Cultural Immersion Activities And Socio-cultural Awareness Of Junior High School Students In Congressional District 1, Division Of Batangas Province

Abstract

This study assessed the socio-cultural awareness of Junior High School students in Congressional District 1, Division of Batangas Province, through the lens of cultural immersion activities during the 2025–2026 school year. The research aimed to determine the extent of implementation of cultural immersion activities - covering exposure, interaction, reflection, collaboration, and advocacy, the level of student socio-cultural awareness across three dimensions - cultural appreciation, social values, and behavioral practice, and the relationship between these two variables.

Using a descriptive-correlational research design, data were gathered from a stratified random sample of 141 Araling Panlipunan teachers using a validated researcher-made Likert-type questionnaire. To validate the quantitative results, Focus Group Discussion (FGD) was conducted virtually via Google Meet with a purposive sample of 10 teachers who were not part of the questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using weighted mean, Pearson r, and ranking.

The findings revealed that teachers reported a moderate extent of implementation for cultural immersion activities (), led by advocacy-based initiatives. Similarly, students possessed a moderate level of socio-cultural awareness (), with behavioral practice emerging as the highest-rated dimension. A very strong positive correlation () was established between the extent of implementation of cultural immersion activities and the level of student socio-cultural awareness, leading to the rejection of the null hypothesis.

However, qualitative data surfaced critical barriers to implementation of cultural immersion activities, most notably safety concerns, budgetary constraints, and heavy teaching workloads. The study concluded that intensified implementation of immersion activities directly enhances student socio-cultural awareness. To bridge identified gaps, the researcher proposed Project SALIN-LAHI, a strategic set of enhancement activities designed to institutionalize cultural immersion activities and sustain student socio-cultural awareness.