by: Tricia Ann V. Atienza
Teacher II, Liliw Central Elementary School
Liliw Sub-Office, SDO Laguna
The MATATAG curriculum which is being implemented starting this year in the Philippine education curriculum has an aim of enhancing the quality of education in the early years of schooling in our country. Some of is focus is on making learning relevant, inclusive, and attuned to the needs of students. However, we cannot deny the fact that in implementing this curriculum particularly in Grade 1 poses several challenges that we as educators must address.
Transition from previous curricula to the MATATAG framework is one of the challenges that we must put attention to. This year, this curriculum is to be implemented only to Grades 1, 4, and 7, still, the other grade levels are already having the same pattern of hours as given in MATATAG. It is possible that some educators are unfamiliar with the goals, approaches, and structure of the new curriculum. This might result in inconsistent teaching methods and a lack of confidence in educators, especially those who have grown accustomed to traditional teaching approaches.
For the MATATAG curriculum to be implemented successfully, teachers must receive proper training and continuous professional development. It is given that our Department — Department of Education — offers training courses to all teachers who are teaching in the specified grade levels. Nevertheless, we should also take into consideration teachers who were not able to attend these training and did not receive sufficient training. For them to successfully teach the curriculum, we must address these gaps to improve and develop their pedagogical and content understanding.
It goes without saying that a wide diversity of student skills, backgrounds, and learning styles are frequently seen in Grade 1 classrooms. If we want every student to get the differentiated instruction we provide, we must manage large class size into smaller sizes in which teachers can teach each learner properly. Another challenge that we face in the MATATAG curriculum is parental involvement. We know that this has been a problem even before the implementation of this new curriculum. However, we must work better to make our parents more engaged in the learning process. It’s possible that a lot of parents are unaware of the MATATAG curriculum’s objectives or how to best assist their kids’ at-home learning. To help children develop a support system, educators need to figure out how to work together and communicate with families in an efficient manner.
Even though the MATATAG curriculum is a big advancement in early childhood education, there are a lot of obstacles to overcome in getting it implemented. Communities, educators, educational institutions, and the government must work together to address these issues. Grade 1 students can have a brighter future by fully realizing the potential of the MATATAG curriculum through strong collaborations with parents and communities, continuous training, and provision of required resources.
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