Science, Technology and Society

COURSE MODULE COURSE UNIT Session

4 2 1
Science, Technology and Nation Building

 Read course and unit objectives

 Read study guide prior to class attendance
 Read required learning resources; refer to unit
terminologies for jargons
 Proactively participate in classroom discussions
 Participate in weekly discussion board (Canvas)
 Answer and submit course unit tasks

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

1. Examine the role of science and technology in Philippine nation-building.
2. Discuss the development of science and technology in the Philippines.
3. Describe the relationship between development and nation-building.
Pre-Colonial Period
Before the Spaniards came to the Philippines, the natives of the archipelago already had
practices linked to science and technology. Filipinos were engaged in different kinds of activities like
farming, weaving, shipbuilding and mining. The Banaue Rice Terraces are among the cultured products
of engineering that were built with minimal equipment, largely by hand. These are fed by an ancient
irrigation system from the rainforests above terraces.They already had an alphabet called alibata and
the emergence of writing system called baybayin, primarily used by certain inhabitants of Luzon and
Visayas. The Laguna Copperplate Inscription which is a legal document inscribed on a copper plate, is
said to be the earliest known calendar-dated document found in the Philippines. Just like other
civilizations, astronomy is shown by fixing precise day within the month in relation to the phases of the
moon. They had also a standard system of weights and measures for shipbuilding. The Philippine
shamans or babaylans were the first healers within the tribal communities and the use of medicinal or
herbal plants was the common way of treating ailments.

Colonial Period
When the Spaniards colonized the Philippines, they introduced formal education and founded
scientific institution. The Spaniards provided the Philippines with parish schools in which religion,
arithmetic, writing, reading and music were taught. In fact, University of Santo Tomas was started by
the Spanish Archbishop of Manila as a seminary. The Spanish also contributed to the field of
engineering by constructing roads, churches, bridges, walls, forts and other infrastructures. In Medicine,
both the Spanish government and Religious Franciscan and Dominican missionaries established a
number of hospitals in the Philippines and also acted as hospital founders and the surveyors of herbal
medicines.
The American period provided the Philippines with an extensive public education system. The
Philippine Commission established the Bureau of Government Laboratories allocated for the study of
tropical diseases and laboratory projects. Then, it was replaced by the Bureau of Science, the primary
research center of the Philippines.

Post-Colonial Period

Marcos Era and Martial Law

President Ferdinand Marcos strengthened the development of science and technology in the
Philippines. Many agencies, institutions and projects were established including National Grains
Authority for the development of rice and corn industry, Philippine Council for Agricultural Research for
the development of agriculture, fisheries and forestry. Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and
Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) to ensure the safety of the people. Philippine National
Oil Company to promote industrial and economic development, National Academy of Science and
Technology which is composed of scientists with innovative achievement in the basic and applied
sciences, Philippine Council for Agricultural Research and resources, Plant breeding Institute,
International Rice Research Institute, Bureau of Plant Industry and Bureau of Forest Products.
Furthermore, President Marcos established the Philippine Science High School in Mindanao and
Visayas to encourage careers in science and technology.

Corazon Aquino Presidency

Department of Science and Technology formerly known as National Science and technology
Authority was given a representation in the cabinet. President Aquino encouraged scientists to bring the
Philippines to its former position as second to only Japan in the field of science and technology.
The Science and Technology Master Plan was formulated which aimed at the modernization of the
production sector, upgrading research activities and development of infrastructure for science and
technological purposes.

Fidel Ramos Presidency

During his term, there was a significant increase in personnel specializing in the science and
technology field. Health care services were promoted through local programs such as “Doctors to the
Barrio Program”. Magna Carta for Science and Technology Personnel was established. He believes
that science and technology was one of the means wherein the Philippines could attain the status of
new industrialized country.

Joseph Estrada Presidency

President Estrada signed the Phippine Clean Air Act of 1999, designed to protect and preserve
the environment and Electronic Commerce Act of 2000 which outlaws computer hacking.

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Presidency

Several laws and projects that concerns both the environment and science to push technology
as a tool to increase the country’s economic level. The term “Filipinnovation”was the term used in
helping the Philippines to be an innovation hub in Asia. Philippine Science High School focuses in
science, technology and mathematics in their curriculum. President Arroyo passed the Biofuels act” that
promotes the development and usage of biofuels throughout the country Arroyo’s administration
improves the Agriculture and Fisheries sector through Mechanization.

National Scientist
1. Ramon C. Barba- a Filipino inventor and horticulturist, best known for inventing a way to induce
more flowers in mango trees using ethrel and potassium nitrate.
2. Edgardo Gomez- a Filipino biologist who led the world’s first national-scale assessment of
damge to coral reefs. He also pioneered giant clam breeding and other protective areas for
coastal communities of the Philippines.
3. Gavino C. Trono-“ The father of Kappaphycus farming”, a Filipino biologist who focus on marine
phycology particularly seaweed biodiversity .
4. Angel Alcala- a Filipino biologist who promote biodiversity in the aquatic ecosystems of the
Philippines.
5. Fe Del Mundo- Filipina pediatrician, the founder of the first pediatric hospital in the Philippines.
6. Eduardo Quisumbing- a Filipino biologist, a leading authority of plants in the Philippines. He is
the author of taxonomic and morphological papers, many of which deal with orchids including
Medicinal Plants in the Philippines.
 7. Emil Q Javier- Filipino plant geneticist and agronomist who contributed in Agriculture.
8. Germiniano T. de Ocampo- Filipino ophthalmologist known to some as the Father of Modern
Philippine ophthalmology. He was the founder of the Philippine Eye Bank.

Study Questions

1. Identify some achievements in the field of science and technology under the
administration of President Duterte, President Aquino, President Arroyo and President
Estrada and trace how they helped shape the Philippines as a nation.

Nigel Tan. Evolution of the Filipino Alphabet. August 22, 2014.

www.rappler.com
Philippines Old Alphabet-Alibata, Abakada and
Alphabet.www.steemit.com
History of the Philippines (900-1565). https://en.m.wikipedia.org.