Traditional and Modern Dance Integration: Its Influence on Cultural Appreciation and Learning Engagement Among Grade 7 Learners

This qualitative phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of Grade 7 learners regarding the integration of traditional and modern dance in Physical Education and its influence on their cultural appreciation and learning engagement. Specifically, the study examined how Grade 7 learners described their experiences in integrated dance activities, the benefits and challenges they encountered, and the recommendations they offered to strengthen dance instruction. Participants were eight purposively selected Grade 7 learners, four male and four female, aged 11 to 12, enrolled at Bagong Silangan High School, Schools Division Office of Quezon City, all of whom had experienced the integration of traditional and modern dance in their Physical Education classes. Data were gathered through in-depth individual interviews structured around an opening question, six major questions, and a closing question, and were analyzed through phenomenological coding and axial analysis, in which significant statements were clustered into twenty-five formulated meanings, sub-themes, and major emergent themes. Trustworthiness was established through credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability, supported by member checking, peer debriefing, reflexive journaling, an audit trail, and methodological and theoretical triangulation. Analysis of the participants' accounts yielded five major emergent themes: Learning to Coordinate Unfamiliar Movements through Supported Practice; Negotiating Exposure, Confidence, and Enjoyment in Performance; Experiencing Dance as a Shared yet Demanding Group Process; Renewing Cultural Connection through Creative Integration; and Seeking Conditions that Make Integration Accessible and Sustainable. Interpreted through Social Constructivism, Experiential Learning Theory, Self-Efficacy Theory, and Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy, these themes revealed integrated dance instruction as a multidimensional process shaped by bodily coordination, emotional vulnerability, peer relationships, cultural meaning, and the practical conditions of practice. The findings affirmed learners' renewed appreciation for Filipino cultural heritage, developing confidence, and cooperative engagement, alongside continuing needs for emotionally safe performance preparation, equitable peer support, and accessible practice conditions. These results informed the development of the Dance Integration Enhancement Program: A Learner-Responsive Framework for Integrating Traditional and Modern Dance in Grade 7 Physical Education, intended to help Physical Education teachers, school administrators, curriculum developers, and educational policymakers design more engaging, culturally responsive, and learner-centered dance instruction under the MATATAG Curriculum.