The Quiet Influence of Montessori Schooling

Myken Carew
University of Lethbridge
Education 4311
Kas Mazurek
June 17, 2019
 Question: In the final weeks of class we were treated to classmates’ excellent
presentations on international issues. Which international issue presented by fellow
students made the greatest impact on you? (Trend/Issue/Problem/Topic)

After hearing all of the presentations I found myself continuously coming back to the

trend of Montessori schools, and their prevalence on a global basis. Having not fully understood

their origin or their mission prior to the presentation, I found them to be quite interesting. Their

view as a teacher as strictly a facilitator is intriguing, opposed to typical Canadian ideals

regarding teacher expectations. This really stood out to me, as this past year I became involved

with an organization called CISV, where I brought four - 14 year olds to Madrid for a month.

There I was in charge of a planning group for activities, in which I wasn’t actually able provide

options to the youth, instead they were intended to operate out of their own interests in

planning them. At that point I had to leave any form teaching expectations to the side and

solely become a facilitator, amongst the planning groups.

Introduction

Throughout my essay I will first address the goals of Montessori schools, their contrast

to typical public Canadian schools, and how they have met these goals through their complex

structure. I will continue by highlighting the international perspectives of Montessori school’s

over time, and how perspectives of them are constantly are changing. Following this topic, I will

address some of the key benefits and notable disadvantages of Montessori schooling, that have

been brought out. I will then concentrate on the impact Montessori schools made on me, and

also make a connection to my personal experience with the same style of educating. To
conclude the essay, I will outline why I personally feel as though Montessori schools are of

value in the school system, and how their teaching style will affect my own practice.

Goals & Structure of Montessori Schools

Montessori schools began with Physician Maria Montessori in Rome 1907, with the

intent to let kids learn naturally. She intended for the classrooms to allow children to learn on

their own level and pace, be uninterrupted in their study, and be hands on engaging all of their

senses. This goal succeeded immensely through the schools structuring, having smaller

materials for students to work with, allowing students to remain on one task until they feel

success, and having access to a variety of materials in and outside of the classroom. All of the

implementations in the school built on the student’s autonomy in their own learning, while also

increasing their sense of responsibility. Not only are the students autonomous, teachers are

seen as facilitators of a child’s learning, not as the sole means to teach the child, and are

required not to assign grades to a child’s learning.

These schools are in stark contrast to typical public Canadian schools, that are

curriculum and grade based with instructional lessons guided by a teacher. However, I realized

that even with the great differences between the teaching methods, that Canadian schools still

tend to adopt some of the Montessori approaches. For example, in my grade three class during

the bridges unit, we took all of the desks out of the classroom and each student was able to

build their own bridge to add to a cardboard city that was entirely student constructed. In doing

this our teacher provided us with hands on experience, completely uninterrupted work, and the

ability for us all to work at our own pace until we felt we were successful. So even though I
wasn’t in a Montessori school specifically, I was still exposed to some of their more prevalent

goals, and structured classroom ideals.

International Perspectives of Montessori Schools

There is an ever changing perspective on Montessori schools since the time the began,

which was addressed in their presentation. At the time that Montessori schools first opened,

students were not seeming to succeed in regular based classrooms, and there wasn’t a specific

school where students with learning disabilities were also able to attend. Montessori schools

were thus created with the intent to combat these two prevalent issues at the time. After the

publication of the “Montessori Method” the schools took off, developing all over Western

Europe, as part of the Geneva peace talk, in Italy, in India due to a hostage situation, and

advancing to schools in the United States (USA). Upon their initial creation the schools became

very notable, and programs began to arise to be able to teach the method as it was intended.

There was a shift during the World Wars to more of an industrial based and academic

mindset, in which at this time Montessori schools began to suffer in the USA. The once

government supported Montessori schools in Italy were also being removed with the rise of

Hitler, as Maria Montessori refused to support fascism. Along with many more closing world

wide, as a result of the wars. Although, Montessori schools saw a large down turn during the

wars, they began to rise again, only to a lesser extent in comparison to their prior history. The

schools now are more implemented based on the demand for them within the community, and

people’s personal preference with regards to the means of their child’s education. In Canada

for instance, although there are some public schools that identify as Montessori, the majority

are private.
Benefits & Disadvantages of Montessori Schooling

There are many recognized benefits of Montessori schooling that have been identified

through class discussion. One benefit that was stressed, was that the schools are capable of

developing practical skills that may not otherwise be in the curriculum, but yet are important to

one’s overall development. This specifically was depicted through a video of a little girl using a

pretend screw driver, screw, and wood practicing putting the screw in. As a child, I also had a

toy construction worker set that had tools and other tactical items to play with. From my own

personal experience, I feel as though this is beyond beneficial, as I have seen my own friends

completely incompetent at being able to put something together using tools. I never truly had

thought about the connection between my capability to use tools, and my childhood play set as

the reason to why I am able to proficiently use them, opposed to my friends.

One of the other largest identified benefits, is the development of the student’s

autonomy. As within the program students learn to set goals, become responsible for their own

learning, and be accountable for themselves. This is based on the fact that the teacher’s sole

purpose is to facilitate the class, not to teach to a specific testing standard. The presenters

noted that this concept may be contended with some skepticism, but that despite not teaching

to a specific curriculum, students are still able to demonstrate success with the content.

Montessori schools are also met with some key criticisms, namely that they are only

capable providing their intended freedom within defined limits. Many view this as a

manipulation of the students and their innate curiosity. The presenters identified that although

teachers are intended as facilitators, they are to also check in on student’s work. If the student

is behind they may “trick” them into doing something, such as reading in order to build a
model. Some also criticise that if a student were to switch from a Montessori based school, to a

public school that they would be behind in the curriculum for the specific grade due to learning

at their own pace, and not having specific guidelines to follow.

The Impact of Montessori Schools on Me and My Experiences

Having not been fully aware of the Montessori schooling practices prior to the

presentation, I was very intrigued by what they are capable of. It made me rethink all of the

classrooms I have been a part of throughout my education, and how each of them displayed

connections to Montessori school practices. Starting from the way they were set up, to the

different in class activities, and how they were conducted. What really stuck out to me was

their means of playing into children’s innate curiosity, while still being able to meet intended

outcomes. As I know in my own life the greatest amount of learning for me came from being

able to explore on my own through different classroom activities. For example, going back to

my grade three bridge building, I was able to experience what it meant to create a free standing

object, and how bridges are supported, not from a lecture but from physically building the

bridge.

It also impacted me in that it made me look at my life right at this moment, being part of

an organization that’s values are along the same lines as Montessori schools. The CISV

organization began in the 1940’s and was intended to create intercultural understanding and

friendship amongst the youth, towards a more just and peaceful world. In order to accomplish

this the organization, set in place general outcomes for the camps, none of which are graded,

but the participants are intended to meet them. This is accomplished through the participant’s
interaction with the activities, planning their own activities that fit what they are interested in,

and debriefing them and their intentions. CISV parallels Montessori schools in that the

participants are able to take part in what they are interested in, they have total autonomy over

the activities, goals are still being met, the activities are hands on, and are capable of activating

all of the senses.

How Montessori Schools Will Affect My Own Practice

With a major in physical education, the sky’s the limit when it comes to incorporating

new and innovative activities. Montessori school goals will affect my teaching practice in that, I

will fully analyze each activity before presenting it to insure students will have enough time to

be engaged, that they will be able to have uninterrupted play time, and are provided with

hands on interaction in a variety of locations. Ideally students would also be able to set goals,

and feel both a sense of responsibility and autonomy in their learning, which I intend to foster

through providing options.

Although, I did not feel as though I knew a great amount about Montessori schools at

the beginning of the presentation. After thinking about it for awhile, I came to realize how

much influence the practice already has within the typical public school system in Canada. With

that said, I believe - especially for physical education - implementing more Montessori practices

would be beneficial. Specifically, physical education hinders on the ability to keep students

engaged in learning fundamental skills, so that they are inclined to participate for life. By

implementing more Montessori style lessons, it may provide a greater opportunity to reach

students who may otherwise not become engaged. For example, this could be done through

incorporating less competitive activities while offering more cooperative ones.

Through offering cooperative activities in which students are capable of working together, not

entirely based upon an end result, allows students more autonomy in deciding their level of

engagement. Overall, I feel as though Montessori schools have the ability to be adapted to

meet needs of students on a more individualized basis that has proven to be beneficial over the

years. Due to this, I will plan to incorporate some of its elements as a whole class, and more

specified components for those students who may responded better to this style of learning.