A Study on the Process of the Establishment of Barangay High Schools in the Philippines

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to present findings from an inquiry into the background of the establishment of Barangay High Schools in the Philippines. Barangay High Schools were established by Pedro T. Orata in 1964 in an effort to promote the expansion of secondary education. The schools were opened throughout the country with local cooperation and with little financial support from the government. Orata's educational movement can be considered to have contributed positively and significantly to the democratization of Philippine education.
The three primary findings are as follows: One, Pedro T. Orata established the schools in order to provide the opportunity of secondary education for youth in rural areas. At that time, many youth had been denied access due to the lack of personal financial resources. There were few public high schools in local communities and high tuition fees for private high schools made them inaccessible. In additon, Orata believed that the curricula of regular high schools needed to be reformed to include better vocational training.
Two, Orata's idea of “self-supporting” was emphasized in the development of in-school management in the Barangay High Schools. Local inhabitants of a given village, a “Barangay”, cooperated together to support the school financially. In a “home project” program, the students and their parents participated in some productive activity, such as raising piglets or making slippers. They were encouraged to allot the profit to tuition fees.
Three, as a result of massive effort and subsequent rapid development, administrative problems arose. In some of the high schools, a quality level of education could not be maintained sufficiently because of a lack of qualified teachers and facilities, in addition to financial restrictions. Hence, it became necessary for the Department of Education to establish new rules for the development and maintenance of Barangay High Schools. The managers of private high schools also posed a problem. They began to oppose their establishment because of a feared loss in profits as many students entered Barangay High Schools. In 1969, the Republic Act No.6054 stabilized the establishment and management of the Barangay High Schools under Congress.