Note 2 — PUBLIC INSTRUCTION

Under late Spanish domination, there were 67 private Latin schools in the archipelago, of which 23 were in the province of Manila, and nearly all the others in Luzón. In the term of 1886–87, there were 41 private schools, of secondary instruction, twelve of which were in the suburbs of Manila, two in the walled city, and the rest in the provinces of Luzón and the Visayas. Of the 41 professors in charge thereof, only one had the degree of doctor, eight were licentiates, and the rest held the degree of bachelor of arts. The course of study in these schools included Latin and Spanish grammar, Christian doctrine and sacred history, general geography and geography of Spain and the Philippines, Latin translation and analysis, elementary Greek, general history and history of Spain and the Philippines, arithmetic and algebra, rhetoric and poetry, geometry and plane trigonometry, and French. The attendance in 1895–96 was 1,915. They were under the charge of licentiates, in philosophy or science, or bachelors of arts who must have passed a teacher’s examination, and were under inspectors, one of whom was appointed by the rector of the university, who was ex-officio head of all the schools of the islands. Some of the schools had a one-year course, others two, and others three. The teachers were Filipinos. The supervisors of public instruction had the power to visit the schools, and recommend their establishment or removal. The pupils were required to enrol and be examined in the university, except those in distant provinces, who could be examined by a board composed of the alcalde-mayor, the parish priest, and the respective professor. The result of the examination was sent to the secretary of the university. The Dominicans had one private school at Dagupan (Pangasinán), founded 1890–91; the Franciscans, that of Guinobatan (Albay), founded 1894–95; and the Recollects that of Bacólod (Negros Occidental), founded 1895. There are still a number of private schools in the archipelago. During recent years many have sprung up in Manila and the provinces which give primary and secondary education, although the instruction is generally poor. Some of them have been started in answer to the complaint of some Filipino parents that the American schools are godless; some have been started by Roman Catholic priests for the purpose of combating purely secular instruction; and some are the expression of Filipino nationality and independence. Within ten months, since June, 1901, 29 new private schools were opened in Manila alone. They are generally patterned after the old method, and are either teaching in Spanish or the vernacular. The popular demand for English has compelled many of them to make a show of teaching it, but it is generally being attempted without adequate teachers. It was suggested that the curriculum in such schools, except in matters of religious instruction, conform to the course of the public schools, and that they be under the official inspection, such a course making it possible to have a real compulsory school law. The Liceo de Manila is a school organized and run by Filipinos. The late C. J. Zulueta was professor of history in this school and read an address at its opening, June 19, 1902. See LeRoy’s Philippine Life, pp. 223, 224; Census of Philippines, iii, pp. 599, 600; Report of Commissioner of Education, 1899–1900, ii, p. 1622, 1901, ii, pp. 1437, 1438; and Archipiélago Filipino, i, pp. 344, 345. ↑