Republic of the Philippines

CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY

Don Severino delas Alas Campus
Indang, Cavite

GNED 06 Lecture 3: Historical Antecedents in the Philippines Transcript

Slide 1: Title Page

Good day students! Hope you are all doing great. It’s me,____! Welcome to our
channel, just kidding. I am confident that by now you have done or at least started on your
readings and homework. We have previously discussed the historical antecedents in the world
and now we will focus on our very own, our Pilipinas. We will look into how science and
technology shaped the Philippine society throughout the course of our history. So sit back,
relax, and listen carefully.
Next slide please.

Slide 2: Overview: Development of Science and Technology

In this lecture, we will look into advances in science and technology through this
timeline – pre-colonial period, followed by Spanish regime , next American regime ,
followed by the Commonwealth period, and lastly the present time or period since
Independence . Looking at the figure you will see that for every period within the timeline there
are words that generally describe them. These descriptions serve as the major influence that
play significant role in the shaping of the society and consequently, advancements in the
science and technology in the period.
Next slide please.

Slide 3: Pre-Colonial Period

Let’s take a look at the pre-colonial times. For the outline of this slide, you have A.
culture, B. writing syste m, and C. social organization that is the barangay. Let’s first look at
the culture and traditions. The early inhabitants of the archipelago had their own culture and
traditions. They had their own belief system and indigenous knowledge system that keep them
organized and sustained their lives and communities for many years.
The early Filipinos are believers of superstition and as such they practice animism.
Animism is the belief that various objects, places, and creatures possess distinctive spiritual
qualities, this practice is the earliest and the most primitive form of belief, associating their
world with spirits instead of deities. Said spirits are called diwata. Having believed that these
spirits accompany them in their daily lives and somehow control what occurs in their
surroundings, the early Filipinos fully rely on them and as such, would solely observe natural
phenomena on the basis of these superstitious beliefs. Unlike now that we know that when it
rains it is because of the water cycle that naturally occurs or when it rains unusually hard there
is a developing low pressure area in a certain location, the early inhabitants of our country
would associate these to the doings of their diwatas. Having said this, we can say that these
beliefs halted the early inhabitants of this archipelago to observe natural phenomena as they
are.
Next, the writing system. Although the Filipinos knew how to read and write in their
own system, this was mainly used for messages and letters. They seem not to have developed
a written literary tradition at that time. This would have led to a more systematic accumulation
and dissemination of knowledge (through passing of the literatures to the younger
generations), a condition that is necessary for the development of scienc e and technology. Of
course, we know that Baybayin was the early Filipino script that they used.

Next, is the social organization that we call our communities until today which is the
barangay. Barangays are a number of geographically scattered, self- sufficient, autonomous
communities present all over the archipelago long before the Spaniards came. They were
essentially subsistence economies producing mainly what they needed but with exception
to those early Filipinos who are involved in trades. In a subsistence economy, goods are
produced for oneself or one’s family and not to sold to make a profit.
Next slide please.

Slide 4: Pre-Colonial Period

We are still going to discuss about the pre-colonial period in this slide. For the overview
you have A. tools made from minerals, B. transporation, C. agriculture, and D. settlements.
Let’s talk about the craftsmanship of the early Filipinos. For about 40,000 years, they
made simple tools or weapons of stone flakes but eventually developed techniques for
sawing, drilling and polishing hard stones. These Stone Age inhabitants, subsequently formed
settlements in the major Philippine islands such as Sulu, Mindanao (Zamboanga, and Davao),
Negros, Samar, Luzon (Batangas, Laguna, Rizal, Bulacan and the Cagayan region). By about
3,000 B.C., they were producing adzes ornaments of seashells and pottery of various
designs. Gradually, the early Filipinos learned to make metal tools and implements -- copper,
gold, bronze and, later, iron. The Iron Age is considered to have lasted from the second or
third century B.C. to the tenth century A.D. Excavations of Philippine graves and work sites
have yielded iron slags. These suggest that Filipinos during this period engaged in the actual
extraction of iron from ore, smelting and refining.
For transportation, Filipinos had also learned to build boats for the coastal trade. By
the tenth century A.D., this had become a highly developed technology. In fact, the early
Spanish chroniclers took note of the refined warship called caracoa. These boats were well
suited for inter-island trade raids. By the tenth century A.D., the inhabitants of Butuan were
trading with Champa (Vietnam); those of Ma-i (Mindoro) with China. Chinese records which
have now been translated contain a lot of references to the Philippines. These indicate that
regular trade relations between the two countries had been well established during the tenth
to the fifteenth centuries.
When it comes to agriculture, they were growing crops such as rice, cotton, and other
vegetables. They were also able to domesticate swine, goats, and fowls. Lowland rice was
cultivated in diked fields and in the interior mountain regions as in the Cordillera, in terraced
fields which utilized spring water.
There were two groups of Filipinos based on their settlements. One is living along
coastal areas and the other resorted to mountain settlements. Settlements along the coastal
areas which had been exposed to foreign trade and cultural contacts such as Manila, Mindoro,
Cebu, Southern Mindanao and Sulu, seem to have attained a more sophisticated technology
(engaging in agriculture, developed a system of writing, weights and measures; wore colorful
clothes and made their own gold jewelry, houses made of wood or bamboo ). On the other
hand, in the interior and mountain settlements, many Filipinos were still living as hunters. They
gathered forest products to trade with the lowland and coastal settlements.
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Slide 5: Pre-Colonial Period

Many products have been produced by Filipinos even during this period. Filipinos were
raising swine, goats and fowls; making wine, vinegar and salt; weaving cloth and producing
A) beeswax and B) honey; C) growing rice , vegetables and cotton. The Filipinos were also
mining gold in such places as Panay, Mindoro and Bicol. The beeswax is the material the
bees used to construct the walls of their hives, this material was historically used in creating
statues, bronze preservation, and even treating burns and wounds.
Tools were found in the house of Raja Soliman in Manila that proved the sophistication
of the Filipinos living in the now Metro Manila. Some tools found were copper (for table
display), porcelain jars (for storage of food and other materials), iron (used in warfare called
Lantaka), and handwoven blankets.
Next slide please.

Slide 6: The Spanish Regime

Now, let us proceed to the Spanish regime. The beginnings of modern science and
technology in the Philippines can be traced to the Spanish regime. The Spaniards
established schools, hospitals and started scientific research and these had important
consequences for the rise of the country’s professions. But the direction and pace of
development of science and technology were greatly shaped by the role of the religious orders
in the conquest and colonization of the archipelago and by economic and trade adopted by
the colonial government.
Let us take a look at the education system in the Philippines during the Spanish era.
Various decrees were issued in Spain calling for the establishment of a school system in the
colony but these were not effectively carried out. Primary instruction during the Spanish regime
was generally taken care of by the missionaries and parish priests in the villages and towns,
as such, primary education was highly religious in nature . Higher education was provided
by schools set up by the different religious orders in the urban centers, most of themin Manila.
For example, the Jesuits founded in Cebu City the Colegio de San Ildefonso (1595) and in
Manila, the Colegio de San Ignacio (1595), the Colegio de San Jose (1601) and the Ateneo
de Manila (1859). The Dominicans had the Colegio de San Juan de Letran (1640) in Manila.
Access to these schools was, however, limited to the elite of the colonial society -- the
European-born and local Spaniards, the mestizos and a few native Filipinos. Courses leading
to the B.A. degree, Bachiller en Artes, were given which by the nineteenth century included
science subjects such as physics, chemistry, natural history and mathematics. On the whole,
however, higher education was pursued for the priesthood or for clerical positions in
the colonial administration. It was only during the latter part of the nineteenth century that
technical/ vocational schools were established by the Spaniards. We are lucky that we did not
experience this kind of discrimination in term of the education we like to have, and I hope we
can all be grateful and do our part in nourishing our souls and minds through the education
we can freely achieve.
Next, we have the reduccion system. Remember that during the pre-colonial era, the
barangays are scattered and are autonomous meaning that they are strictly independent of
each other. Now, to organize these far-flung barangays, the Spaniards employed this system
in which barangays were organized into fewer but larger more compact towns within the area
of church bells. This only means that a certain town will be composed of as many barangays
as the sound of the church bells can reach. With this modification, cabezas de barangay were
also appointed.
The Cabeza de Barangay, also known as Teniente del Barrio in Spanish, was the
leader or chief of a barangay. The post was inherited from the first datus who became cabezas
de barangay when the many independent barangays became tributary vassals o f the Spanish
Crown. King Philip II of Spain, after whom the Philippines were named, decreed that the native
nobility of the country should retain the honors and privileges they had before their conversion
and subjection to the Spanish Crown. From among their ranks, the head of the town, the
Gobernadorcillo or Capitan Municipal, was elected. Furthermore, only the members of their
class could elect the Gobernadorcillo.
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Slide 7: The Spanish Regime

Only a select Filipinos had the opportunity to study in Europe. Thanks to the affluence
of their families during the Spanish era. But first, try to pause the audio and give yourself a
minute or two to match the images with their names. For the answers: A, Jose Rizal, he was
able to specialize in Ophthalmology in Spain and Germany. B is Jose Alejandrino who studied
Engineering in Belgium. In this time, no school or university in the Philippines offer Engineering
and so Filipinos or even Spaniards who chose to settle in the Philippines had to go to Europe
to study Engineering. C is Graciano Apacible who was able to study Medicine in Madrid.
Lastly, D is Antonio Luna who aside from being considered as one of the fiercest military men
of his time had a chance to get a degree in Pharmacy in Madrid. Sadly, Filipinos in this time
who were not born to influential families will never get the chance to specialize abroad. Again,
let me tell you this, we are all privileged to be able to select which courses to specialize and
even get free education in our time. I hope that all of you will not take this for granted. And that
even during these trying times as pandemic hit humanity, you are lucky to still get quality
education. Do not put it to waste.
Next slide please.

Slide 8: The Spanish Regime

The Philippines has always been an agricultural country. And so in 1887, the Manila
School of Agriculture was created by royal decree but it was able to open only in July 1889.
The School was designed to provide theoretical and practical education of skilled farmers and
overseers and to promote agricultural development in the Philippines by means of observation,
experiment and investigation. Agricultural stations were also established in Isabela, Ilocos,
Albay, Cebu, Iloilo, Leyte and parts of Mindanao. The prof essors in the School were
agricultural engineers. The School was financed by the government but it appears that its
direction was also left to the priests.
 You might think that the opening of this school was beneficial to our farmers and
ultimately to our economy but in reality, it wasn’t. There was very little development in
Philippine agriculture and industry during the first two centuries of Spanish rule. This was
largely due to the dependence of the Spanish colonizers on the profits from the Galleon or
Manila-Acapulco trade , which lasted from 1565 to 1813. It was actually based on the trade
with China which antedated Spanish rule. The galleons brought to Latin America Chinese
goods -- silk and other cloths, porcelain and the like -- and brought back to Manila Mexican
silver. During the time, Manila prospered as the entrepot (a port, city, or other center to which
goods are brought for import and export, and for collection and distribution) of the Orient.
And if you think that Filipinos benefited from this trade. Think again! The Filipinos
hardly benefited from the Galleon trade . Direct participation in the trade was limited to
Spanish inhabitants of Manila who were given shares of lading space in the galleons. Many
of them simply speculated on these trading rights and lived off on their profits. It was the
Chinese who profited most from the trade. They acted as the trade's packers, middlemen,
retailers and also provided services and other skills which the Spanish community in
Intramuros needed. Spanish preoccupation with the Manila Galleon eventually led to the
neglect of agriculture and mining and the decline of native handicrafts and industries in the
Philippines. Poor Filipinos. Poor Pilipinas. And this is the reason why our national heroes
had fought for our true independence, so never should we mock our heroes, never should we
wish we have been colonized by any other country.
Next slide please.

Slide 9: The American Regime

Moving on from a dark chapter in Philippine history, we will now step into another
period. Science and technology in the Philippines advanced rapidly during the American
regime. This was made possible by the simultaneous government encouragement and
support for an extensive public education system; the granting of scholarships for higher
education in science and engineering; the organization of science research agencies and
establishment of science -based public services. You see, education plays a major role
in the advancement of science and technology. Ponder on this, kids.
Look at image A. That is an image of a Thomasite (an American teacher) teaching
Filipino elementary students. This was made possible by the establishment of secularized
education during the American regime. All Filipino children were given right to education
despite economic and social status. This was a project of the Department of Public
Instruction that aimed to provide free primary education to Filipinos but utilized Englis h as
the primary mode of instruction. So they say, nothing is free in this world. They offered
education in exchange of our freedom.
Next we have image B. That is the Philippine Normal School established by the
Americans which became training ground for Filipino teachers. Why was it called normal? A
normal school is one that is created to train high school graduates to be excellent teachers.
Its purpose is to establish teaching standards or norms, hence the name. In present time, PNS
is now the PNU, Philippine Normal University known to produce excellent educators in
different fields of studies. So this was how the Americans primarily established the
development of science and technology in the Philippines.
Next slide please.
Slide 10: The American Regime
Moving forward, let us look at the Philippine economy in this period. You may assume
that there might be progress in the Philippine economy during this time but that is not the case.
The country remained an exporter to U.S. of various agricultural crops and raw
materials and an importer of U.S. manufactured products. Why? It is because of the free
trade relations established between the two nations. So what? Since we export our goods
and raw materials to the U.S. free of cost, we did not get the ch ance to produce something of
higher value from our very own raw materials. Our country is endowed with abundant natural
resources, only to be traded free of tax to the United States during this time. This halted our
country’s industrialization. It may be hard to grasp but look at it this way, you have abundant
metals like copper and iron, but because you have signed a trade agreement with your
business partner, and you are also earning from it, you are obliged to export it to your partner.
Because of such, these precious metals that can build different equipment to make
industrialization possible for you were taken away by your business partner who have gone
way ahead of you in terms of the industry. So, in tagalog, sinong lugi?
Next slide please.

Slide 11: The American Regime

Did you know that the Americans were the ones who established the University of
the Philippines? That building you see was the original U.P. located at Taft Avenue, Manila.
During the American occupation, it was the only publicly-supported higher education
institution. And with the rise of the demand for professional education, private education
became the alternative solution. In line with this, the Private School Act (Act No. 2076) was
established recognizing the increasing number of private schools as educational and not
commercial institutions. In relation to this, the Office of Private Education was established
to look into matters of improvement of private schools’ educational machinery.
Likewise, for promotion of scientific research in the country, the Americans established
NRCP or the National Research Council of the Philippine Islands in 1933. The NRCP
clustered these policies for scientific research development in the country into four:
• Social Sciences, Humanities, Education, International Policies and Governance
• Physics, Engineering and Industrial Research, Earth and Space Sciences, and
Mathematics
• Medical, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Biological Sciences, Agriculture, and Forestry
This wraps up our topic for the American regime and now we go to the next period.

Slide 12: The Commonwealth Period

The Commonwealth period marked the beginning of the country’s transformation to
a politically independent nation. Well, only according to literature but we know what transpired
during this period. But regardless, this period brought about the birth of several government
corporations that are still standing up to this day. First is A. National Economic Council,
which is now the National Economic and Development Authority, an independent cabinet-
level agency of the Philippine government responsible for economic development and
planning. It is the governing body that sets major development policy directions for the country.
Next is B. National Power Corporation that is a Philippine government-owned and
controlled corporation that is mandated to provide electricity to all rural areas of the Philippines
by 2025 (known as "missionary electrification"), and to manage water resources for power
generation, and to optimize the use of other power generating assets.
Lastly, we have C. National Abaca and other Fibers corporation , the now
Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority, an agency of the Philippine Department
of Agriculture responsible for promoting the accelerated growth and development of the fiber
industry in the Philippines, such as abaca, also known as Manila hemp and cotton. But is there
progress with the Philippine fiber industry at present?
The goal of the Commonwealth period is for the Philippines to achieve economic self-
reliance. But is this goal attained? The answer is no. Why? This is because foreign trade
policies are still controlled by the Americans during this time. And another reason is that
Japanese troops came in the country creating yet another cha os in our society.
Next slide please.

Slide 13: The Period Since Independence

The period since independence gave birth to learning institutions Department of
Education and Culture (now, DepEd) and Department of Science and Technology
(DOST). The major role of DepEd is to supervise the academic institutions under the basic
education and to create policies for the welfare of Filipino students in basic education. The
DOST on the other hand was established in response to increasing demand s for S&T
intervention in national development. Its main goals are as follows:
● To meet the increasing demands for intervention of science and technology in national
development.
● Pursuing the local capability for technological self-reliance
● Encouraging greater private sector participation in S & T development.
Next slide please.

Slide 14: Existing Programs Supported by the Philippine Government

Now let us talk about the existing programs supported by the Philippine government to
advance science and technology through the Department of Science and Technology. We
have funding, scholarships, science schools, Balik Scientist Program, and K-12
program. The funding provides grants for basic researches meant to increase our scientific
knowledge base. This means that through basic researches, we are able to collect valuable
information about a certain occurrence affecting our society. Undergraduate and graduate
scholarships are also being granted by the DOST for deserving Filipino students aiming
to be experts on priority fields of science and technology in the Philippines. The DOST also
support establishment of more branches of Philippine Science High School system to
provide advance quality secondary education to Filipino students. The Balik Scientist Program
contracts science and technology expert who is a Filipino citizen or a foreigner of Filipino
descent, residing abroad to return and work in the Philippines along his/her field of
expertise . And lastly, we have the K-12 program which you guys are products of. The main
goal of this program is to provide students with sufficient time for mastery of concepts
and skills, develop lifelong learners, and prepare graduates for tertiary education,
middle-level skills development, employment, and entrepreneurship.
Next slide please.

Slide 15: Activity

Before we end the lecture, try to interpret the figure based on your understanding and
previous knowledge about scientific revolution. You may write down your thoughts for now
and we will be asking you this during our zoom meeting or online forum.
I hope you gained a clear view of how culture, history, and politics shaped science and
technology here in our country. This will be the end of our lecture on the historical antecedents
in the Philippines. Again, thank you very much for listening. Have a great day!