ADAPTING TO TRANSFORMATION: INSIGHTS FROM GRADE 7 ENGLISH TEACHERS ON CURRICULUM REFORMS

English Language Teaching

This qualitative phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of Grade 7 English teachers in Tagum City as they navigated ongoing curriculum reforms. Anchored on Fullan’s Change Theory, the research focused on understanding the emotional, pedagogical, and professional challenges encountered by ten seasoned educators and the adaptive strategies they employed in response to these changes. Using in-depth interviews and thematic analysis, the study surfaced key themes such as emotional fatigue, the need for continuous instructional innovation, collaboration, and the importance of professional development. Despite encountering stress, resistance, and uncertainty, teachers demonstrated resilience through contextualized instruction, teamwork, and reflective teaching practices. Findings also revealed that coping mechanisms significantly influenced teacher-student relationships, and reforms impacted both motivation and confidence levels. The study underscores the critical role of teacher agency, supportive leadership, and systemic alignment in sustaining reform implementation. Implications call for more grounded policymaking, sustained teacher support, and mechanisms for authentic teacher involvement in reform planning and evaluation.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.