Philippine Colonial Education System

The Philippines had a long colonial history, spanning the 16th to 20th century (1565 up to 1946).
Spain colonized the Philippine Islands for 333 years, after which they ceded control to
the United States in 1898. The Americans ruled the country uninterrupted until they handed over control
to the Commonwealth of the Philippines in 1935. The decade-long existence of the Philippine
Commonwealth was interrupted from 1942-1945, at the height of the Japanese occupation during
World War II. After the war, the Commonwealth ended in 1946 and the Philippines regained full
independence from the Americans. All throughout this colonization period, Spanish and American
influences were most prominent into the Philippine educational system.

Spanish period
When the Spaniards came to the Philippine Islands in 1521, they were surprised
to discover that the native population had high literacy, that is, they knew how to read and write
using a 17-symbol alphabet called the Baybayin script. Education though was not formal, and
that it was mainly focused on teaching practical knowledge as well as the worship of Bathala
(local deity) and the respect of laws and customs.

With the onset of Spanish colonization in 1565, Spanish friars and missionaries arrived.
Across the islands, the colonies that were built always included a church and a school. The
priests were the first teachers, and they educated the natives in order to convert them into
Catholicism. Thus, the formal education introduced by the Spanish colonizers was mainly
religion-based and controlled by the Roman Catholic Church. During this period, the oldest
universities, colleges and vocational schools founded in Asia were created by Catholic
missionary/religious orders. The first religious order to arrive, the Augustinians, founded the
first school in Cebu in 1565. This was followed by the Franciscans in 1577, Jesuits in 1581 and
Dominicans in 1587. In 1590, the Jesuits established Colegio de Manila, later renamed as

Rory Sta. Catalina

Universidad de San Ignacio in 1621. The oldest, existing university in the Philippines and in
Asia, the University of Santo Tomas, was founded by the Dominicans on 28 April 1611. Spanish
education centered on religion. Aside from catechism, the friars taught Latin and Spanish
grammar (languages used in religious ceremonies). In essence, the Spanish educational
system was meant to keep the natives faithful, in order to keep the Church's authority over
the lives of the Indios (colonized Filipinos). This system continued until the introduction of
the modern public education system in 1863.

In 20 December 1863, Queen Isabella of Spain ordered the Education Decree, which
provided free access to primary education for boys and girls in each town. The implementation
of this Royal Decree made the Philippines as the first country in Asia which had a free and
compulsory form of modern education, 10 years before the implementation in Japan. It also
provided for a complete and structured educational system, with primary education leading to
secondary and tertiary education. Subjects taught included non-religious courses such as
mathematics, history, geography, philosophy and psychology, among others. Finally, after 300
years under Spanish rule, the reformed educational system gave Filipinos the opportunity to
pursue higher learning, study liberal western ideas and develop valuable leadership skills.
This gave birth to select group of enlightened individuals who call themselves as Ilustrados.
The Ilustrados played a major role in the Philippine revolution against Spain.
Prominent Ilustrados were Graciano Lopez Jaena, Mariano Ponce, Marcelo H. del Pilar, Antonio
Luna and the Philippine National Hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280610684_Philippine_Colonial_Education_System