IN-PERSON Barcelona. Section B

Abstract

This is an empirical study highlighting the historical legacy of the Baguio Teachers’ Camp (BTC) in Baguio City, an American mountain resort and summer retreat in Northern Philippines. BTC served as the Bureau of Education’s clearing house, contributing significantly to the development of basic education in the country since colonial times. The study featured the beginnings of BTC as a tent community and the physical and cultural transformations it underwent from the institutionalization of the Baguio Teachers’ Vacation Assembly (1908-1913), for Americans and Filipino teachers from all over the country, to the establishment of the Baguio Vacation Normal School (1924-1983). Destroyed in WWII, it served as a military hospital for Japanese soldiers. Its post-war recovery saw BTC’s restoration to its original educational purpose. The closure of the BVNS in 1983 ended the legacy that BTC has left behind since its inauguration on April 6, 1908. The National Education Learning Center was created in 1985 (renamed the National Educators Academy of the Philippines (NEAP) in 1992) to replace the Baguio Vacation Normal Assembly. The campfires, dances, and athletic meets may be gone today, but BTC continues to provide accommodations and a venue for conferences, meetings, seminars, workshops, and social functions of teachers, educational institutions, and government entities. In 2005, the local government legislated BTC’s status as a heritage site, recognizing its historical significance and need for preservation. BTC’s centennial legacy was commemorated on April 6, 2008, renamed the Center for Arts and Culture in Northern Luzon on May 10, 2008, and declared a National Heritage Site on May 12, 2008. Part of the Department of Education’s conservation and restoration efforts was the construction of an amphitheater and a museum within the Camp. Surviving buildings retained the green and white color schemes that have shaped Baguio City’s unique architectural landscape.