Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-02-24
Philippine Problems
IT TEACuJNc ANN CLEANING Up
II. TEACHING AND CLEAN1N
BY FREDERIC ]. HAsKIN

Washington, D. c., Feb. H. Affairs
in the Philippines are going through
critical period. The complex system of
education and administration that we
built up is getting its final test. We
know that the organization Is efficient,
that it will work. We have still to find
out what effect it's workings have on
The mass OF the Philippine people =
in how far they are willing or capable
of ,eceiving it's benefits.
There is the question NJ the English
language, for instance. The whole
school system of the islands has been
making every effort since its, inception
to teach it's little brown pupils the
tongue OF their new country. English
today is more generally understood
than Spanish ever was, though spain
held the Philippines for centuries. You
can get about the islands more easily
speaking English than with any one Oh
the Filipino dialects. 1t would seem
that the English teaching campaign
has been a great success, and this IS
undoubtedly the case to great extent.
Yet there are intelligent Americans
who believe that the lower grade
school work should be carried on In
the native dialects.
They say that the many thousands
of Filipino children OF the pooper
classes only go to school for few
years They spend most Of that time
learning the new language. Then they
20 home. take up their native dialect
again, and forget what English they
knew, According to this theory 1t
would be better to take them for the
limited time at the teachers disposal
and give them as much solid. general
instruction as possible in their own
tongue. Thus they could get something
out of the school that they would re-
tain.
The weight Of opinion in the islands
is against such course. There IS no
literature worth mentioning in any FIJI
ipino dialect. There are none OF the
works of information, or books on now
to do things, that English is rich in. In
a word, the English language as tool
is incomparably superior to any native
dialect and even If the majority never
make use of it, any step toward estap-
fishing it is a step in the r1gnt olrec-
ton. But the mere fact that sucn
dispute exists, shows that the school
question is not solved. n~.~ -
Admitting this, there is no doubt as
TO the remarkable work done by the
bureau of education. 1t is the bureau
nearest the people. Many or the otner
bureaus have to work through 1t. IT
teaches over half a million pupils, and
EMPLOYS nine thousand Filipino teacn-
ers. It has done more, perhaps, 10
establish friendship and confidence BE-
tween the people and the government
than any other single influence. Yet
we cannot regard it's work as done It's
future as a mere matter Of routine de-
yelopment. The permanence OF its re-
suits has yet to be established. The
present school system cannot accom-
modate more than half of all the chill
dren Of school age in the islands.
The education of the hill tribes IS
lust beginning. They present prop
lem much more difficult than the civil
lied Filipino. Shy, savage, superstltl-
Gus. they have to be humored and coax
ed. with infinite patience and to!er-
ance. If the Filipinos are given
charge of the government OF the
islands. one of the surest tests of their
spirit and their ability will be the way
thew carry on the education Of the lfu-
eaos and the Mangyans. a...
The Filipino himself often displays
keen appetite for knowledge. There