Abstract

The implementation of the K-12 curriculum has brought up significant changes to the Philippines' education system. Globally, this education system was already being utilized for several years, which urged the Philippines to implement it in order to make Filipino students globally competitive and further develop their 21st- century skills. With that, students experience more academic stress given that the new curriculum covers new subjects and activities. However, there are students such as the top academic achievers that, despite experiencing the stress brought up by the new curriculum, are still able to perform well academically. With that being said, this descriptive study aims to identify the qualities and practices that top academic achievers possess in which were contributive to their success. To achieve this, the researchers identified the top student of each batch, starting from the grade 7 up to the grade 12, and invited them to have a 15-minute one-on-one interview with them that will answer questions pertaining to the research problem. In total, there were six participants for this study. After conducting the interviews with the participants, it was found out that reading in advance, having effective time management skills and prioritization of tasks, participating in extracurricular activities, listening attentively, being hardworking, dedicated, and perseverant all contribute to their academic success. It shows through this study that being aware of one's time and priorities makes it easier to accomplish tasks, regardless of the quantity. Reading in advance makes understanding lessons easier and gives a student a head start in the lessons that will be tackled. Engaging into extracurricular activities are also contributive given that participating in these activities improve one's knowledge, skills, and abilities. Listening attentively makes retention and comprehension of information better. Lastly, actions coupled with hard work, dedication, and perseverance will make reaching academic success attainable.