Fidel Ramos was born in Lingayen, Pangasinan on March 18, 1928 to former

Foreign Affairs Secretary Narciso Ramos and Angela Valdez. He graduated

valedictorian from elementary school, and attended the UP High School,
before enrolling in the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) where he earned a
scholarship to the US Military Academy in West Point. While in the US, he
also obtained a Masters Degree in Civil Engineering in University of Illinois
In 1952, he joined the Philippine Army and became part of the Philippine
Expeditionary Force in 1952 during the Korean War. In the 1960s, he was
Chief of Staff of the Philippine Civil Action Group in Vietnam. From there, he
quickly rose from the ranks to head the Philippine Constabulary, and later on,
the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces.

In 1986, together with then Defense Secretary Juan Ponce Enrile, Ramos
sparked the People Power Revolution that toppled the Marcos dictatorship.
He then helped former President Corazon Aquino overcome the seven coup
attempts led by now Senator Gregorio Honasan. In 1992, Aquino anointed her
as her candidate for the presidential elections.

 The emerging Educational Philosophy

Under the form of President Fidel V. Ramos, 1992-1998, a flurry of

educational reforms, at the initiative of the Philippine Congress, is being
rushed to completion. On August 25, 1994, President Ramos signed into law
a number of bills purportedly designed to improve the quality of Philippine
education. In his speech for the occasion, he had this to say:

Today, we break new ground, and aim for higher goals in the Filipino’s
continuing search for means by which to win the future. We stand at the
frontier of major and far-reaching improvements in education. We leave
behind the darkness of ignorance and backwardness causes by the lack
of quality education. Ahead beckons a horizon of hope and opportunity
for a greater number of our people.

He went on to say that while growth in material terms is necessary and

gainful, such material growth cannot be achieved without a corresponding
effort to increase the people’s intellectual capacity and moral strength. He
emphasized that this is the task of education which, is the right of every citizen
to receive, and the responsibility of government to provide.

He recalled the bills he signed into law earlier since February 1994, namely:
 1. The science and technology scholarship law which will finance annually
the education of 3,500 poor, talented and deserving students to be part
of a pool of the country’s man-power in S and T which he perceived as
the “main battleground of the future”.
2. The law on dual-tech training which institutionalizes an innovation in
technical-vocational training through a combination of in-school and in-
plant training;
3. The law that abolishes the National College Entrance Examination
(NCEE);
4. The TESDA law which establishes the Technical Education and Skills
Development Authority; and
5. The law establishing the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).

The four new laws which the President signed on August 25 were (1) the law
creating the legal education board; (2) the law establishing centers of
excellence in teacher education; (3) the law lengthening the school calendar
to 220 days a year; and (4) the law amending Section 25 of the Education Act
of 1982 to allow non-stock educational corporations to change their status to
stock corporations and to exempt family-administered pre-school institutions
from the requirements to incorporate.

Three of these pieces of legislations, the CHED law, the TESDA law and the
Basic Education bill, will have split the Department of Education, Culture and
Sports (DECS) into three bodies each having different “parent” offices. The
Commission on Higher Education will be attached to the Office of the
President. The TESDA will be an authority similar to the NEDA responsible to
a governing board with 13 members of which five are members of the
President’s Cabinet. The proposed Department of Basic Education to be
headed by a Secretary will be what remains of the former DECS; two of its
structural arms will have been removed—the Bureau of Higher Education and
the Bureau of Technical and Vocational Education which have been absorbed
by the CHED and the TESDA, respectively

 The new philosophy of education under the Ramos administration

The new philosophy of education under the Ramos administration is as

follows:

The closing year of the century find us beset by seemingly intractable

problems of poverty and inequity. Social and economic development has not
kept pace with the wants and hopes of a young and impatient people. At the
same time, all around us in our region of the world, countries are growing
rapidly, propelled largely by the energy of private enterprise. The Philippines
lags behind most of them.

But the problems conceal some real achievements and opportunities that, it
sustained, could lead a society into an era of stability and prosperity. Among
these are an open democratic system that is diffusing economic and political
power to the countryside, a growing private sector that is becoming more
sensitive to the need for faster social development even as it strives for
greater efficiency and a population that has a passion for education. The aim
in EDCOM is to make education a tool for attaining the goals of social justice,
unity, freedom and prosperity.

It is believed that educational should produce a Filipino who respects human

rights, whose personal discipline is guided by spiritual ad moral values, who
can think critically and creatively, who can exercise responsible his rights and
duties as a citizen, whose mind is informed by science and reason, and
whose mind is in formed by knowledge of Philippine history and cultural
heritage.

Refocus education  that it may attain the following :

1. Universal basic education which will make ever citizen functionally

literate and numerate.
2. Formation of those skills and knowledge necessary to make the
individual a productive member of society.
3. Development of high level professional who will search after new
knowledge, instruct the young and provide leadership in the various
fields or disciplines required by a dynamic economy.

To achieve these goals, it is  need to redefine the objectives, makes Philippine
educational institutions and muster the will to support education to the fullest
extent possible.

The EDCOM report reiterates that “basic education is the right of every
citizen,” that the constitution requires the higher budgetary priority to
education, and that quality education be made available to every citizen.

 The underlying educational Philosophy

1. Philosophy of basic education

In the explanatory note to the basic educational bill, basic education would
consist of the 10 year elementary and secondary education with an option to
have 11 years upon the addition of grades 7 in 1998 to be determined by an
ad hoc legislative – executive body to be vested for the purpose.

Basic education is seen as a means to:

o Distribute national resources equitably.

o It is the thinking of Congress that providing basic education for the
great majority of people living in the rural communities

–      will enhance rural development.

–      Household will be more productive

–      People will acquire skills they need to become more self reliant

–      They will have a better access to information

–      They will develop personal discipline and inter-personal skills

–      They will be better able to appreciate their environment and exploit
resources available to them.

–      They will be better able to participate in the various activities in a

democratic society.

However basic education cannot be designed to produce prepared graduates

who can succeed in the mainstream of competitive production in this
globalization era. It can provide only the fundamental skills needed for further
education in College or elsewhere. Therefore the Technical and Vocational
education should be considered.

2. Philosophy of technical-Vocational Education

The Philosophy of Technical and Vocational Education stated on SEC.

2. Declaration of Policy, Republic Act No. 7796, 1994, as follows :

–      I t is hereby declared the policy of the State to provide

relevant,accessible, high quality and efficient technical education and skills
development in support of the development of high quality Filipino middle-
level manpower responsive to and in accordance with Philippine development
goals and priorities.

–      The State shall encourage active participation of various concerned

sectors, particularly private
enterprises, being direct participants in and immediate beneficiaries of a
trained and skilled workforce, in providing technical education and skills
development opportunities.

Whereas the objectives of the Technical and Vocational Education states on

the SEC. 3. Statement of Goals and Objectives. - It is the goal and objective
of this Act to:

 Promote and strengthen the quality of technical education and skills

development programs to attain international competitiveness;
 Focus technical education and skills development on meeting the
changing demands for quality middle-level manpower;
 Encourage critical and creative thinking by disseminating the scientific
and technical knowledge  base of middle-level manpower development
programs;
 Recognize and encourage the complementary roles of public and
private institutions in technical education and skills development and
training systems; and
 ·          Inculcate desirable values through the development of moral
character with emphasis on work ethic, self-discipline, self-reliance and
nationalism.

The  old term “ Technical – Vocational Education” has been given a new
name, which was “ technical Education and Skills development” both term
have the same meaning. The fundamental philosophy that threads through
the policy statement and the stated objectives of TESD pertains to
rationalizing the programs of technical, Vocational and technological Schools
in line with the man power need of Industry. These programs are at the post
high school, or tertiary level but non degree granting, the duration range from
6 months to 3 years, and must be Internationally competitive.

3. Philosophy of Higher Education

The declaration of Policy of Republic Act No. 7722, 1999, Article 3.

Declaration of Policy –  requires The State shall protect, foster and promote
the right of all citizens to affordable quality education at all levels and shall
take appropriate steps to ensure that education shall be accessible to all.

It also specifies :

1. That The State shall likewise ensure and protect academic freedom and
2. shall promote its exercise and observance for

 the continuing learning and research,

 the development of responsible and effective leadership,
 the education of high-level and middle-level professionals, and
 the enrichment of our historical and cultural heritage.

It also mandates , State–supported institutions of higher learning shall gear

their programs to national, regional or local development plans. Finally, all
institutions of higher learning shall exemplify through their physical and natural
surrounding the dignity and beauty of, as well as their pride in the intellectual
and scholarly life

 Affordable Quality

The Concept of affordable quality in all level of education as a right of every

Filipino citizen is a reiteration of earlier statements. Affordability at the Tertiary
level is a mandate which, if earnestly pursued, will require increasing state
subsidies for the programs of higher education institutions. Quality higher
education is costly, and most parents cannot afford the increasingly high cost
of increasingly better quality higher education, unless the economy affords
them much higher income than what they now earn. In other words, there are
two requirements that would make quality higher education affordable to all
Filipinos, namely :

1. Substantial Government subsidy, to include the private schools

which enroll the bigger number of college level students
2. A Prosperous economy the benefits of which are equitably shared
among all.
 Accessibility

Affordable quality higher education, may not necessarily be accessible to all,

only those who are deemed qualified and who meet admission requirements
in the various degree programs may have right of access to higher education.
Moreover, it would not be wise to perpetuate the free market in higher
education, including anyone can enter any course program in the name of
academic freedom.

 Academic Freedom

The mandated assurance and protection of academic freedom has become a

classic tenet of Filipino educational philosophy. Academic freedom was meant
only for state supported institution of higher learning in the 1935 Constitution.
Now, it applies to private colleges and University as well. The responsibility of
ensuring and protecting academic freedom now devolves upon the
commission of higher education (CHED).

 Advancement of Learning and research

This is one of the traditional functions of higher education, part of the classic
trilogy of instruction, research and extension. This function, however, has
been relatively low-key and even neglected in the past, also at present. Part of
the reason is lack of funds for research projects and for the publication of the
results. So, while the frontiers of learning has been pushed aggressively in the
more advanced countries, the Philippines was the convenient dumping ground
for  books is low-priority in higher education. It has been so much easier to
import western books, a habit which started with American colonization when
the public schools all over the united states. For one thing, there were no
Pilipino writers of English textbooks until the Osias readers appeared. Camilo
oasis was among the first Filipino pensionados sent to study in the united
states. Moreover, there were no local publishing houses at the time.

–      Development of responsible leadership.

This goes hand-in-hand with the education of high-level and middle-level

professionals. It is from the country’s pool of professionals that leaders
emerge. Responsible leadership, however, is a function of higher education
and society itself. It has been well said that society gets the leadership it
deserver. A corrupt society gets corrupt leaders because it rubs off its
corruption on even the most idealistic leaders unless they have the courage
and determination to resist the temptation to be corrupted.
The development of responsible leadership is, therefore a tremendous
challenge for the new commission on higher education to bring to closer
reality. It will require nothing less than for them who are involved in it to be
exemplars of responsible leadership.

What is responsible leadership? The law does not give it a definition. In fact,
of the three laws that restructure the educational system into three systems,
the higher education law is the only one without a definition of terms.
Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to have a basis for understanding in the
meaning of responsible leadership, especially in a society where the concept
of responsibility is dominated and dwarfed by self-interest abetted by political
and family patronage.

–      Enrichment of the Filipino historical and cultural heritage.

This is the last mandate of the higher education law. What is to be enriched?
What exactly is the Filipino’s historical heritage? What is his cultural heritage?

In the first place, Philippine historical accounts are full inaccuracies and
distortions. The use of “Filipino” has itself been questioned by discerning
critics who say that the term is in honor of king Philippe II of Spain, and is not
appropriate for a people who abetted such oppression or gave it royal
permissiveness. These critics also think that the people who antedated the
colonizers and were deprived inclusion within the term, Filipino, but were
called indio, instead, cannot be party to the Spanish decision to honor one of
their kings.

There are many things unique about the Filipino culture, his way of speaking,
of relating with other peoples, and of going about what he has to do, whether
in the home, in church, in mosque, in school, in the workplace on in the
playing field, the Filipino is distinguishable. He has developed cultural traits
and institutions which have become parts of his traditions, rituals and lifestyle.
He sings even when he sad. He defers to the pursuing his goals in life. He can
be taken for his word of honor. His ability to adjust, even to adversity, is the
object of praise even from those who have employed Filipino workers abroad.
In the field of arts, he has natural aptitude for appreciating and depicting,
beauty, dance, good music and artistry in visual or verbal form.

Thus, Higher education, as much as the other level of education, has the twin
responsibility of (1) preserving and strengthening the best of the amalgamated
Philippine culture and (2) reforming those that have become derisive and
inimical to Filipino honor and dignity.