Faculty Perspectives on the Integration of Readings in Philippine History and Life and Works of Rizal into Rizal and Philippine Studies Under the Proposed Reframed General Education Curriculum
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.69569/jip.2026.451Keywords:
Curriculum integration, Faculty perspectives, General Education reform, Philippine history education, Rizal studiesAbstract
Empirical evidence remains limited on how faculty members perceive the proposed integration of Readings in Philippine History and Life and Works of Rizal into Rizal and Philippine Studies under the proposed reframed General Education Curriculum in the Philippines. This qualitative descriptive study examined faculty perspectives on the integration, its anticipated implications for teaching and learning, and the conditions necessary for implementation. Thirty-six faculty members with experience teaching either or both courses in public, private sectarian, and private nonsectarian higher education institutions across Philippine regions were selected through purposive sampling using criterion and maximum-variation strategies. Responses to a researcher-developed, expert-reviewed online questionnaire comprising 10 open-ended questions were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Six interconnected themes were developed: contested acceptance and defense of disciplinary integrity; conditional benefits of curricular integration; curriculum compression and threatened learning depth; pedagogical reconstruction and selective integration; institutional readiness and participatory curriculum governance; and faculty welfare and the political economy of reform. Participants recognized opportunities to reduce content overlap and situate Rizal’s life and writings within broader Philippine historical contexts. However, they anticipated insufficient instructional time, diminished disciplinary depth, reduced engagement with historical sources and Rizalian texts, and challenges concerning civic formation, faculty workload, and employment security. The findings suggest that meaningful integration depends on coherent curriculum mapping, purposeful content selection, inquiry-based teaching, faculty preparation, adequate resources, and participatory course development. The study identifies faculty-informed priorities for curriculum planning rather than establishing the proposed course’s actual effects. Pilot implementation across varied institutional settings and evaluation of intended, implemented, and attained learning outcomes are recommended before broader adoption.
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