Awareness and Practice of the Core Beliefs of Islam Religion Among the Junior High School Students in an Islamic School in Cavite Province, Philippines

This study examined the level of awareness and extent of practice of the core beliefs of Islam among junior high school students in an Islamic school in Cavite Province, Philippines, during the academic year 2025–2026. Grounded in the Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) Model, the study investigated the relationship between students’ awareness and practice of the Five Pillars of Islam: Shahada (faith), Salah (prayer), Zakat (charity), Sawm (fasting), and Hajj (pilgrimage). A quantitative research design employing descriptive, comparative, and correlational approaches was utilized. Eighty-seven students from Grades 7 to 10 were selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using a researcher-developed questionnaire with established content validity (overall rating = 4.34) and excellent reliability (Cronbach’s α = .989; McDonald’s ω = .991). Descriptive statistics, Mann–Whitney U tests, Kruskal–Wallis H tests, and Spearman’s rank-order correlation were used for data analysis. Findings revealed that students demonstrated a very high level of awareness of the core beliefs of Islam (M = 3.87, SD = 0.23), with Salah obtaining the highest mean score (M = 3.93, SD = 0.23) and Sawm the lowest (M = 3.76, SD = 0.39). Students also exhibited a great extent of practice (M = 3.84, SD = 0.28), with Shahada and Salah recording the highest mean scores (M = 3.86, SD = 0.33; M = 3.86, SD = 0.30, respectively). No significant differences were found in awareness or practice across grade level, family structure, and parents’ educational attainment (p > .05). However, awareness was positively associated with practice (r_s = .667, p < .001), indicating that higher awareness corresponds to greater religious practice. The findings underscore the importance of strengthening Islamic education through contextualized instructional materials that reinforce students’ religious understanding and lived practices.