic performance of the grade 9 students of STEFTI S.Y. 2019-

2020.

Specifically, it attempts to answer the following questions:

1.)What is the profile of the student in terms of:

a.)Gender?

b.)Membership of clique?

2.)What are the positive effects of having cliques?

3.)What are the negative effects of having cliques?

4.)Is there a significant difference between the academic performance

of students who are a part of a clique and students who aren’t?

5.)What are the problems faced by students in a clique?

 6.)What are the suggestions or recommendations to improve the

academic performance of students within a clique?

C. Significance of the Study

During our interview with Mrs. Nadia Mamita, we discovered that the

academic performance of a student may depend on the influences the

students is surrounded with. And with this reason, we conducted this study

in order to determine these influences and essentially help the Grade 9

students of STEFTI improve their academic standing through the awareness

of the effects that these social cliques bring.

When this study is made, the positive and negative aspects of the

different cliques within the grade level will be identified which will ultimately

help the students in terms of surrounding themselves with influences geared

towards outstanding academic achievement.

 To the students, as recipients of the study, they will be able to

discover the factors within a social clique and use this information to

surround themselves with influences geared towards outstanding academic

achievement.

To the teachers, through this study, they will be able to discover the

influences that these social cliques pose on a student and serve as guidance

so they may help a them improve.

D. Definitions of Terms

Clique – An exclusive circle or group of individuals who are joined together

by a common purpose.

The following are some of the different kinds of cliques found in STEFTI:

A.)The Athletes- Those who share a common interest in competing in

one or more sports.

B.) Nerds - These are socially inept persons. Some are slavishly

devoted to intellectual academic pursuits and some nerds are not into

academics but rather into stuff that they are obsessed with. Examples

of these are the nerds who play mobile games, watch anime, and etc.

C.) The Cool Kids- Typically those who are well versed in the latest

trends in music, fashion, and pop culture.

Academic Performance
 - The performance of students according their academic knowledge.

- Academic performance or "academic achievement" is the extent to

which a student, teacher or institution has attained their short or long-

term educational goals. Completion of educational benchmarks such as

“The Academic Awardees”, “The Commendable Awardees”, “The Merit

Awardees” and “The Perfect Attendance Awardees” represent academic

achievement during the end of a quarter in STEFTI

E. Scope and Limitations of the Study

I.

This investigation will be conducted to determine the influence of

cliques on the academic performance of the Grade 9 students of STEFTI

during the school year 2019-2020. The different aspects of the study that

will be looked into are the profile of the student in terms of their gender and

membership of clique, the positive and negative effects cliques come with,

the significant difference between the academic performance of students who

are a part of a clique and students who aren’t, the problems faced by

students within a clique, and proposed recommendations for these students.

II.
 A weakness of the study is the expected inaccuracies the research will

face. Since utilization will be done through use of questionnaires, the

respondents may accidentally add errors to our research frame or loose the

provided questionnaire.

F. Conceptual Framework

Input Process Output

o Healthy
academic
competition
o Intellectual
development Outstanding
o Emotional academic
Social Cliques
stability performance
o Positive peer
pressure
o Enhanced
social skills
o Improved
self- esteem