Name: Richel Leola Sumagang BSE-FILIPINO2

Lesson 2 Historical Development of Teaching

as a Profession in the Philippines

LearningOUTCome
At the end of the lesson the students are expected to:
- Trace the historical development of teaching as a profession
in the Philippines pearl

Activate
Read the statements below and identify whether they are true or false. Write “T” if you
think the it states true about the history of education in the Philippines, otherwise, write ”F”.

F 1. As early as the Spanish period, teaching was considered a profession.

T 2. It was the Americans who elevated teaching in the Philippines as a

profession.

T 3. Teaching was elevated to a profession only in 1994 with the passage of

RA7836

F 4. There is no other legal document that professionalized teaching other than

The Teachers’ Professionalization Act of 1994.

ACQUIre
How was your score? To help you understand better how the system of education in the
Philippines started, read the article below and trace how it all started.

How did the Teaching Profession develop in the

Philippines?
(explained by Brenda B. Corpuz, PhD)

The first legal document that professionalized teaching was Presidential Decree 1006
issued by then President Ferdinand E. Marcos. It was only in 1976 with PD 1006 known as
the Decree Professionalizing Teaching that teachers in the Philippines became
professionalized. The need to professionalize teaching was felt “to insure that in the
immediacy and urgency of teacher recruitment, qualitative requirements are not
overlooked…” and “although teaching requires a number of years of collegiate study, it is
the only course that is not yet considered a profession” (PD 1006). Furthermore… “

The Teaching Profession

in recognition of the vital role of teachers in nation-building and as an incentive to raise the
morale of teachers, it is imperative that they be considered as professionals ad teaching be
recognized as a profession.” (PD 1006)
Then in 1994, R.A. 7836, otherwise known as the Philippine Teachers Professionalization
Act of 1994, was passed to …”promote quality education by proper supervision and regulation of
the licensure examination and professionalization of the practice of the teaching profession.”
(Section 2)

During the pre-Hispanic period, there was no established formal schooling in the country.
So there was no formal preparation for teachers, too. The mothers and the fathers and tribal
leaders served as teachers at home and in the community.

During the Spanish period and by virtue of Educational Decree of 1863 free public school
system was established. There was one school for boys and another school for girls in every
municipality. The Spanish missionaries served as teachers. The same Decree provided for a
normal school run by the Jesuits to educate male teachers in Manila. Normal schools for women
were not established until 1875. So it was the Spaniards who started training teachers in normal
schools.

Paz Ramos, once Dean of the College of Education of the University of the Philippines,
Diliman, claims that the foundations of teacher education in the Philippines were laid by the
Spanish government during the mid-eighteenth century. It is said to have begun on August 4,
1765, when King Charles of Spain issued a Royal Decree requiring each village to have a
“maestro.” On November 28, 1772, another Royal Decree specified the qualifications of teachers.
However, it was not until 1863 that there was a specific attempt to systematize and update the
education of the Filipino teachers. At the end of the Spanish rule, schools during the Spanish era
were closed for a time by Aguinaldo’s government. So there was no teacher preparation that took
place.
During the American regime, American soldiers served as the first teachers. In 1901, the
Philippine commission enacted into law Act 74 which created the Department of Instruction, laid
the foundations of the public school system and offered free primary education for Filipinos.

There was a shortage of teachers. The Philippine Commission authorized the Secretary of
Public Instruction to bring to the Philippines 600 teachers from USA. They were the Thomasites.
Due to urgent need for teachers, the Americans gave bright young Filipino students opportunity
to take up higher education in American colleges and universities financed by the Philippine
Government. They were the pensionados.

Act 74 of 1901 also provided for the establishment of Philippine Normal School (PNS) in
Manila. The Philippine Normal School formally opened in September 1901, as an institution for
the training of teachers. For more than two decades, PNS offered a two-year general secondary
education program. In 1928, it became a junior college offering a two-year program to graduates
of secondary schools. In 1949, the Philippine Normal School, renamed Philippine Normal
College, offered the four-year Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education. Other four-year
teacher education courses followed after. This means that the present four-year preparation for
the professional teacher began as a two-year program only. Teacher preparation became four
years only in 1949 and thereafter.

For further readings, read:

Education Commission Report of 1991(EDCOM)
RA 9293, an Act Amending Certain Sections of RA7836
 Apply
Present the historical development of teacher preparation and professionalization in
the Philippines from pre-Hispanic Philippines to 1996 by way of graphic organizer shown
below. Site significant event(s) or contribution(s) in bullet form in the boxes provided.

Historical Development of Teacher

Preparation and Professionalization
in the Philippines

Pre-Hispanic Period Spanish American Regime 1996

•Informal, unstructured
•Focused on vocational training
•Parents and tribal tutors served as
teachers
•Spanish missionaries served as
teachers
•Religion oriented
•Inadequate, suppressed and
controlled
•Adequate secularized and free public •Teaching of Tagalog, Philippine History
school system and Character Education
•Using of English as the medium of •Love for work and dignity of labor was
instruction emphasized

Republic Act 9155 Republic Act

No. 10533

• Republic Act 9155, otherwise called the Governance of

• President Benigno Aquino signed into law Republic Act No.
Basic Education Act, was passed transforming the name10533 or the Enhance Basic Education Act of 2013 last May 15,
2013. A law that implements K to 12 Program which covers
of the Department of Education, Culture and Sports kindergarten and 12 years of basic education.
(DECS) to the Department of Education (DepEd) and •The enhance basic curriculum aims to produce Filipino graduates
redefining the role of field offices (regional offices, who are holistically developed with 21th century skills. This
division offices, district offices and schools). curriculum also gives great chance to all graduate to acquire
middle-level skills for better work opportunities.

• RA 9155 provides the overall framework for (i)• Under Republic Act No. 10533, mother tongue language is the
language of instruction from kindergarten to Grade 3 to attain
school head empowerment by strengthening mastery of learning competencies. On the other hand, starting
Grade 4 to Grade 6 teachers will use English and Filipino as their
their leadership roles and medium of instruction.

•(ii) school-based management within the

context of transparency and local.
accountability.
 Assess
Answer the following questions on the space provided.

1. Having traced the development of teacher preparation and professionalization,

do you think the quality of teachers in the Philippines is getting better as times go
by? What are evidences or circumstance you could provide to prove this?

 In my opinion, it's a yes. The teachers in the Philippines are getting better as time
goes by. The evidence that I can provide to prove this is the Republic Act no. 7836,
Article I, ll, lll and IV also known as the Philippine Teachers Professionalization Act
of 1994. This act is to strengthen the regulation and supervision of the practice of
teaching in the Philippines and prescribing a licensure examination for teachers and
for other purposes. By this, I conclude that it is very difficult to become a
professional teacher because you will face many challenges first which develop your
potential, strength and knowledge before you become one as well as it can help
teachers in the Philippines to become better in their profession.

2. According to Education Commission Report of 1991 (EDCOM), the quality of

Philippine education is declining and that the teachers are at the heart of the
problem. Do you agree or disagree with these findings? Why or why not?

 In my opinion, I disagree because it's not only about the teachers but also there are
other things which make the quality of education declining. In fact, government was
not investing enough in our education system and our education establishment was
poorly managed. How can teachers teach effectively if the teaching materials and
learning resources in primary education institutions had an inadequate investments
and some part of population had limited access to education.
3. What provision in RA 9293 contributes to ensure that teachers fielded are quality
teachers? Discuss.
 In Republic Act No. 9293, "AN ACT AMENDING CERTAIN SECTIONS OF
REPUBLIC ACT NUMBERED SEVENTY-EIGHT HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SIX (R.
A. NO. 7836), OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE "PHILIPPINE TEACHERS
PROFESSIONALIZATION ACT OF 1994" For the information and guidance of all
concerned, enclosed is a copy of Republic Act. No. 9293 entitled “An Act Amending
Certain Sections of Republic Act Numbered Seventy-Eight Hundred and Thirty-Six
(R.A. 7836) Otherwise Known as the Philippine Teachers Professionalization Act
of1994”. One significant amendment is in the first paragraph of Section 26, where the
prescriptive period of two years is no longer specified. Hence, qualified applicants
such as holders of certificates of eligibilities as teachers issued by the Civil Service
Commission and the Department of Education, Culture and Sports or registered
professional teachers with the National Board for Teachers under the Department of
Education, Culture and Sports pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 1006, who failed
to register as professional teachers without examination before the deadline last
September 20, 2000 can file their applications for registration with the Professional
Regulation Commission (PRC). In this connection, the PRC is presently finalizing the
Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of R.A. 9293. Wide dissemination of this
Order is desired.

4. As a future teacher, what could you do to elevate the quality of teachers in the
Philippines?
 As a future educator, I can elevate the quality of teachers in the Philippines by
simply uplifting myself first with the trainings that will equip my knowledge and
expertise in honing the minds of my future learners and then I will promote quality
education to my country.