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The colonization of the Philippines under the regime of Spain, United States and Japan has greatly influenced the Philippine educational system. These periods have firmly built the foundation of a reformed Philippine education that defined and perceived a new identity of our cultural heritage. This system has undergone several stages of development over a hundred of years of colonization period. It truly shows how Colonialism was indeed a major factor in shaping the educational system in the Philippines.
During the pre-Spanish period, the natives by then, had an informal and unstructured education system. However, the Filipinos were educated and knew a way to read and write with their own method of work that they used for communicating. It is an ancient Philippine 17-symbol alphabet script known as the “Baybayin” script. The Spaniards have introduced mainly the teachings of empirical knowledge as well as the worship of the local deity, the Bathala. In addition, secondary and tertiary levels were established for the exclusive benefit of the elite.
However, Filipinos were admitted as well to secondary schools despite having a comprehensive knowledge beyond elementary level. Hence, the Education decree of 1863 was implemented, establishing a complete system of education within the country which is the basis of the primary school system that existed in the last decades in the Philippines. The decree standardized the educational programs, re-organized elementary schools and established normal schools. Normal schools that are established serve as a seminary for religious, obedient and instructed teachers that teach courses focusing on religion, moral and sacred history.
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During this period, the first teachers were the priests. Formal education is controlled by the religious orders and introduced mainly religion-based courses. The well-known colleges and universities were established by the Jesuits and the missionaries. Few of these were the College of Manila, later named as San Ignacio was established in 1595. The oldest, well-known, existing university in Asia, the Royal and Pontifical University, University of Santo Tomas, established by the Dominicans in 1601. Another college was also established in the same year by the Jesuits named San Jose and college of San Juan de Letran in 1620, for orphaned boys, by the Dominicans.
There were also schools that took a while to be established for girls. Santa Potenciana in 1591 and Santa Isabel in 1632. However these two schools for girls have appeared to provide mostly primary instruction with emphasis on religion and domestic arts.
After the defeat of Spain in 1898, as soon as the Americans arrived in the Philippines, the military forces started the establishment of schools. When settled in Manila, they reopened seven schools after occupying the place. Throughout the following months, the quantity of schools that were set up expanded. These advanced educational attempts of the Americans to reform the Philippine education system began to encounter strain in 1899, when the Filipino-American War broke out. Moreover, the Education Act in 1901, settled the establishment of the Public educational system in the Philippines. In August 1901, 600 teachers arrived that were known as the “Thomasites.” However, due to the lack of school educators, they established the “Pensionado program” in 1903. This program is for selected Filipino students that were sent as government scholars to the United States for further studies and they are to render government services upon their return to the country.
During this period, English was not only taught to every Filipino child, but it was adopted as the medium of instruction in all public schools established in the country. In March 1900, Act No. 74 was passed by the second Philippine Commission. This act had established a department of public instruction that would administer and control all the established schools. The reason behind the decision to adopt English as the language of schools, is the lack of a common language among the Filipino when the Americans arrived in the country. Moreover, English language was additionally taught to the grown-up populace. The educational classes for adults were opened not long after the implantation of American sway in the Philippines. This is essentially to prepare Filipinos to become instructors in public schools. As mentioned earlier, there was a deficiency of local instructors who knew English in the early long periods of American principle. Thus, learning the language was acknowledged rather eagerly in the schools.
When Japanese occupied the Philippines for a short-term, they established and introduced some educational reforms. In 1942, the educational programs of the Japanese were concretized in the Military order No. 2. The Commission of Education, Health and Public Welfare was built up by the Philippine Executive Commission. In the same year, schools were reopened with 300,000 students. In some areas, the Japanese forces tried to introduce some reforms in the educational system. One is to stop depending on western countries like the United States and instead start promoting and enhancing Filipino culture. Thus, the focus of teachings are Tagalog, Philippine History and Character Education. The Japanese also aims for a wider and developed elementary education and vocational education. Hence, courses on western culture and values were abolished. Since the Japanese wanted to stop American reforms, there was a spread of the Japanese language primarily in the schools, public and private. Thus, Filipinos adopted the “Nipponggo” language and is also used as a medium in schools. Lastly, there was an emphasis on developing love for work and dignity for labor.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the continuous civilization of our society has reflected tremendously up to the present. Such developments have greatly contributed to the country’s overall economic growth. Thus, the implementation of quality education contributes to peaceful and democratic societies that enhances our well-being. Education is a key component towards success. The reformed Philippine educational system gave us empowerment that enables us to contribute to the extent possible to the social and economic developments of our nation. It is the most powerful weapon inherited to us, to make the world a better place to live in.
