Billy Joe T. Rosal
Divine Word College of Laoag
Abstract
Our Forefathers have always utilized
nationalism as their rallying cry against colonial and neo-colonial governments.
This move eventually led to the brewing of nationalism among Filipinos. Due to
recent events of misinformation and historical distortion, the country is facing
a great national malady due to bad administration, the failure of the
educational system to implement ways on how to advance nationalism and the
removal of Philippine History subjects in the high school curriculum. The lack
of exposure of learners to historical concepts and events, and a mature forum for
discourse makes them more prone to historical revisionism and the exacerbation
of historical amnesia. Nowadays, Filipino learners have a waning interest to
Philippine heroes and historical events.
Keywords:
Philippine History, historical malady, historical distortion, historical
revisionism, historical amnesia.
Introduction
It's interesting to remember that two historical films, Mallari and
Gomburza, were screened at the previous Metro Manila Film Festival. These films
demonstrated the increasing number of Filipino filmgoers who remain enthralled
with historical dramas. Not only are these historically accurate films, but
they also significantly contributed to the advancement of nationalism,
patriotism, and nation-building among young Filipinos. These movies also made
us wonder: Who are we as Filipinos? and how ought we to defend our country?
I clearly remember the day that Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition published
a series of recordings that shocked Filipinos all over the world on April 13,
2022. Where the infamous MAJOHA incident occurred after one of the contestants
failed to identify the monicker of the three priests in Philippine History -
Fr. Mariano Gomez, Fr. Jose Burgos, and Fr. Jacinto Zamora whose executions
inspired many key figures of the revolution. The frightening truth of today's
youth and their disinterest in and ignorance of our country's past became
evident to the Filipino people after this awful incident. These videos
opened serious discussions about the Philippine educational system and its effects.
On the other hand, the same sentiments were also evident in 2015, when high
school’ learners were commenting “Lumpo pala si Mabini”, after watching the
movie “Heneral Luna”. if this incidence of historical ignorance becomes
widespread among the millennials, the country will be in great trouble.
In the
local context, I usually get erroneous or blank stares in response to my
questions regarding national heroes or historical events, which I pose as part
of my lesson review before moving on to discussions. I used to nod and grin at
it, but deep down I felt sorry for them because these are such simple truths,
and I wondered why they didn't know the answer. I can tell from these examples
that students' enthusiasm for learning about Philippine history is waning. I am
concerned about the future of our country because of this age group's lack of
understanding of our country's history. It seems that the study of Philippine
History in high school and neglected yet this subject is crucial in
nation-building and important in brewing nationalism, patriotism, and sense of
identity.
The Filipino
Nationalism
Our historical heroes have always utilized nationalism
as their rallying cry against colonial and neo-colonial governments. Claro M.
Recto once said “The battle cry that animates and sets in motion millions of
hearts and minds is nationalism. It is not a passing emotion, not a naïve
longing for the trappings of sovereignty. It is persevering, militant and
mature. In a speech of Recto as mentioned by Cruz 2021, “What are the basic
components of nationalism? One is the growing and deepening consciousness that
we are a distinct people with our own character and spirit, our own customs and
traditions, our own ideals, our own way of thinking, our own way of life. What
sets us apart as a people distinct from any other are the experiences and
vicissitudes we have gone through together as a nation in our own environment.
A Filipino cannot assert this identity and call himself a nationalist unless he
is one with his people’s history and has enshrined in his heart the precepts
and example of our heroes and martyrs.”
With
this, Filipino Nationalism is a sentiment, a consciousness, an inspiration, a
motivation, the nation’s collective conscience, the primal virtue of the
citizen, and a manifestation of the national soul or spirit (Abueva, 1998). As a political ideology, Filipino nationalism
embodies the philosophy of national power lodged in and excised by the citizens in
a constitutional democracy. In this sense, it is a manifestation of the
nation's purposefulness, committed to the goals of attaining progress,
development, and national unity as well as economic, social, and political
modernization.
Current State
of Nationalism and Philippine History
National
Artist for Literature, Virgilio Almario, claimed that these incidents
previously stated above were a sign of great national
malady due to bad administration and failure of the educational system. He
also mentioned two reasons why the youth of today has a lack of knowledge and
interest in our country’s history, culture, and tradition. First is the removal
of Philippine History in High School, and second, in the elementary, the
subject is only taught through memorizing facts and very limited analysis. With
this current situation, Philippine History is limitedly taught in classes.
There is a dearth in establishing meaning, connection, and relevance to the
present and life. The use of evidence in history is not only a
historical skill but an essential skill in the analytical and critical thinking of
the learners.
Almario also
said that for learners to learn how to connect to the past and feel a sense of
pride in their national identity and patriotism, they need be taught to
appreciate prehistoric and ancient history as well as the wisdom and character
of our heroes. In this age of disinformation, students may close the gap
created by the epidemic and the educational crisis by using their fundamental
analytical and critical thinking abilities to check facts, fight
disinformation, and do fact-checking.
Numerous requests have been to reinstate Philippine history in high schools since
2014. This was caused by the Department of Education's (DepEd) Order 20, series
of 2014, which essentially eliminated Philippine history as a high school
elective. In response, clumsy government officials claimed that other Araling
Panlipunan (AP) courses, like Asian History, already included elements of
Philippine history. There was no need to make it redundant since it was already
taught in elementary. This was made painfully clear when, in 2017, current
DepEd Secretary Leonor Briones expressed the following in a Philippine Daily
Inquirer article entitled, “Not ‘Kuri-kulam’ but ‘Cure-iculum’”. This move
from the Department of Education seriously affected the learners because of the
lack of scaffolding and opportunity to learn historical concepts and events in
the classroom.
The adolescent
years during which learners are enrolled in high school are the most formative
years, according to developmental psychology theories advanced by Erik Erikson.
Erikson feels that a scaffold is necessary. Since learners go from childhood to
early adulthood, scaffolding can be used to study Philippine history appropriately. Learners are most socially, developmentally, and politically
changeable at this age. Also, during these years, learners develop their
critical thinking skills and are better equipped to comprehend, evaluate, and
consider historical problems and occurrences.
Their lack of a mature forum for discourse makes
them more prone to historical revisionism and the exacerbation of historical amnesia.
In the present
educational scene, Social Studies or the Araling Panlipunan subject in high
school is only taught for three (3) hours or 3 sessions per week. As compared to
other subjects like Math, Science, English and Filipino with 4 contact sessions
each week. Thus, it is impossible to integrate Philippine History into Asian
Studies, World History, Economics and Contemporary Issues with the crowded
curriculum of Araling Panlipunan. With this condition, an elementary learner
will study Philippine History next after 6 years as this has a separate
subject in college which is the Readings in Philippine History. With this
6-year gap, high school learners might forget the concepts and events of
our history resulting in low knowledge and comprehension levels and worst no
knowledge at all. This is further worsened by information that is circulated in
social media that can cause an explosion of manipulative and distorted historical
content. If teenagers start to genuinely believe this misleading content in
high school due to a lack of pedagogical guidance, then they will most likely
bring that misguided belief and historical revisionism.
From 2018 until
now 2024, Historians and Teachers have called for a petition for the return
of Philippine History in high school. They also ask the Department of Education
to review the AP curriculum in the hopes of returning Philippine history to
junior high school and perhaps even senior high school. It likewise urges
Congress to enact legislation to make it mandatory to have Philippine History
in all tranches of education, especially in high school.
Hurdles to
Overcome in Fostering Nationalism
It's true that
through education, we can foster nationalism among the learners but before the
new generation brews nationalism the following hurdles must be needed to be overcome to foster nationalism among the new generation.
1.
Tribal Mentality - it seems our deepest loyalty is
mainly limited to our immediate and extended family. By certain means, the
"kumpare/kumadre system" creates a network that grows the extended
family. This system was and is put in place for religious purposes when a child
is baptized or confirmed, but it is also utilized for nefarious purposes to
obtain or gain political and economic power. Our devotion to our hometown,
province, or region is another example of this tribal and constrictive thinking
in action; as a result, anyone who is not part of our group is largely ignored,
seen with distrust and suspicion, and is easily stereotyped.
2.
Belief in Determinism - Our belief that all that
occurs is the "will of God" has been ingrained in our thoughts
throughout the generations by the Catholic religious legacy of Spain.
Statements like "bahala na ang Diyos", "ginusto ng Diyos",
"oras na", and so forth indicate that we have thus evolved a
fatalistic mindset. Even the so-called educated and our impoverished
compatriots have this fatalistic mindset. The overall negative effect of
fatalism is that it causes people to give up in hopelessness, helplessness, and
inaction and turn to wish well and fervent prayers, which essentially only
serves to validate Karl Marx's often-quoted statement that "religion is
the opium of the people".
3.
Colonial Mindset/English as the Language of Teaching -
The four centuries of Spanish domination did not hinder the development of
Filipino nationalism throughout the fifty years of American colonization. The
native Filipinos were largely kept stupid and uneducated by the Spaniards, but
our revolutionary predecessors battled them off skillfully and efficiently,
nearly defeating them before the Americans arrived to deceive and take from
them in their quest for true independence.
4.
Lack of Social Consciousness/ Selfish Individualism -
This Filipino character is the outcome of the tribal mentality. It is also the
result of a confluence of the rich and powerful as well as the historical,
ongoing, and present desertion by the federal government. The deprivation that
followed shaped us into "looking out for ourselves" only. Those who
are fortunate enough to inherit land and fortune often harbour contempt and
apathy toward the impoverished. The cliche "the rich only get richer or
the poor want to only get rich" rings true. Forget the saying "it is
more difficult for a rich man to enter heaven...."Oh well, who believes
that.
Conclusion
These gaps in
the education system are dangerous because it can impact learners’ critical
thinking ability which is essential in combating misinformation. Thus, the
return of Philippine History in high school curriculum in the country will
recalibrate learners’ critical thinking and skills, and digital literacy skills
are needed at a time when misinformation is rampant on social media.
This move can
also brew nationalism and send of pride among Filipino youth today. This
eventually cultivates a country that takes pride in its own unique rich history,
culture, and tradition. If this continues, the hardships and sacrifices of
our forefathers, our heroes and our fighters will be set aside and put to
waste.
References:
1.
Abueva, J. (1998). Filipino nationalism,
nation-building and national development. Quezon City: University of the
Philippines Press.
2.
Briones, L. M. (2017). Not ‘Kuri-kulam’ but
‘Cure-iculum’. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/936395/deped-leonor-magtolis-briones-ferdinand-marcos-marcos-martial-law-ferdinand-marcos-jr-bongbong-marcos-marcos-martial-law-k-to-12-basic-education-philippine-history.
3.
Cruz, E. S. (2021). Filipino nationalism. https://www.philstar.com/opinion/2021/04/15/2091234/filipino-nationalism.
4.
Department of Education Order 20, s. 2014.
5.
Ignacio, J. (2019). The slow death of Philippine
history in high school. https://www.rappler.com/voices/ispeak/243058-opinion-slow-death-philippine-history-high-school/.
6.
Tomacruz, S. (2019). KWF’s Almario hits universities
removing Filipino as a subject. https://www.rappler.com/nation/231617-almario-hits-universities-using-supreme-court-decision-remove-filipino-subject/.