International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews, Vol 3, no 12, pp 1910-1914, December 2022 International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews Journal homepage: www.ijrpr.com ISSN 2582-7421 Evaluation of the Special Program in the Arts (SPA) Curriculum: Basis for Program Enhancement Ma. Fe L. Brillantes, PhD Department of Education-Schools Division of Iloilo, Luna St., Lapaz, Iloilo City 5000, Philippines mafe.brillantes002@deped.gov.ph ABSTRACT This descriptive study evaluated the implementation status of the Special Program in the Arts (SPA) program(Visual Arts, Music, Media Arts, Creative Writing, Theater Arts, and Dance) of DepEd secondary schools in Western Visayas in terms of faculty, subject offerings, facilities, library, infrastructure, laboratory, ICT facilities, administration, and internal stakeholders. The results of the evaluation were utilized to come up with an enhancement program for improvement.There were 848 respondents who were randomly selected that included students, teachers, parents, SPA school coordinators, and LGU officials specifically the chairperson of the committee on education. Aresearcher-made instrument, validated by panel of experts with a reliability coefficient of .89, was utilized to gather relevant data.Focus group discussion (FGD) was conducted to validate the quantitative data gathere. Descriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation, frequency count, and percentage and Inferential statistics such ast-test and ANOVA (Analysis of Variance) were utilized with significance levelset at .05 alpha. Results showed that the level of implementation of the Special Program in terms of input, process, output was “very high” while the rest were “high”. Significant differences were noted in the level of implementation of the special program in the arts curriculum as evaluated by the respondents. The problems included “Lack of laboratory rooms especially in music, dance and theater, “lack of reference materials”, and “lack of teacher specialists t o handle the different art disciplines. The issues noted included “lack of support from the LGUs”, “expensive demand of the SPA program”, “curricular reforms brought about by the global and local changes”, and “educational challenges to be addressed like student and faculty turn over”. The challenges included “sustainability of the program in terms of its demands and standards,” and “internal and external affairs that go with the operation of the program”. The researcher advanced thestrengthening of the program focusing on teachers’ needs to develop creative skills needed in the SPA program. The researcher also recommended that regular supervision and monitoring shall be done to achieve consistency and excellence in terms of program implementation. Keywords: Special Program in the Arts, program evaluation, descriptive research, Iloilo Introduction The Philippine curriculum has been the sources of debate and a lot of issues abound in almost every aspect of its development and implementation process and at every bureaucratic level. The quality of education has been the core of all curriculum objectives and that such curriculum reforms are dependent on the quality of local leadership, monitoring and evaluation, and sustainability(Maligalig& Albert, 2008). The curriculum implementation solely depends on local leadership, teacher quality, and many other factors. Educational experts have observed that monitoring and evaluation of curriculum implementation are also key activities that are not effectively attended to (Balsamo, 2013). For instance, in the area of observation and evaluation, there are many elementary and secondary schools that are not evaluated. Bella O. Mariñas and Maria PelagiaDitapat in their classic work, “Curriculum: The Philippines,” have cited that while supervisors at the regional level are subject specialists, those at the division level are mostly generalists. This implies that professional lack can be experienced when the availability of teacher specialists is at stakeCañas, Novak & González, 2004). However, the need to look into the viability and sustainability of the Special Program in the Arts curriculum must be taken into consideration to bring about reforms as regards its implementation. SPA in particular, envisions an excellent young artist among the students, with aesthetic potential and renewed spirituality committed to the preservation of Filipino culture and heritage. SPA aims to develop students with special inclination in the different areas of performing arts namely: music, visual arts, theater arts, creative writing, media arts and dance. It is also the researcher’s belief that arts represent a symbolic, universal form of communication and is, therefore, fundamental to quality education. Students use various intelligences that must be recognized and nurtured in developmentally appropriate ways. In addition, SPA is an expensive curriculum and that it is very much dependent on the support of the LGUs and other internal and external stakeholders. SPA attributes much of its academic and social success to its strong commitment to the arts as an essential form of expression and self-esteem building. Students in the performing arts track take part in a physical conditioning regimen and receive a strong education in the cultural and historical significance of their art as they develop into competent and confident artists. Performing arts education is an integral component of a balanced educational program and provides the background for post-secondary level work, thus, making them nationally or ever globally competitive in their chosen art discipline. This brings to the fore, the issue on the implementation of SPA curriculum and the results would serve as the basis for program enhancement. Specifically, evaluation would focus on faculty, curriculum, facilities, library, ICT facilities, administration and internal stakeholders as perceived by teachers, students, parents, SPA school coordinators,