Today in the Past - By Prof. Samson Lucero

Today, March 21, 1901, the Department of Public Instruction is created. It proposes the establishment of public schools in every town in the islands, a normal school and a trade school at Manila, and an agricultural school. This forms the core of the educational system then, it forms the foundation of what is the Department of Education, Culture and Sports now.

As early as 1898, Reverend McKinnon, an army chaplain, was appointed by General Merritt to conduct classes. The Taft Commission, in consonance with the instructions which it had received from McKinley, continued the work begun by the military regime.

In May, 1900, it appointed a general superintendent of public instruction and created, in January of the following year, a department of charged with the duty of directing and supervising public instruction in the country.

In due time, with the establishment of the civil regime, the Department of Public Instructions became one of the four department of the executive branch of the government.

Following the instructions of McKinley and pursuant to the suggestion of representative groups of Filipinos, English was made the medium of instruction. The presidential instructions to the commission says: "In view of the great number of languages spoken by the different tribes, it is specially important to the prosperity of the Islands that a common medium of expression be established and it is obviously desirable that this medium be the English language."

Special emphasis was given by the President on the defusion of learning in the primary grades. As the number of school children increased, it became necessary to import school teachers from the United States and the result was the coming of about 200 in the now historic transport Thomas.