Unveiling the Lives of Working Students: A Proposal for School Support System

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to unveil the live experiences of working students studying at Sto Nño High School for the school year 2023-2024. This study employed purposive sampling since participants qualified on the criteria set by the researchers. Methodically, a student interviewer was trained to conduct the focus group discussions for confirmability purposes. It took 4 sessions to saturate the data. Credibility-wise, the interviewer did member checking to make sure that the ideas and experiences shared by the participants during the sessions were exactly as it is transcribed and interpreted.  The data gathering took place at the Barangay Hall of Barangay Sto Niño, Tanjay City since it was preferred by the participants. Moreover, consented audio recording was a big help for the researchers to transcribe the verbatim responses of the participants. Through thematic analysis, the study revealed 4 major themes namely, a) financial constraint, b) lack of resources, c) struggles in the workplace, and d) resiliency and resourcefulness amidst challenges. Thus, the result of the study will be the basis for the proposal of a school support system to aid working students in their education.

Keywords: Qualitative research; phenomenology; live experiences of working students.