University of Southeastern Philippines

College of Education

Assignment Number 6: Reaction Paper on Topical Report Number 1(The Evolution of

Philippine Education System)

Submitted by: RUBYLYN A. RENEGADO

Submitted to: DR. IRVIN GENERALAO

Date: October 08, 2022

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The WHAT IFs on the Evolution of Philippine Education System: A Reaction Paper of
Topical Report Number 1 in EDD 314

of
Rubylyn A. Renegado
EDD 314 Student

INTRODUCTION

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.

Purpose and Method of the Reaction Paper

This reaction paper will try to answer the WHAT IFs on the evolution of the Philippine

education system with regards to the occurrence or not occurrence, continuing or not

continuing of such colonizers in a certain period. This will be categorized into four parts:

A. What will happen to the country’s educational system if only the Spanish colonized

the country and still continues up to now?

B. What will happen to the country’s educational system if only the Spanish and

Americans colonized the country and no more Japanese colonizers?

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C. What will happen to the country’s educational system if the Japanese colonizer

continues to rule Philippines up to now?

D. What will happen to the country’s educational system if this present Independence

continues to exist in our country?

DISCUSSION

For Question Number 1:

According to Wikipedia, during the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines

(1521–1898), the different cultures of the archipelago experienced a gradual unification from

a variety of native Asian and Islamic customs and traditions, including animist religious

practices, to what is known today as Filipino culture, a unique hybrid of Southeast Asian and

Western culture, namely Spanish, including the Spanish language and the Catholic faith.

Spanish education played a major role in that transformation. The oldest universities, colleges,

and vocational schools, dating as far back as the late 16th century were created during the

colonial period, as well as the first modern public education system in Asia, established in

1863. By the time Spain was replaced by the United States as the colonial power, Filipinos

were among the most educated peoples in all of Asia, boasting one of the highest literacy rates

in that continent. Simultaneously, the knowledge of Filipinos about neighboring cultures

receded. However, criticisms were found. On November 30, 1900, the Philippine Commission

reported to the US War Department about the state of education throughout the archipelago as

follows:

...Under Spanish rule there were established in these islands a system of primary

schools. The Spanish regulations provided that there should be one male and one female

primary school-teacher for each 5,000 inhabitants. It is clearly shown in the report of the first

Philippine Commission that even this inadequate provision was never carried out. The result

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of this policy is that a few persons have stood out prominently as educated Filipinos, while the

great mass of people have either not been educated at all or furnished only the rudiments of

knowledge, acquiring merely the mechanical processes of reading and writing. The little school

instruction the average Filipino has had has not tended to broaden his intelligence or to give

him power of independent thought. One observes in the schools a tendency on the part of the

pupils to give back, like phonographs, what they have heard or read or memorized, without

seeming to have thought for themselves. As a rule, they possess mechanical skill, and they

excel in writing and drawing. The Spaniards made very little use of this peculiar capacity.

...It is stated on good authority that when the Spaniards came here several of the tribes

of the Philippine Islands could read and write their own language. At the present time, after

three hundred years of Spanish domination, the bulk of the people cannot dot his. The Spanish

minister for the colonies, in a report made December 5, 1870, points out that, by the process of

absorption, matters of education had become concentrated in the hands of the religious orders.

...It has been stated that in 1897 here were in these islands 2,167 public schools. The

ineffectiveness of these schools will be seen when it is remembered that a school under the

Spanish regime was a strictly sectarian, ungraded school, with no prescribed course of study

and no definite standards for each year, and that they were in charge of duly certificated but

hardly professionally trained or progressive teachers, housed in unsuitable and unsanitary

buildings.

Spanish colonization (1521-1896) led to the decline of preexisting and often prosperous

economic and political centers in the Philippines, due to lack of any real incentives for the

“Indios” (e.g., see Mojares 1991). The Spaniards attempted to monopolize and control the trade

routes by requiring by law that all goods be coursed through Manila. They worked through

local headman who helped them to exploit and exact tribute from their followers. This strategy

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destroyed the criteria governing the pre-existing follower-leader system because it supported

collaborators and disempowered any leader who would go against them. Thus, the Philippine

educational system would be so awful because the friars controlled the educational system

during the Spanish times. They owned different schools, ranging from the primary level to the

tertiary levels of education. The missionaries took charge in teaching, controlling and

maintaining the rules and regulations imposed to the students. These missionaries emphasized

the teachings of the Catholic religion starting from the primary level to the tertiary level of

education. The students in the primary level were taught the Christian Doctrines, the reading

of Spanish books and a little of the natives' language. Science and Mathematics were not very

much taught to the students even in the universities. Aside from the Christian Doctrines taught,

Latin was also taught to the students instead of Spanish. The schools before were exclusive for

the Spaniards. The Filipinos were only able to enter the school in the late 19th century. The

schools also limited their accommodations to the sons of wealthy Filipino families in 1863.

Although the schools were already open for Filipinos, the friars still believed that the Filipinos

would not be able to match their skills and that the only way for the Filipinos to learn fast was

to impose upon them strict discipline which means applying corporal punishment.

And, by virtue of its proximity to the Asian giant, Luzon could have become a territory

of China, while Mindanao could have become a province of Malaysia or Indonesia. Obviously,

there would be no Philippines and no Filipinos (as a people we would be called by another

name).

For Question Number 2:

The Japanese occupation of the Philippines occurred between 1942 and 1945,

when Imperial Japan occupied the Commonwealth of the Philippines during World War II.

Strategically, Japan needed the Philippines to prevent its use by Allied forces as a forward base

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of operations against the Japanese home islands, and against its plans for the further conquest

of Southeast Asia. Under the Japanese regime, the teaching of Tagalog, Philippine History, and

Character Education was reserved for Filipinos. Love for work and dignity of labor was

emphasized. Thus, Filipinos might not inhabit these. Japan helped establish the New

Communications, Navigation and Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) which

enables air traffic controllers to communicate with, navigate, and monitor the planes

throughout the entire Philippines, thereby improving the safety and punctuality of air

transportation. And thus, there would be no San Francisco Peace Treaty and the Japan-

Philippines Reparations Agreement between Japan and the Philippines. On July 23, 1956, both

countries entered into force, and the diplomatic relations between the two countries were

normalized.

For education is one of the most important aspects of Japan's national identity and a

source of pride for Japanese citizens. The country's high-quality education system has

consistently won international praise. Moreover, there are a lot of admirable things in Japanese

culture which Filipinos could emulate: experience of modernization. It is no secret anymore

that Japan has achieved world status in education. Indeed, some of Japan's contemporary

accomplishments in education--as in economic development--are literally in a class by

themselves.

Japanese education provides all children with a high quality, well-balanced basic

education in the 3-R's, science, music, and art through 9 years of compulsory schooling. The

average level of student achievement is high by international standards. So is the retention rate:

virtually everyone completes the 9 compulsory years and almost 90 percent of the students

graduate from high school. Japan has also succeeded in motivating students to learn and

teaching them effective study habits; creating and maintaining a productive learning

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environment, which includes effective school discipline; using time productively for

educational purposes in and out of school; sustaining attention to developing character and

desirable attitudes and behavior (according to Japanese norms) throughout the elementary and

secondary years; developing a professional teaching force that is competent and committed,

well respected and well remunerated; and providing effective employment services for

secondary school leavers and graduates. These accomplishments result from several

interwoven factors, including: a preschool experience (much of it parent financed) for more

than 90 percent of children; an effective public school system, particularly during the

compulsory attendance period, supplemented at elementary and secondary levels by an

informal, but symbiotic set of private (parent financed) education programs responsive to the

needs of individual students.

All of the foregoing is undergirded by strong parental commitment to and sustained

support for the education of the child during the entire time he or she is in school. Education is

reinforced at every turn by the historical and cultural heritage, community consensus,

government policy, and the needs and employment practices of business, industry, and

government.

Japanese education has produced multiple benefits for the nation as well as for its

individual students. These benefits include a well-educated citizenry, which strengthens

national democracy; an adaptable work force capable of high productivity in a competitive

world economy; the opportunity for individual social and economic mobility; and an improved

general quality of life.

However, we might still have Catholicism throughout the country and traces of

Spanish-Filipino customs and festivities as Spaniards left us with and a democratic country and

the English language as Americans left us with.

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For Question Number 3:

Education came to a near-complete standstill, during the years of the Japanese

Occupation from 1942 to 1945. The war interrupted schooling for most, as schools were

destroyed or seized for military use. The Japanese Military Administration required all

students to speak Japanese, and to take instruction in the Japanese language. They had

hoped that people would acquire the Japanese spirit and an undying loyalty to the

Emperor. As the war went on, many experienced food shortages. Many schools had to

grow their own food, and gardening became part of the curriculum. Students were

encouraged to grow an assortment of local vegetables. Tapioca, which grew well

without special care, became a staple food for the people. This manifests self-

sufficiency and self-sustenance were inculcated by Japanese to Filipinos. Though life

remained difficult even after the war. People faced severe shortages of food and other

supplies. Even though schools had reopened, there were not enough teachers and places

for returning students. In response, the colonial government ordered the restoration of

schools. Similar to Singapore, Philippines would also have the 1947 Ten-Year Program

which was introduced to provide equal opportunities for all children as well as a

centralized education system where schools would adopt the same curriculum,

textbooks and common language of instruction. A key step in rebuilding education was

the formulation of the Ten-Year Program. Drawn up for the years 1947 to 1957, the

Ten-Year Program aimed to provide equal opportunities for education and make

primary education free for all children. Under the plan, it also set out to meet the

demand for trained teachers which led to the establishment of the Teachers Training

College in 1950. The government continued to push through its efforts for a centralized

education system through the 1956 White Paper on Education Policy. The White Paper

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suggested the increased use of Malayan-centered textbooks and a multilingual program

in schools, so as to achieve social cohesion between students from different language

streams. Like in Singapore, though the post-war period saw shortages of food, medicine

and other basic supplies. Many schools had also been damaged or destroyed, which led

to limited places in school and a lack of proper facilities. Teaching materials were

inadequate and there were not enough teachers. Many returning students were overaged

and had their education disrupted due to the war. To alleviate the problem of limited

spaces in schools, double-session schooling (morning and afternoon) was introduced to

take in more students. Night schools were also set up for students to continue their

lessons after hours. n 1950, the Teachers’ Training College was established to address

the acute shortage of teachers after the war. Housed in the old premises of Anglo-

Chinese School at Cairnhill Road, its role was to centralize teacher training and meet

the demand for locally trained teachers. The curriculum comprised studies in education

theories and psychology, language, civics as well as art, music and physical education.

Generally, it would be awesome. We might be one of the first world countries and

leading country in the ASEAN nations.

For Question Number 4:

Education in the Philippines is offered through formal and non-formal systems.

Formal education typically spans 14 years and is structured in a 6+4+4 system: 6 years

of primary school education, 4 years of secondary school education, and 4 years of

higher education, leading to a bachelor's degree.

The education system of the Philippines has been highly influenced by the country’s

colonial history. That history has included periods of Spanish, American and Japanese

rule and occupation. The most important and lasting contributions came during

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America’s occupation of the country, which began in 1898. It was during that period

that English was introduced as the primary language of instruction and a system of

public education was first established—a system modeled after the United States school

system and administered by the newly established Department of Instruction. The

United States left a lasting impression on the Philippine school system. Several

colleges and universities were founded with the goal of educating the nation’s teachers.

In 1908, the University of the Philippines was chartered, representing the first

comprehensive public university in the nation’s history. Like the United States, the

Philippine nation has an extensive and highly inclusive system of education, including

higher education. In the present day, the United States continues to influence the

Philippines education system, as many of the country’s teachers and professors have

earned advanced degrees from United States universities. Although the Philippine

system of education has long served as a model for other Southeast Asian countries, in

recent years that system has deteriorated. This is especially true in the more remote and

poverty-stricken regions of the country. While Manila, the capital and largest city in

the Philippines, boasts a primary school completion rate of nearly 100 percent, other

areas of the country, including Mindanao and Eastern Visayas, have a primary school

completion rate of only 30 percent or less. Not surprisingly, students who hail from

Philippine urban areas tend to score much higher in subjects such as mathematics and

science than students in the more rural areas of the country. Amidst all challenges,

education must continue in the country. For democracy is widely regarded as superior

to autocracy in terms of providing access to education. It is an admitted fact that there

is an intimate relationship between democracy and education. In a democracy,

education is given primacy, for it is pre-requisite for the survival and success of the

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former. Similarly, education fosters a democratic temper in the minds of people.

Democratic values like liberty, equality, fraternity justice, dignity of individual, co-

operation, sharing of responsibility etc. are applied to education to make it more

effective, meaningful, relevant and useful. According to Prof. Seeley, “Democracy is a

form of government in which everyone has a share.” Therefore, in the business of

government everybody is equally an actor or player. The will of people is well

recognized and given primacy. Further, Bernard Shaw mentions the value of education

in a democracy. “Democracy implies election of the corrupt few by the ignorant many.

Therefore, education is the major means to enrich the strengths and overcome the

weaknesses of the people. It is also a means for the widespread diffusion of democratic

values”. Radhakrishnan commission (1948-49) said, “Education is the great instrument

of social emancipation, by which democracy establishes, maintains and protects the

spirit of equality among its members”. It is crystal clear that democracy can function

properly only if all its citizens are properly educated. Democracy should provide aims

to education and thus, principles of democracy should reflect in the aims, curriculum,

methods of teaching, administration and organization, discipline, the school, the teacher

etc. God bless, Philippines!

CONCLUSION

In summation, history serves as a guide of every Filipino for present and future plans.

Educating ourselves with our country's history is somehow linked to the appreciation of the

effort and achievements of our national heroes. It also develops our national identity and

strengthens our sense of nationalism.

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REFERENCES:

Miralao, Virginia 1997. The Family, Traditional Values and Sociocultural Transformation of
Philippine Society. Philippine Sociological Review
45, nos. 1-4: 189-215.

https://members.tripod.com/h_javora/jed1.htm#:~:text=These%20benefits%20include%20a%
20well,improved%20general%20quality%20of%20life.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_the_Philippines_during_Spanish_rule

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