MATATAG Curriculum: A New Hope for Philippine Education

The Philippine education system is facing unprecedented challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has disrupted the learning continuity of millions of students and teachers. To address these challenges and prepare the learners for the 21st century, the Department of Education (DepEd) has introduced a new curriculum that aims to simplify, streamline, and strengthen the basic education program.

The new curriculum, called the MATATAG Curriculum, is designed to make the curriculum more relevant, responsive, and resilient to the changing needs and demands of the society and the economy. MATATAG, which means “strong” or “steadfast” in Filipino, is also an acronym for the four pillars of the curriculum:

• Make the curriculum relevant to produce job-ready, active and responsible citizens;
• Take steps to accelerate the delivery of basic education services and provision facilities;
• Take good care of learners by promoting learner well-being, inclusiveness learning, and positive learning environment; and,
• Give support for teachers to teach better.

The MATATAG Curriculum is based on the principle of “less is more”, which means that it focuses on the essential and core competencies that learners need to master from Kinder to Grade 10. It also eliminates the misplaced and redundant competencies that clutter the current curriculum and cause confusion and frustration among teachers and students.

The MATATAG Curriculum is aligned with the Philippine Qualifications Framework (PQF), which is a national system that recognizes and compares the levels of skills, knowledge, and competencies of Filipino workers and learners. The PQF ensures that the graduates of the MATATAG Curriculum are equipped with the necessary skills and qualifications to pursue higher education, technical-vocational education, or employment.

The MATATAG Curriculum is also consistent with the global standards and benchmarks of education, such as the Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4), which aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. The MATATAG Curriculum supports the achievement of the SDG 4 targets, such as increasing the completion rate, reducing the dropout rate, improving the learning outcomes, and enhancing the digital literacy of the learners.

The MATATAG Curriculum is currently being piloted in 35 schools across seven regions, with the participation of around 385 teachers and 8,294 learners. The pilot implementation, which started in September 2023, will provide valuable feedback and insights on the strengths and weaknesses of the curriculum, as well as the challenges and solutions for its effective and efficient delivery.

The DepEd plans to roll out the trainings for the instructional leaders, such as the school heads, supervisors, and master teachers, who will be responsible for the proper implementation of the MATATAG Curriculum in their respective schools and divisions. The trainings, which will be led by the central office, will be conducted in the coming weeks in preparation for the phased implementation of the curriculum in School Year 2024-2025.

The Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte, who spearheaded the development and launch of the MATATAG Curriculum, expressed her optimism and confidence in the new curriculum during the National Summit of MATATAG Curriculum Pilot Implementers held on Friday at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.

"We need to implement the curriculum well… The MATATAG curriculum, when implemented well with very good teachers in the field, could greatly support our learning recovery efforts and help improve student learning outcomes,” Duterte said.

She also thanked the 35 pilot schools for their pioneering efforts and participation in the curriculum reform.

"With your pioneering efforts, with your participation, we gain needed insights and get practical insights on the challenges of implementation and the probable solution to address that,” she said.

She also mentioned that she may visit the 35 pilot schools in the future to personally witness and appreciate the implementation of the MATATAG Curriculum.

The MATATAG Curriculum is a bold and innovative initiative that aims to transform the Philippine education system and empower the Filipino learners. It is a new hope for the future of Philippine education and the nation.