Montessori

I have never heard of Montessori Methods until this past month. Apparently it is a form of education used quite a lot in Europe and has been in North America since 1912.

The method was designed by Maria Montessori, a doctor from Italy. Through a lot of research and observation Montessori wrote a book to explain her ideologies, philosophy and practices. Her popularity rose and fell during war times, but Europe was quite committed to the this particular style of teaching. North America rekindled its interest sometime in the 50's.

Montessori schools use methods that allow child autonomy in learning through personal goals and self guidance. Instead of children being passive learners in a teacher-centered environment, they are encouraged to be active participants. The environment is enriched by materials such as manipulatives, textured letters, geometric games and craft items for the child to develop their own understanding of the subjects presented to them through multiple-sensory methods. Children are encouraged to become independent learners while being interested in the topics chosen, for example choosing their own books to read or papers to write. Montessori also puts a lot of importance on community building and having the family involved in the child's education.

When I first encountered this idea I thought it sounded too much like a free-for-all, which is also what a lot of critics have thought too. I thought children would not be motivated to work. I had the opportunity to visit a grades 3, 4, 5 Montessori classroom last week and find myself being that much more intrigued by their methods. There are limits enforced by the teacher instead of the children being able to just go where ever and when ever they please. As I observed I saw that the teachers do have a very important role in the system, however this classroom was not a true Montessori classroom yet as the teachers were still learning themselves how to conduct it properly. They admitted that it was difficult to give autonomy. The classroom is set up in specific subject centers. For each class period the students, generally, would set goals for a subject they felt they needed to work a little extra on and then could go on to additional projects once they had fulfilled their goals. There was a variety of high quality, wooden manipulatives for the math center, globes and maps and books for the social studies center, experiment devices in the science center, and a large variety of reading in the language arts center. There was a small section for French as well. Students evaluated their progress regularly on their own and had reading conferences with their teacher. When I visited the teachers did a mini lesson on grammar which later would allow the students to apply the skills in their own writing. The teachers at this school felt that more teacher guidance was needed in this area as the children seemed weakest in their writing abilities. There was a large focus on child interest. For example students could choose a topic of their own interest to write on so long as it was somehow related to the unit theme. The children seemed quite motivated and disciplined despite the fact that they were not continuously being instructed by the teachers. Teachers are trained to guide child learning in a different fashion so that the children become their own problem solver.

I would like to observe a class like this again but preferably one that has been up and running for longer with more experienced teachers. I agree with the enriched environment and the use of multiple-sensory or multiple intelligence focused activities. I like the idea of children being their own problem solvers and successful.

Montessori, Maria, and June Goodrich. Maria Montessori with an introduction by June Goodrich. 1912. N.p.: Barnes & Nobles Publishing, 2003. 9-18. Web. Google Scholar. 14 Oct. 2009 .