GE 7

A HISTORY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN THE PHILIPPINES

by Olivia C. Caoili
I. Timeline
Period Development in Science and Technology

Precolonial Science and • Made simple tools and weapons made out of stone flakes
Technology • During the Stone Age, they developed techniques for sawing,
drilling and polishing hard stones.
• Production of adzes ornaments of seashells and pottery of
various designs flourished until it came into competition with
imported Chinese porcelain.
• During the Iron Age, the Filipinos progressed to making metal
tools and implements – copper, gold bronze and later, iron.
• By the first century A.D., Filipinos were weaving cotton,
smelting iron, making pottery and glass ornaments as they
were also engaged in agriculture.
• By the tenth century A.D., Filipinos learned to build boats for
the coastal trade and was acknowledged by the Spanish
chroniclers of the refined plank-built warship called caracoa.
• Foreign trading activities and cultural contacts were done
between Filipinos and numerous areas of Asia especially
China.
• Filipinos had their own reading and writing system (used
mainly for messages and letters) but had not developed a
written literary tradition.
• Filipinos had abundant supply of natural resources, a benign
environment, and a generally sparse population which did not
view invention and innovation as an immediate priority.

Spanish Regime • Spaniards established schools, hospitals and started

scientific research and had important consequences in order
for the rise of the country’s professions, as well as the
medicine and pharmacy which was the most developed
science-based professions during this time.
• Religious orders played a major role in the establishment of
the colonial educational system in the Philippines as well as
its influence in the development of technology and promotion
of scientific research.
• Spanish friars who taught higher education during this period
resulted to being poorly trained; with limited laboratory
equipment which was only for display, and little to no training
in scientific research.
 • A rise in Philippine exports and imports of manufactured
goods as Spanish colonial trade policies and the relative
inexperience and lack of capital Spanish and Filipino
merchants caused their failure to survive the competition
with foreign imports.

American Regime • The Americans introduced a system of secularized

publicschool education as soon as the civil governments was
set up in the islands.
• The Philippine Commission introduced science subjects and
industrial and vocational education into the Philippine school
system but was later found to be unpopular with the Filipinos.
• The application of basic research in the medical, agricultural
and related sciences was shown to have been given more
support from the government during this period as well as
efforts in establishing an old extensive public-school system
and public health programs.
• The Laboratorio Municipal was renamed to the Bureau of
Science and served as a valuable training ground for Filipino
scientists.
Commonwealth Period • This period acknowledged the importance of promoting
scientific development for the economic development of the
country that it was incorporated a provision (Article XIII,
Section 4) that declared “The State shall promote scientific
research and invention…)
• The Commonwealth government focused on the goal of
economic self-reliance but was unable to do so due to the
control of the American government on the foreign trade and
tariff policies.
• Development on educational and scientific activities were
put to a halt as the Filipino citizens were tasked to join the
resistance movement against the Japanese, as they go to
war.
Since Independence • During the American Regime, the pattern of education and
training of scientists, engineers and physicians were still
intact and remained unchanged since independence.
• The number of college students and graduates as well as
the number of state universities and colleges has had a
tremendous increase since 1946.
• A rise of professional organizations of scientists and
engineers followed closely the growth of higher education in
the Philippines.
• Self-regulation by professional associations was eventually
institutionalized in government laws which established
professional examining boards and licensing procedures.
II. Reflection This paper entitled “A History of Science and Technology in the Philippines” by
Olivia C. Caoili elaborated on the phases of development of science and technology in the
country and when it was later recognized to be an essential need for the growth of the
country. The Philippines is one of the third-world countries, and it is relatively visible that
science and technology is an aspect on which we depend to have the integrity of political
sovereignty and economic selfreliance. Science and technology are broad and have
evolved by interpreting and analyzing the interdependent effects of geography, colonial
trade, economic and educational policies, and socio-cultural factors which were quite
evident as Caoili defined in each period which was governed and greatly influenced by the
historical experience brought about as a colony of Spain and the United States. However,
despite being a colony produced by Spain and the United States, the number of negative
outcomes exceeded the positive outcomes which were visible as colonial development
only led to problems that affected the historical development of Philippine science and
technology.
Colonial policies have only made the Philippines dependent on the outside world as it
provides an agricultural market and a source of manufactured goods in terms of economic
development and external trade which then shows neglect and unprogressive industrialization of
the country which keeps the country underdeveloped. With the country maintaining such
underdevelopment, despite the rise in social demand for higher education—"science-based
professions have been either unemployed or underemployed.” It is also said that many of these
professionals have migrated to developed countries which are still quite evident even in today’s
time as an independent country. This is simply losing one of our own, a loss of valuable human
resources that could have shaped the country's development. The dependence of the Philippine
economy on those that occupied our lands was both a blessing and a curse in disguise as it
provided a whole new perspective and insights but with consequences that greatly influenced the
Philippine's science and technology.
I fully agree with Caoili as she states that there is “a need for the government to critically
reexamine the interrelations between past and present education and science policies with those
of its economic development policies in order to be able to redirect these towards the goal of
attaining a strong, self-reliant economy and society.” In my opinion, the Philippines has the
capability to be qualified as a first-world country as it has a high momentum of economic growth.
If only the government can see the importance and the priority which education and science can
do to the economy, the advancement and development can be evident in the country. Such
support will inspire young people to look for jobs in these industries, in this country. With the help
of facility funding, Flipino citizens may become more aware of their potential in the field of science
and technology. Thanks to the existence of a subject that teaches the history and advancement
of science and technology in the Philippines, we are made aware of the importance of the
discipline in advance.