The study was conceptualized due to the teaching-learning problems in Mathematics V, particularly in multiplication lesson, encountered by teachers and pupils in an elementary school in the Caloocan City in Metro Manila. Based on the preliminary finding s of the researcher with her focus group discussion with teachers and her observation in some classes, many pupils struggled in solving multiplication problem tasks given to them. This becomes worse when tasks are multidigit multiplication. The said problem was empirically proven by the results of the MAFFO or the mastery of the four fundamental operations where many pupils failed to meet the expected level of competency on this area. By looking at this result, 50 pupils of the lowest scores were taken purposively from among the last five sections of the fifth

grade, the lowest performing groups, as part of this study.

Based on this perceived problem, the study aimed of answering the following research questions: what techniques in teaching multiplication were employed by Grade V teachers, what are the identified difficulties of the Grade V learners in learning multiplication, what teaching technique was utilized by the teacher/researcher to address the identified difficulties of the learners, what were the pre and post-test mean scores of the learners, was there a significant difference between the pre and post-test, and based on the findings of the study, what teaching exemplar maybe proposed?

To answer these inquiries, the study used the descriptive design of research as it aimed at expounding on the details of the problem mentioned. To do this, the researcher conducted simple survey and short focus group discussion with teachers to get preliminary data about their teaching strategies and about their students. The researcher afterwards administered a 10-item multiplication task pre-test among the selected participants, taught them after using the simplified multiplication technique (SMT), and administered a 10-item multiplication task post-test. All data were treated quantitatively using the frequencies and means, percentages and counts, and standard deviations. The z-test was used to confirm the significant difference of the results of the pre-test and post-test which was the basis to confirm the

effectiveness of the SMT as a technique in teaching multiplication.

The results showed that the commonly used technique in teaching multiplication, which is used by 20 or 100% of teacher-respondents, whom they rated with 1.65, was not effective (NLE). The results of the study further confirmed that there was a problem in the multiplication competencies of the students as reflected in the MAFFO results and was reconfirmed by a group total score of 131 points (mean of 2.62) of possible 500 points during the pre- test. The post-test revealed an increase of 178 points when the group totaled to 309 points (mean 6.18). The results further revealed that 48 of them improved while two pupils did not. The test results showed a standard deviation of 1.95 (pre-test) and 2.62 (post-test) which indicated variation in the distribution of scores. The z-computed of 7.70 which is greater than the z- critical of 1.96 and the p value of 0.00 which is less than the 5% level of significance, thus, indicating significant difference in the overall scores (mean score) of the group (50 pupil participants).

It was concluded therefore that the simplified multiplication method or SMT is effective as a substitute for the traditional long multiplication method when teaching poorly performing pupils in multiplication. And because of its effectiveness, it was recommended that teachers and future researchers will look for innovative techniques in teaching other Mathematics lessons.