A new law officially came into effect on August 2, 2026, granting the Department of Education (DepEd) the flexibility to move away from the rigid “spiral progression” approach and adopt more effective teaching methods in basic education.
Republic Act No. 12322, which lapsed into law, amends Section 5 of Republic Act No. 10533, or the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013.
The landmark legislation removes the mandatory requirement for spiral progression—a model where subjects are revisited with increasing complexity each year—allowing DepEd, schools, and educators to implement discipline-based or alternative instructional models tailored to student needs.
“Every generation deserves an education that responds to its evolving needs. I believe that Republic Act No. 12322 advances a more responsive, effective, and learner-centered basic education system,” said Representative Roman Romulo, co-author of the bill.
The legislative update directly addresses structural flaws identified during nationwide consultations conducted by the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2).
Research showed that forcing the spiral approach across all subjects, such as changing Science disciplines every quarter, led to disjointed learning and hindered deep conceptual mastery.
Furthermore, a clear mismatch existed between single-discipline pre-service teacher training and the multi-disciplinary demands of the spiral framework.
Consultations also noted that top-performing institutions like the Philippine Science High School system achieved superior student outcomes using discipline-based teaching.
“Ang binabago ng batas ay hindi na ito magiging mandatory ang spiral progression, upang mabigyan ang DepEd… ng mas malaking flexibility na gamitin ang paraang pinakamainam para sa kanilang mga estudyante,” noted Senator Bam Aquino, co-author and EDCOM 2 Co-Chairperson. “Ang batas na ito’y isang mahalagang hakbang tungo sa pagresolba ng education crisis.”
Under RA 12322, DepEd can now better align curriculum design with teacher specializations and prioritize foundational literacy and numeracy.
Additionally, the law mandates a systematic review of the basic education curriculum and its pedagogical strategies at least once every five years to ensure continuous relevance and effectiveness.
