Heroes of Education: Maria Montessori

It is no surprise that we begin our Heroes of Education series with a discussion on perhaps the biggest hero of our education system, Maria Montessori. Whether you went to a Montessori school or not, it is certain that you have been impacted by her. Not sure about that? If you’ve ever been to Google.com, Wikipedia.org, or Amazon.com, you’ve been indirectly impacted by one of the following Montessori graduates:

  • Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Founders of Google)

  • Jimmy Wales (Co-founder of Wikipedia)

  • Jeff Bezos (Amazon founder)

In fact, these Tech Titans are such big supporters of the Montessori method that they consider themselves the ‘Montessori Mafia.’

So, let’s get into who Maria Montessori was and why she is a Hero of Education. Maria Montessori was born in 1870 in Italy where she studied Pediatric medicine early in her career. Her research and interest in Psychiatry led to work with children with mental disabilities. In 1906, she was invited to oversee the education of a group of children in a low-income apartment building. This is where she tested and developed her teaching methods and what would eventually become known as the Montessori model of education.

“What the hand does, the mind remembers.”

— Maria Montessori

So what are her Principles? Angeline Lillard summarized the principles in Montessori: The Science Behind the Genius.

  1. Movement and cognition are closely entwined, and movement can enhance thinking and learning.

  2. Learning and well-being are improved when people have a sense of control over their lives.

  3. The ability to direct one’s attention in a sustained and concentrated way fosters an array of positive developments and is itself trainable.

  4. People learn better when they are interested in what they are learning.

  5. Tying extrinsic rewards to an activity, such as money for reading or high grades for tests, negatively impacts motivation to engage in that activity when the reward is withdrawn.

  6. Collaborative arrangements can be very conducive to learning.

  7. Learning situated in meaningful contexts is often deeper and richer than learning in abstract contexts.

  8. Particular forms of adult interaction associated with more optimal child outcomes.

  9. Order in the environment is beneficial to children.

The book by Lillard does a great job of going in depth into each of these principles. She also details the research behind each of these. The research that Maria Montessori conducted has now been backed up by research from Universities and Educational Institutes around the world. We’ve detailed some of them here.

At 360 Academy, we are inspired by the timeless work of Maria Montessori and how her principles of early childhood education have stood the test of time. We have incorporated many of these learnings into the 360 way, including mixed-age classrooms, peer-to-peer learning, mobility in the classroom, studio cleanup time at the end of each day. Our principles incorporate each of these items listed above.

According to the North America Montessori Teacher’s Association (NAMTA), there are over 4,500 Montessori schools in the US alone, and over 20,000 worldwide. Maria Montessori’s legacy and lasting impact on children is immense and cannot be fully appreciated! She is a true Hero of Education.

“Never help a child with a task at which he feels he can succeed”

— Maria Montessori

 
 
Varun BhatiaMontessori, Columbus