After WWII, the economic prospects of the Philippines, then the second-largest economy in Asia, were viewed positively, but by the mid-1970s it had become Asia's developmental puzzle for its failure to sustain economic growth. In contrast during the same period, regional neighbours, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea and Singapore, achieved previously unknown levels of economic growth and were dubbed the "East Asian Tigers". This article analyses the post-war development of the Philippines, focusing on the role that education played, and contrasts it with the East Asian Tigers. It is argued that the Philippines was distinctive in the state's failure to exercise strong central control, especially of the education system, which was neither harnessed to promote economic development nor national unity. The "status quo", which has its origins in a plantation economy, prevailed, and this ensured the country remained an unequal and impoverished democracy. (Contains 1 note and 2 tables.)