Historical Development of the Filipino
Philosophy
Filipino Philosophy of Education
By David A. Gualin
I.
Introduction
The Philippines is a country separated by
islands and due to its geography have different languages, personalities and
esteemed values. Add to this scenario, the
occupations of Spaniards, Americans, Japanese and the Marcos regime and the
ever changing political sphere of the country.
Hence, it is really difficult to pinpoint the Filipino way of thinking –
the Filipino Philosophy. “The issue on
Filipino identity is now taken for granted by scholars for they believe that it
is very impossible to reckon who really the original Filipino is. Indeed,
knowing directly the original Filipino is real impossibility. However…knowing
oneself takes a lot of detour and is a good beginning” (Suazo, n.d.). This report is one of those detours to
describe the historical development of the Filipino Philosophy of Education.
II.
Highlights
Education from Ancient Early Filipinos
Education during the Spanish Colonial
Period (1563-1896)
Education during the American Colonial
period (1898-1935)
Education during the Japanese
Occupation Period (1941–45)
Education during Philippine
Independence (1946 – 1972)
Education during Marcos’ starting from
the Proclamation of Martial Law (1972-1986)
Education during EDSA People Power
Revolution until the Present
I.
Education
from Ancient Early Filipinos
The education of pre-Spanish time in
the Philippines was informal and unstructured.
The fathers taught their sons how to
look for food and other means of livelihood. The mothers taught their girls to
do household chores.
Filipino men and women know how to
read and write using their own native alphabet called alibata. The alibata was
composed of 17 symbols representing the letters of the alphabet. Among these
seventeen symbols were three vowels and fourteen consonants.
Focus was on Reading, Writing and
Rithmetic (3Rs).
After the Pre-Spanish Era the
Philippines was liberated five times during its entire history (Botor and Ortinero, 1998):
1. Spaniards - came to liberate us from the
"enslavement of the devil."
2. Americans - came to liberate us from Spanish
oppression.
3. Japanese - came to liberate us from Amerian
imperialism.
4. Americans - liberate us from Japanese
fascism.
5. People Power - liberated ourselves from a
Filipino dictator and his cronies.
II.
Education
during the Spanish Colonial Period (1563-1896)
From the start the spread of Catholic
religion was the aim of Spanish colonization.
Education was mostly religious.
Missionaries provided primary
instructions in the Roman alphabet and numerals, arithmetic, religion, Spanish
language, Spanish geography and history, ethics, music and practical
agriculture or needlework.
Formal education was established
during the second half of the 16th century which was mostly for the elite.
Humanistic Philosophy of Education is
scarce in teaching and most philosophy were based on the friar’s interpretation
of what is right and wrong.
The University of Santo Tomas was
established in 1611, which holds the oldest extant university charter in the
Philippines and in Asia (Wikipedia, 2014).
Friars thought that enlightened
Filipinos would weaken monasticism (Hence education was supressed and
controlled).
During the 17th Century, Spain
was 100 years behind France and Germany in the Sciences and Manila was 100
years behind Spain (Hence, education was inadequate)
III.
Education
during the American colonial period (1898-1935)
Historians place this at the end of
the Spanish-American war, 1898, until the inauguration of the Philippine
Commonwealth.
Started the Phil-American war which
was recorded as one of the most one-sided armed encounters in world history.
The Philippine Commonwealth was the
ten-year transition starting 1935, during which the Filipinos exercised
self-government before the Philippines became independent in 1946.
American soldiers were the first
teachers who taught in the daytime the children whose parents were at war in
the evenings.
Every child from age 7 was required to
register in schools located in their own town or province. The students were
given free school materials. There were three levels of education during the
American period:
1.
Elementary level consisted of four primary
years and 3 intermediate years.
2.
The secondary or high school level
consisted of four years;
3.
Third was the "college" or
tertiary level.
Religion was not part of the
curriculum of the schools as it had been during the Spanish period.
In 1901, 600 American teachers, the
Thomasites, arrived in the Philippines through the USS Thomas.
Philippine education after the Spanish
regime remained colonial, thus philosophy as an academic discipline did not
immediately metamorphose despite the 1898 Revolution. One can even say that the
formal philosophy taught in schools remained immune from, if not resistant to,
nationalist developments.
In 1905, the Department of Instruction
created 18 school districts and organized agriculture and nautical schools.
The Monroe Commission on Philippine
Education was created in 1925 with the aim of reporting on the effectiveness of
the education in the Philippines during the period of U.S. annexation. It was
headed by Paul Monroe, who at the time was the Director of the International
Institute of Teachers College, Columbia University, and it was composed by a
total of 23 education professionals, mostly from the U.S. and some from the
Philippines.
The Commission declared that although
Filipino students were on the same level as their American counterparts in
subjects like Math or Science, they lagged far behind in English-language
related subjects.
History of education reveals that the
importance of philosophy in education was not realized by educators until the
beginning of World War II, hence, educational philosophy is essential in the
curriculum formulation, training of teachers and the administration of school
which was not clearly apparent during the American colonial period (Damian,
n.d.).
IV.
Education during the Japanese Occupation
Period (1941–45)
Japanese educational policies were
embodied in the Military Order No. 2.
The Philippine Executive Commission established the Commission of
Education, Health and Public Welfare.
Executive Order No. 2 aimed to make
the people understand the position of the Philippines as a member of the
Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere...eradicate the old idea of reliance
upon western nations and instil among the Filipinos the love for work.
Foster a new Filipino culture based on
self-consciousness of the people as Orientals.
Strive for the diffusion of the
Japanese language in the Philippines and terminate the use of English.
Schools were reopened in June 1942
with 300,000 students only nationwide.
Education was used as an instrument
for indoctrinating the people to embrace Japanese ideologies.
As a result enrolment at all the
schools dropped.
V.
Philippine
Independence (1946 – 1972)
Proclamation of the 3rd Republic (July
4, 1946) after Japan lost to the US during World War II.
The educational philosophy was in accordance
with the provisions of Article XIV Section 5 of the 1935 Constitution which
provides that:
1. All educational institutions shall be under
the supervision and subject to the regulation by the State.
2. Provide free primary instruction and citizenship
training to adult citizens.
3. Optional religious instruction shall be
maintained by law.
4. Create scholarships for especially gifted
citizens.
VI.
Marcos
Regime from the Proclamation of Martial Law (1972-1986)
Proclamation No. 1081 signed on September
20, 1972 and implemented on September 21, 1972 - the Philippines was put under
Martial Law.
All powers of the government and its
instrumentalities were virtually put under the disposal of the President.
The Marcos Constitution of 1973 states
that:
1. All educational institutions shall be under
the supervision of, and subject to the regulation of the State.
2. Education shall be relevant to the goals of
national development.
3. All institutions of higher learning shall
enjoy academic freedom.
4. Educational institutions shall inculcate love
of country, teach the duties of citizenship, and develop moral character,
personal discipline and scientific and technological and vocational efficiency.
5. A system of free public elementary education
and, if finances permit, maintain at least up to the secondary level.
6. Provide citizenship and vocational training
to adult citizens and out-of-school youth
7. Create and maintain scholarships for poor and
deserving students.
Presidential Decreee 6-A on September
29, 1972 known as the Educational Development Decree of 1972 provided the
national development goals:
1. Achieve and maintain an accelerating rate of
economic development and social progress.
2. Assure the maximum participation of all the
people in the attainment and enjoyment of the benefits of such growth.
3. Strengthen national consciousness and promote
desirable cultural values in a changing world.
This decree also provided the
following educational aims:
1. Provide a broad education that will assist
each individual in the peculiar ecology of his own society.
2. Train the nation's manpower in the
middle-level skills required for national development.
3. Develop the high-level professions that will
provide leadership for the nation, advance knowledge through research and apply
new knowledge for improving the quality of human life
4. Respond effectively to changing needs and
condition of the nation through a system of educational planning and
evaluation.
The aims of education under the Marcos’
New Society are based on pragmatic, experimentalism approach of Dr. John Dewey
(Damian, n.d.). Dr. Dewey, who is an
advocate of the philosophy of pragmatism, might simply be called
experimentalist because he insists that ideas must always be tested by
experiment. He believed that no knowledge is ever certain that is not subject
to new evidence which might result from experimentation and experience.
The school under the New Society
utilizes the following educational concepts of Dr. John Dewey:
(1)
The nature of the child is made the center of educative process.
(2)
The theory of self-activity is made the center or basis of learning.
(3)
The development of personality is made the primary aim of the New Education
(4)
Activity program is the core of the curriculum.
Presidential Decreee 6-A was a ten
year educational program (1972-1982) and was adopted and integrated in the
Educational Act of 1982 on September 1982.
BATAS
PAMBANSA BILANG 232
Provided in this act are the national
development goals as follows:
1. Achieve and maintain an accelerating rate of
economic development and social progress.
2. Ensure the maximum participation of all the
people in the attainment and enjoyment of the benefits of such growth
3. Achieve and strengthen national unity and
consciousness and preserve, develop and promote desirable cultural moral and
spiritual values in a changing world.
In section 3 it states that:
"The
State shall promote the right of every individual to relevant quality
education, regardless of sex, age, creed, socio- eonomic status, physical
and mental conditions, racial or ethnic origin, political or other affiliation.
The state shall therefore promote and maintain quality of access to education
as well as the enjoyment of education by all its citizens."
The Education Act of 1982 provided for
an integrated system of education covering both formal and non-formal education
at all levels. Section 29 of the act sought to upgrade education institutions'
standards to achieve "quality education", through voluntary
accreditation for schools, colleges, and universities. Section 16 and Section
17 upgraded the obligations and qualifications required for teachers and
administrators. Section 41 provided for government financial assistance to
private schools. This act also created
the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports.
VII.
“EDSA
People Power Revolution” on February 22-23, 1986 onwards
1987 Constitution which provided the
present philosophy of education in the Philippines as stated in Article XIV,
Sec. 3 (2) thus:
“All
educational institution shall inculcate patriotism and nationalism, foster love
of humanity, respect for human rights, appreciation of the role of national
heroes in the historical development of the country, teach the rights and
duties of citizenship, strengthen ethical and spiritual values, develop moral
character, and personal discipline, encourage critical and creative thinking
broaden scientific and technological knowledge and provide vocational efficiency.”
The 1987 Constitution provides in
Article XIV, Section 1 that the State shall protect and promote the right of
all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate
steps to make such education accessible to all.
The sections in the 1987 Constitution
pertaining directly to education are as follows:
ARTICLE XIV (1987 CONSTITUTION)
EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, ARTS,
CULTURE AND SPORTS
EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, ARTS,
CULTURE AND SPORTS
Section 1.
The State shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education
at all levels, and shall take appropriate steps to make such education
accessible to all.
Sec. 2 (1)
System of education relevant to society.
Sec. 2 (2)
Free public education
Sec. 2 (3)
Scholarship program
Sec. 2 (4)
Non-formal, informal, and indigenous learning
Sec. 2 (5)
Special education and adult education
Sec. 3 (1)
Optional religious instruction.
Sec. 4 (1)
State power over educational institutions.
Sec. 4 (2)
Ownership and administration of schools
Sec. 4 (3)
Tax exemptions
Sec. 5 (1)
Regional and sectoral needs
Sec. 5 (2)
Academic freedom
Sec. 5 (2)
Right of every citizen to select a profession.
Sec. 5 (2)
Right of teachers to professional growth.
President Corazon Aquino has declared
the period of 1990 – 1999 as the “Decade of Education for All”
Education for All encompasses four
major programs
1.
Institutionalization of Early
Childhood Care and Development (ECCD)
2.
Universalization of Quality Primary
Education (UQPE)
3.
Eradication of Illiteracy
4.
Continuing Education and Development
UNESCO (2014) described that
“Education for All (EFA) movement is a global commitment to provide quality
basic education for all children, youth and adults. At the World Education
Forum (Dakar, 2000), 164 governments pledged to achieve EFA.”
In the Philippines, EFA has not seen
much impact in changing the educational scenario up until the K-12 education
program of the Department of Education.
The Department of Foreign Affairs reported that just recently a
“delegation presented the current efforts and strategic directions of the
Philippines highlighting the K to 12 program as the core of educational
reforms in the country which seeks to address the chronic job-skills mismatch
in the labor market through the introduction of Grades 11 and 12.
The newly implemented Enhanced K-12
Curriculum is also based on the philosophy of John Dewey (Damian, n.d.). It is based on Dr. John Dewey’s concept that
education is life and a social process. Example of school activities are cultural
activities (mother tongue based education) and on–the-job training programs
which is the focus of the latter years of the K-12 program.
It also highlighted that attaining
educational goals should not only be seen as the sole function of the education
agency but also by other relevant agencies such as the finance ministry and
congress/parliament (DFA, n.d.).
“However, in general, come 2015 the
UNESCO regional education conference in Bangkok has already given signs that
“the Education for All (EFA) agenda and the education-related Millennium
Development Goals (MDG) are unlikely
to be achieved by 2015” (Soliven, 2014).
Hence a restructuring of the goals of
EFA should happen in the Philippines where to achieve EFA goals, “more
attention should be given to the promotion of child-protection, use of
alternative modalities in delivering education particularly to disadvantaged
and underserved communities, and the use of differentiated approach to
indigenous peoples and Muslim learners to keep them interested in education”
(DFA, 2014).
VIII.
Conclusion
The historical development of Filipino
Educational Philosophy shows the strong influence of religion and the Western
world even after the efforts of the Japanese to instil the idea of Filipinos as
Orientals and even after Independence, the separation of the church and state, and
the People Power Revolution. Religious
educational philosophies are found in the 1986 Constitution where the focus is
on spiritual, ethical and moral values. Western
ideals of education, such as those advocated by John Dewey, are obviously
ingrained in the Presidential Decreee 6-A known as the Educational Development
Decree of 1972, to the Educational Act of 1982 and even until the present K-12
program of the Department of Education.
The identification of Dewey with democratic thinking and living and the
upheld Democratic Constitution of the Philippines is most likely the cause of
similarity. Hence, this report concludes
that majority of Filipino Philosophy in Education is aligned with either
religious thought or Western concepts.
But “What needs more emphasis, and has been forgotten in the decades of figuring
out Filipino philosophy, is the necessity of showing that we as a people are
capable of thinking for ourselves” (Abellanosa, n.d.).
IX.
Recommendation
It is difficult to choose intelligently what
should be a public school teachers’ educational philosophy. Should it be based on Dewey as most educators
are? Or, based on the middle ages’
scholasticisms which the Spaniards have first pioneered in the Philippines? Or should it be based on one’s own thinking?
After going through the history
of educational philosophy in the Philippines, it is obvious that Philippine
history has shown the prevalence of religion and Western thought in Philippine
education. It is important then that
other educational philosophies need to be explored and learned by the teacher
before deciding which one should best suit her in her practice of
teaching. What is important, I think, is
that we should choose intelligently and take into consideration the strengths
and weaknesses of all known educational philosophies. In choosing intelligently, the teacher should
(1) read more about the Philosophy she is interested with and not be content
with the reports in class, (2) reflect on the readings together with the
present situation of education – what we need is less teacher talk and more
student activity in our respective classes and (3) write about our
philosophies, either through educational papers like this recommendation or
through our personal diaries. From what
I have read, I have found that a teacher’s philosophy of education is the
teacher’s very basic core in defining the direction and future of teaching.
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