ASSESSMENT OF THE NEEDS AND INTERESTS OF GIRL SCOUTS AND NONGIRL SCOUTS: BASIS FOR THE ENHANCEMENT OF THE GUIDANCE PROGRAM IN SELECTED PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS OF LUCENA CITY

This study was conducted to assess the needs of Girl Scouts and non-Girl Scouts in such areas as personal/social, academic, and career development as well as their interests in terms of the types of program and recreational activities that would appeal to them. It also aimed to find out whether the Senior Girl Scout programs address such needs and interests of the students so that it can be a basis for the enhancement of the guidance program in public secondary schools of Lucena City. The study was limited to 368 female students, with 333 non-Girl Scout students and 35 Girl Scout students. There were also 10 students purposively chosen for the qualitative part of the study, two female students (1 Girl Scout and 1 non-Girl Scout) coming from the five public secondary schools of Lucena City in school year 2015- 2016. The descriptive method of research was used in the study utilizing survey questionnaires for the quantitative data and focus group discussions for the qualitative data. Results of the study revealed that Senior Girl Scout program addresses the personal/social, academic, and career development needs of the respondents as they gain experiential learning from the Girl Scouting activities. The respondents also identified interest on such activities which involve entertainment, outdoor adventure and trainings on emergency preparedness which are all included in the Senior Girl Scout Programs. It was also revealed that the needs and interests of non-Girl Scouts differed from Girl Scouts. It is therefore recommended to revisit the guidance program in every public secondary schools of Lucena City and include some Girl Scouting activities such as outdoor activities, training on emergency preparedness, and those which involve entertainment. The proposed school guidance program should also be adopted or used as basis for the enhancement of the existing guidance program in public secondary schools of Lucena City.