Unit 11: REFORMS IN PHILIPPINE EDUCATION

Competencies

At the end of this unit, the students are expected to:

1. trace the history of reforms in the Philippine education system.
2. explain how and why reforms were made.
3. react on the reforms of the education system.

Discussion

 A History of the System of Education in the Philippines – Its Implication for the Present
Generation

In the ancient Philippines, children were given the rudiments of education. Such
education was both academic and vocation. The father trained his sons to be warriors, hunters,
fishermen, miners, lumbermen, and shipbuilders. The mother on her part trained her daughters
in cooking, gardening, serving, and other household arts.
It is said that in ancient Panay, there was a barangay school called Bothoan under the
charge of the teacher usually an old man. The subjects taught to the children in this barangay
school were reading, writing, arithmetic, use of weapons, and lubus (acquiring kinaadman or
amulets).
Hence, education during that time was geared toward their needs. Because of
colonization by several foreign countries and several historical events, our education
underwent several changes although we also retained some of the ancient teachings which are
practical even during our time.
With the country’s celebration of independence in 1946, scarcely seven decades ago,
have come every aspect of the educational system in line with the new status of a new nation
seeking to achieve and maintain political and economic independence and to fashion a nation
truly united out of social and cultural diversities.

 Introduction of the Western or European System of Education

With the coming of Spain, the European system of education was introduced to the
archipelago. Primary schools, colleges, and universities were established in our country by the
missionaries.
The principal aim of Spain in the Philippines during their regime was to make the native
Filipinos obedient and God-fearing Christians. For this reason, religion was a compulsory subject
at all levels – from primary schools to universities.
The first schools were the parochial schools opened by the missionaries in their
parishes. In addition to religion, the native children in these schools were taught reading,
writing, arithmetic, and some vocational and practical art subjects.
Later on, colleges for boys and girls were opened by the missionaries. These colleges
were the equivalent of our high schools today. The subjects taught to the students included
history, Latin, geography, mathematics, and philosophy.
There was no co-education during the Spanish times. Boys and girls studied in separate
schools.
 University education was started in the Philippines during the early part of the 17th
century. Originally, the colleges and universities were open only to the Spaniards and those
with Spanish blood (mestizos). It was only during the 19th century that these universities began
accepting native Filipinos.
It is interesting to note that for nearly 300 years, education in the Philippines was the
primary responsibility of the Catholic Church. The missionaries established the schools,
provided the teachers and facilities, and decided what should be taught. It was only in the last
half of the 19th century that the government took an active part in promoting education in the
colony. In 1863, a royal decree called for the establishment of a public school system in the
colony.

 Education under the Americans

The United States had a different approach dictated by what the Americans considered
to be their principal goal in coming to the Philippines – “to educate and to train in the science
of self-government.”
Consequently, it was not surprising that the United States considered educating the
Filipinos as one of its top priorities in the Philippines. Even while US troops were consolidating
their foothold in Manila in 1898, schools were already opened in the city. But unlike the
Spaniards who neglected to propagate their language, the Americans made it a point to teach
English to the Filipinos. The American soldiers were the first teachers of the Filipinos.
In January 1901, free primary education was provided and a school for Filipino teachers
was established. It called for the recruitment of trained teachers in America. It abolished
compulsory religious instruction.
The Americans gave bright young Filipino students the opportunity to take up higher
education in American colleges and universities. These Filipinos came to be known as
“pensionados” for their education in the United States was financed by the government in the
Philippines. Hundreds of Filipino pensionados were able to study in the US until 1928. From the
ranks of these pensionados came the future civic, business, and political leaders of our country.
Hungry for education, the Filipinos flocked to public and private schools in large numbers.

 Education under the Commonwealth

Education continued to receive from the Commonwealth government the same

attention that the Americans gave it. President Quezon created the National Council of
Education in 1936 as an advisory body on educational matters. The council made important
recommendations to further improve the educational system in the Philippines. Most of these
recommendations were accepted and carried out by the government.
Under the Commonwealth, vocational and adult education were given emphasis. It was
also during the Commonwealth regime that an organized effort to develop a common national
language was started in compliance with the mandate of the 1935 Constitution.
To help counteract the American cultural influence among the Filipinos, President
Quezon greatly encouraged the revival of native culture as well as desirable Filipino values.
And to help strengthen the moral fibers of the Filipinos and to foster a love of the
country especially among the youth, President Quezon issued his famous Code of Ethics which
was required to be taught in all schools.
In 1940, several changes were made in the Philippine educational system by virtue of
the Educational Act of 1940. Under this law, the elementary course was reduced from 7 years
to 6 years. The minimum age for admission to Grade I was raised to 7. The school calendar was
also changed so instead of the school year from June to March, it was changed to July to April.
  Education under the Japanese

Schools and churches were also used as propaganda tools for the Japanese. Nippon-go,
the Japanese language, was made a compulsory subject in all schools. In government and
private offices, classes in Nippon-go were opened to propagate the Japanese language and
culture. Japanese Catholic priests were sent to the Philippines to help promote the idea that
Japan, being an Asian country, was a friend of all Asian people’s including the Filipinos.

 The Iloilo Experiment

In 1948. Dr. Jose V. Aguilar, the Superintendent of the Iloilo school division initiated a
six- year experiment with vernacular instruction in his school division. The experiment involved
seven control schools where English was used as the medium of instruction in Grades 1 and 2
and seven experimental schools where the vernacular, Hiligaynon, was used as the instructional
medium. This was controversial. As late as 1963, the Dean of the College of Education, Xavier
University on the island of Mindanao, observed that the vernacular instruction was not
producing maximum results. It was curtailing full instructional benefit. Instead of narrowing the
regional gaps of the country, it was widening it and was producing dangerous trends towards
regional and cultural imbalance.

 Educational Thrust of the New Society and Today

It was assumed that the most fundamental objective of education is the development of
an individual’s potential which will simultaneously improve society. Educational policies have
been geared to the accomplishment of better manpower production through the understanding
by the students of land reform, taxation, economic production, anti-drug and anti-pollution,
and conservation education. To accomplish these goals, value and work-oriented curricula were
encouraged. However, many parents and teachers were still confused because they did not
understand the philosophy, operations, and evaluations of this innovation in education. The
concept of an average layman or teacher in the “new society” was always associated with the
advent of Martial Law. This must be redirected to a functional definition of wholesome
integration of our economic, social, and moral lives for the progressive Philippines. The
direction of education as envisioned by our educators can be best described by the following
changes:
1. A relevant and flexible curriculum. Educational content is focused on the need of
society which is for sound economy. This means better knowledge in skills and food
production, conservation of natural resources, technical knowledge in harnessing
mineral deposits and less emphasis on white collar jobs which result only in
producing the “educated unemployed.”
2. Productive-coordinated technocrats. The inevitable reorganization of the
Department of Education (DepEd) was a response to these needs. For centuries, our
educational system generally operated on a system of isolation where the Bureau of
Public, Private and Vocational Education worked almost independently and
promoted secrecy and privacy instead of attaining harmony for the good of our
country.
3. A quality teacher with effective methods of teaching. To teach effectively, the
teacher must have the solid foundations in terms of educational training from
reputable institutions, update his method of teaching by reading and attending
conferences, and should have the courage of trying out various means or ways of
maximizing learner. To do this, it becomes necessary to understand the psychology
of pupils and to be able to communicate with them in teaching-learning situations.
The increase in
 teachers’ pay should be a strong justification for the better policy on the
recruitment
and retention of teachers.

Every time changes in our educational system occur to search for the solution for our
educational ills, some pressure groups interfere and say it is “unrealistic and expensive,”
which is not a valid reason. Courage and energy for action should be sustained to invigorate
the lives of the citizenry.
After four centuries and a half of being a colony of Spain, America, and Japan, the
concern of the Filipino educators and policymakers is the Filipinization of the Filipinos and
Filipino institutions. Alejandro Roces, while holding office as the Secretary of Education,
voiced this concern: