MATATAG and K-12 Curriculum: A Comparative Analysis of Teachers' Perceptions in Selected Schools in Patikul East District

Abstract

The Philippine educational system has undergone significant reform through the K-12 Basic Education Curriculum (enacted via Republic Act 10533 in 2013) and its successor, the MATATAG Curriculum launched by the Department of Education in 2023. While national policy promotes these reforms, their ground-level effectiveness—especially in underserved contexts such as Bangsamoro autonomous communities—remains underexamined. This study comparatively analyzed teachers' perceptions of both curricula across three dimensions: learning, teaching techniques and strategies, and teaching method and guidance. Using a quantitative, descriptive-comparative research design, 48 permanent elementary teachers from three schools in Patikul East District, Sulu, were purposively selected to complete a validated 27-item Likert-scale questionnaire. Descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation), independent samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson correlation were employed. Results showed that teachers rated both curricula as Moderately Effective across all dimensions (K-12: M = 3.16–3.21; MATATAG: M = 2.88–2.99). No significant differences in perceptions were found when teachers were grouped by gender, educational attainment, age, or length of service (p > .05 for all). Pearson correlation analysis revealed very high, statistically significant positive correlations between K-12 and MATATAG perceptions across all dimensions (r = .829 to .971, p < .05). These findings suggest that teachers consistently perceive both curricula as moderately effective, irrespective of demographic profile, and that their evaluative frameworks transfer meaningfully from one curriculum to the other. Implications for curriculum policy, teacher professional development, and school administration in BARMM contexts are discussed.