Abstract/Notes: The purpose of this dissertation will be to survey and analyze American writings on Maria Montessori and her educational system, in order to show how the idea of Montessori education has interacted with some changing American ideas and social forces. These changes in social and intellectual currents can be likened to a shift from centrifugal to centripetal force; or to the expansion and then the contraction of a universe. The central metaphor is the same. It is applicable to, and illustrative of, much about the changing social and educational scene in America. The writings on Montessori, examined against this framework, should provide a new view on certain changes in American educational thinking.

Language: English

Published: Kent, Ohio, 1973

Language: English

ISSN: 1071-6246

Language: English

DOI: 10.1080/00131911.2021.1887559

ISSN: 0013-1911

Language: English

DOI: 10.1080/00497878.2020.1870461

ISSN: 0049-7878

Language: English

DOI: 10.1080/0046760X.2021.1998655

ISSN: 0046-760X, 1464-5130

Abstract/Notes: This book traces the early history of the Montessori movement in the United States through the lives and careers of four key American women: Anne George, Margaret Naumburg, Helen Parkhurst, and Adelia Pyle. Caught up in the Montessori craze sweeping the United States in the Progressive era, each played a significant role in the initial transference of Montessori education to America and its implementation from 1910 to 1920. Despite the continuing international recognition of Maria Montessori and the presence of Montessori schools world-wide, Montessori receives only cursory mention in the history of education, especially by recognized historians in the field and in courses in professional education and teacher preparation. The authors, in seeking to fill this historical void, integrate institutional history with analysis of the interplay and tensions between these four women to tell this educational story in an interesting—and often dramatic—way.

Language: English

Published: Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020

ISBN: 978-3-030-54834-6

Series: Historical Studies in Education

Language: English

Abstract/Notes: Anne E. George, the first American trained as a directress by Montessori in 1910, is significant as the paramount Montessori educator in the United States from 1910 to 1915. George, who established the first American Montessori school in Tarrytown, New York in 1911, was also the English-language translator of Montessori’s book, The Montessori Method (1912). Alexander Graham Bell and his wife, Mabel, intent on promoting Montessori education, established the national Montessori Educational Association, with George as its Director of Research. George was also the headmistress of the Montessori schools supported by the Bells in Washington, DC. In addition, George was Montessori’s aide and translator during her extensive lecture tour in 1913. Montessori’s relationship with George deteriorated. Montessori revoked Anne George’s credentials as a Montessori directress in 1915. The ever-loyal George, who strived to replicate the Montessori Method in American private schools, and, once, the premier American Montessori educator, was discredited by her mentor. After her marriage in 1919, George never returned to the field of education.

Language: English

Published: Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020

ISBN: 978-3-030-54835-3

Series: Historical Studies in Education

Language: English

Published: New York, New York: Plume, 1997

Edition: Rev. and updated ed

ISBN: 0-452-27796-5

Abstract/Notes: Maria Montessori’s works discussed in this chapter are, Education for a New World (1946), To Educate the Human Potential (1948), and The Formation of Man (1955). Like many of her texts, these publications are based on transcriptions of lectures held in various settings including teacher training courses. These three books were written during and after the tragic disruptions caused by WWII and were published first in India. They are among Montessori's last texts in which she highlights cosmic education and expresses her conviction of the need for a global reconstruction that must necessarily begin with childhood.

Language: English

Published: New York, New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2023

ISBN: 978-1-350-27561-4 978-1-350-27560-7 978-1-350-27562-1

Series: Bloomsbury Handbooks