The Thomasites were a group of 600 American teachers who traveled from the United States to the newly occupied territory of the Philippines on the
U.S. Army Transport ''Thomas''.
The group included 346 men and 180 women, hailing from 43 different states and 193 colleges, universities, and normal schools.
The term 'Thomasites' has since expanded to include any teacher who arrived in the first few years of the
American colonial period of the Philippines
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
.
''Thomas'' carried nearly 500 Thomasites, who arrived in Manila in August 1901. They represented 192 institutions, including Harvard (19), Yale (15), Cornell (13), University of Chicago (8), University of Michigan (24), University of California (25), Albion College (1), Alma College (2), Kalamazoo College (1), the Michigan State Normal School at Ypsilanti (now Eastern Michigan University) (6), and Olivet College (3).
Foundation, purpose and etymology
The Thomasites arrived in the Philippines on August 21, 1901, to establish a new
public school system, to teach
basic education
According to the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED), basic education comprises the two stages primary education and lower secondary education.
Universal basic education
Basic education featured heavily in the 1997 ISCED ...
, and to train
Filipino teachers, with
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
as the
medium of instruction
A medium of instruction (plural: media of instruction, or mediums of instruction) is a language used in teaching. It may or may not be the official language of the country or territory. If the first language of students is different from the offic ...
.
[ Karnow, Stanley. '' In Our Image: America's Empire in the Philippines'', Ballantine Books, Random House, Inc., March 3, 1990, 536 pages, ]["The Thomasites:An Army Like No Other", News.Ops.gov.ph October 12, 2003](_blank)
/ref>[ ttp://pinoykasi.homestead.com/files/2001articles/08032001_Thomasite.htm Tan, Michael L. "The Thomasite Experiment", Homestead.com, September 03, 2001/ref>][ ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070212014457/http://www.quezonhigh.ca/qphs100us/100years/history.html "Quezon National High School: A Century Hence" from Quezon National High School Website(archived fro]
the original
on February 12, 2007).
/ref>[ ttp://www.emanila.com/pilipino/various/ggr_thomasites.htm Rivera, Guillermo Gómez. "The Thomasites Before and After" (eManila:05 August 2001), date retrieved: 27 May 2007/ref> Adeline Knapp, Thomasite and author of ''The Story of the Philippines'', said:]
Philippines had enjoyed a public school system since 1863, when a Spanish decree first introduced public elementary education in the Philippines. The Thomasites, however, expanded and improved the public school system and switched to English as the medium of instruction.
The name ''Thomasite'' was derived from the United States Army Transport ''Thomas'' which brought the educators to the shores of Manila Bay. Although two groups of new American graduates arrived in the Philippines before ''Thomas'', the name ''Thomasite'' became the designation of all pioneer American teachers simply because ''Thomas'' had the largest contingent. Later batches of American teachers were also dubbed Thomasites.
The Thomasites—365 males and 165 females—left Pier 12 of San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
on July 23, 1901, to sail via the Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...
to South East Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
. The U.S. government spent about $105,000 for the expedition (). More American teachers followed the Thomasites in 1902, making a total of about 1,074 stationed in the Philippines.
At the time, the Thomasites were offered $125 a month (), but once in the Philippines salaries were often delayed and were usually paid in devalued Mexican
Mexican may refer to:
Mexico and its culture
*Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America
** People
*** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants
*** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
peso
The peso is the monetary unit of several countries in the Americas, and the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word translates to "weight". In most countries the peso uses the same sign, "$", as many currencies named " doll ...
s.
Although the Thomasites were the largest group of pioneers with the purpose of educating the Filipinos, they were not the first to be deployed by Washington, D.C. A few weeks before the arrival of ''Thomas'', U.S. Army soldiers had already begun teaching Filipinos the English language, thus in effect laying the foundation of the Philippine public school system. The U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
opened the Philippines' first public school in Corregidor Island
Corregidor ( tl, Pulo ng Corregidor, ) is an island located at the entrance of Manila Bay in the southwestern part of Luzon in the Philippines, and is considered part of the Province of Cavite. Due to this location, Corregidor has historically b ...
, after Admiral George Dewey
George Dewey (December 26, 1837January 16, 1917) was Admiral of the Navy, the only person in United States history to have attained that rank. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish–American War, with ...
vanquished the Spanish Pacific fleet in Manila Bay
Manila Bay ( fil, Look ng Maynila) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila (on Luzon), in the Philippines. Strategically located around the Manila, capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between t ...
on May 1, 1898. Also, a few weeks before the arrival of ''Thomas'', another group composed of 48 American teachers also arrived in the Philippines, aboard the '' USAT Sheridan''.
After President William McKinley
William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in t ...
's appointment of William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...
as the head of a commission that would be responsible for continuing the educational work started by the U.S. Army, the Taft Commission
The Taft Commission, also known as the Second Philippine Commission (Filipino language, Filipino: ''Ikalawang Komisyon ng Pilipinas''), was established by United States President William McKinley on March 16, 1900, following the recommendations ...
passed Education Act No. 34 on January 21, 1901, which established the Department of Public Instruction. The latter was then given the task of establishing a public school system throughout the Philippines. The Taft Commission also authorized the further deployment of 1,000 more educators from the U.S. to the Philippines.
Assignments
After being quarantine
A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...
d for two days after their arrival on August 21, 1901, the Thomasites were finally able to disembark from the ''Thomas''. They traveled from the customs house near the Anda Circle then stayed at the walled city Intramuros
Intramuros (Latin for "inside the walls") is the historic walled area within the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It is administered by the Intramuros Administration with the help of the city government of Manila.
Present-day ...
, Manila
Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...
before being given initial provincial assignments which included