Education during the Spanish Regime and Its Colonial The Franciscan nuns was established the Real
ed the Real Monasterio
Effects to the Filipinos
During the Spanish Colonial Period of the Philippines
(1565-1898) most of the archipelago underwent a deep
cultural, religious transformation from various native
Asian cultures and traditions with Islamic or animist
religious practices, to a unique hybrid of Southeast Asia
and Western culture including the Catholic faith.
Spanish education played a major role in that
transformation. The oldest universities, colleges,
vocational schools and the first modern public education
system in Asia were created during the colonial period.
Education was still in the early stage of development
during the Spanish period. Even by the late 19th century,
the Spanish language was still unknown to a great
majority. They were literate in their own native dialects.
The Spanish aristocracy tried to distinguish themselves
from the indios with the use of language and level
education.
The Early Period of Education
During the early years of Spanish colonization, education
was mostly religion oriented and controlled by the Roman
Catholic Church. Spanish friars and missionaries
educated the natives through religion with the aim of
converting indigenous populations to the Catholic faith.
Religious Organizations
The Augustinians opened a school immediately upon
arriving in Cebú in 1565.
The Franciscans arrived in 1577, and they, too,
immediately taught the people how to read and write,
besides imparting to them important industrial and
agricultural techniques.
The Jesuits who arrived in 1581 also concentrated on
teaching the young. When the Dominicans arrived in
1587, they did the same thing.
The friars were effective in evangelizing the Catholic
religion to the Filipinos. One major failure of the
educational system of the religious congregations was the
withholding of the Filipinos to learn other bodies of
knowledge.
Tertiary Schools for Girls
Colegio de Santa Potenciana was the first school and
college for girls that opened in the Philippines, in 1589.
The Colegio de Santa Potenciana ceased in operations in
1866.
It was followed by another school for women, Colegio de
Santa Isabel, that opened in 1632. The Colegio de Santa
Isabel, now the oldest existing college for girls in country.
Other Schools and Colleges for girls were Santa Catalina,
Santa Rosa, La Concordia, etc. Several religious
congregations also established schools for orphaned girls
who could not educate themselves.
de Santa Clara (now St. Claire Convent of Manila), the
first nunnery in the Philippines in 1621.
The girls were also given special education. Schools were
two of kinds:
1. Colegio – a regular school for girls.
2. Beaterio – a combined school and nunnery.
Tertiary Schools
In 1590, the Universidad de San Ignacio was founded in
Manila by the Jesuits, initially as the Colegio-Seminario
de San Ignacio.
The Universidad de San Carlos was founded in Cebú by
the Jesuits on August 1, 1595, initially named as the
Colegio de San Ildefonso.
It closed down in 1769 as a result of the expulsion of the
Jesuits from the Philippines and didn't open again until
1783.
On April 28, 1611, the Universidad de Santo Tomás was
founded in Manila, initially named as the Colegio de
Nuestra Señora del Santísimo Rosario and later renamed
as Colegio de Santo Tomas.
In 1611, Fray Miguel de Benavides, the third archbishop
of Manila established the Colegio de Nuestra Senora del
Santissimo Rosario, later renamed Universidad de Santo
Tomas (in 1645 by Pope Innocent X). Universidad de
Santo Tomas
San Carlos and Santo Tomás maintain a friendly rivalry
over the claim to be the oldest university in Asia. The
University of San Carlos makes the claim of tracing its
roots to the Colegio de San Ildefonso founded by the
Spanish Jesuits fathers Antonio Sedeno, Pedro Chirino
and Antonio Pereira in 1595.
The Jesuits also founded the Colegio de San José (1601)
and took over the management of a school that became
the Escuela Municipal (1859, later renamed Ateneo
Municipal de Manila in 1865, now theAteneo de Manila
University).
The Dominicans on their part had the Colegio de San Juan
de Letrán(1620) in Manila. San Juan de Letran opened for
the orphaned boys.
All of them provided courses leading to different
prestigious degrees, like the Bachiller en Artes that by the
19th century included science subjects such as physics,
chemistry, natural history and mathematics.
In 1640, the Universidad de San Felipe de Austria was
established in Manila. It was the first public university
created by the Spanish government in the Philippines. It
was closed down in 1643.
During the 18th century, the Faculty of Jurisprudence and
Canonical Law was established.
Secondary Schools
The Philippine Merchant Marine Academy, originally
named Escuela Nautica de Manila, is one of the oldest
institutions in the Philippines. It was created on January Educational Decree of 1863
1, 1820 which offered a four-year course of study (for the
1. The first educational system for students in the
profession of pilot merchant marine) that included then
country was established by virtue of the Education
subjects such as arithmetic, algebra, geometry,
Decree of 1863.
trigonometry, physics, hydrography, meteorology, 2. The decree required the government to provide school
nativation and pilotage. institutions for boys and girls in every town.
A School of Commerical Accountijng and a School of 3. Spanish schools started accepting Filipino students.
4. The Normal School was also established.
French and English Language were established in 1839.
The Don Honorio Ventura College of Arts and Trades Effects of Colonial Education in the Philippines
(DHVCAT) in Bacolor, Pampanga is said to be the oldest The effect of education to the Filipinos was only
official vocational school in Asia. Agustinian Friar Juan
compelled to the friars' influences from their lessons
Zita and civic leader Don Felino Gil established the
based on the Christian Doctrines or teachings.
vocational school on November 4, 1861.
One major failure of the educational system of the
The Manila School of Agriculture was created in 1887,
religious congregations was the withholding of the
although it was unable to open its doors until 1889.
Filipinos to learn other bodies of knowledge.
Agricultural schools and monitoring stations, run by
In entirety, education during the Spanish regime was
professors who were agricultural engineers were also
privileged only to Spanish students. The supposed
established in Isabela, Ilocos, Albay, Cebu, Iloilo, Leyte
Philippine education was only a means to remain
and parts of Mindanao.
colonizers.
The Real Sociedad Economica de los Amigos del Pais de
In 1866, the total population of the Philippines was only
Filipinas (Royal Economic Society of Friends of the
4,411, 261. The total public school was 841 for boys and
Philippines) was introduced in the Philippines and offered
833 for girls. In 1892, the number of schools increased to
local and foreign scholarships to Filipinos, professorships 2,137, 1,087 of which was for boys and 1050 for girls.
and financed trips of scientist from Spain to Philippines.
By the 1890s, free public secondary schools were
The Observatorio Meteorologico del Ateneo de Manila
opening outside of Manila, including 10 normal schools
(Manila Observatory) was founded In 1865 by the Jesuits
for women. The Philippines was a head of some
after an article they published in the newspaper Diario de
European countries in offering education for women.
Manila, describing the typhoon observations made on
September 1865, attracted the attention of many readers Conclusion of Education System in the Philippines in
who publicly requested for the observations to be General
continued.
1. Education was “religion centered”
In 1871, several schools of medicine and pharmacy were 2. Education for the elite only
opened. 3. Spanish is compulsory
4. Boys and girls school are separated
Their final system of public instruction was not badly 5. Inadequate, suppressed and controlled
planned, but it was never actually put into full operation.
Modern Public System of Education
Modern public school education was introduced in Spain
only 1857.
Free Access to modern public education by all Filipinos
was made possible through the enactment of the
Education Decree of 1863 by Queen Isabella II.
The Education Decree of 1863 provided for the
establishment of at least two primary schools, one for
boys and another for girls, in each town under the
responsibility of the municipal government, it also
commended the creation of a free public normal school to
train man as teachers, supervised by the Jesuit.
One of these schools was the Escuela Normal Elemental
which, in 196 became the Escuela Normal Superior de
Maestros de Manila (Manila Ordinary School for
Schoolmistresses). The Spanish government established a
school for midwives in 1879, and Escuela Normal
Superior de Maestras (Superior Normal School) for
female teachers in 1892.