Abstract/Notes: This dissertation describes an inquiry into Montessori-based white teachers' practices of disrupting white identity formation in the classroom through their antiracist stance. The findings within ultimately demonstrate the necessity for white teachers to grow in their understanding and practice of antiracism. Such growth is meaningful because of the role schools play in systematic white supremacy and racism. Together, the evidence and analysis add to the conversation of antiracist work and produce suggestions for deepening and expanding the potential for such growth in white teachers. In this qualitative study, evidence was collected through focus groups and phenomenological interviews with self-described antiracist white teachers who worked in schools with a student population with white students as the majority subgroup, with other subgroups providing less than 20% of the population. Using qualitative inquiry, the data provide insight into how teachers intentionally create their classroom design and how they make changes countering the hegemony through which traditional educational environments are constructed. Participant perspectives are at the heart of this study. Participants shared their hope to apply a Montessori tenet of providing experiences for the child on the subconscious and the conscious level. The teachers expressed how they have examined themselves and examined their Montessori training to uncover ways they can make changes toward being less Anglo-European centered. The data collected and conversations shared are relatable even to teachers outside of Montessori and demonstrate to white teachers with a desire to be committed to antiracism they are not alone and there are ways to make even subtle changes in their classrooms impacting the children they guide.

Language: English

Published: San Francisco, California, 2023

Abstract/Notes: The purpose of this self-study was to examine the effects of concentrated interaction with anti-bias/anti-racist media on a Montessori guide’s practice. It was conducted over a total of six weeks. The intervention included a pre- and post- survey of understanding, nightly media interactions, daily reflection journaling, daily tallies of anti-bias/anti-racist thoughts during the school day, and a daily confidence scale to measure the participant’s confidence to integrate anti-bias/anti-racist concepts into her teaching practice. The study was completed at a private Montessori school in a medium-sized midwestern town, with an early childhood classroom of fifteen three- to five-year-old students of diverse backgrounds. The findings indicate a slight increase in confidence and efficacy for the participant in discussing anti-bias/anti-racist concepts with students, families and colleagues. The findings also point to the strong need for working with other educators and Montessorians for further integrating anti-bias/anti-racist concepts into classroom practice.

Language: English

Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2020

Abstract/Notes: Montessori teachers often enter the teaching field with a strong sense of a Montessori social identity developed through their transformational teacher education experience (AMI, 2018a; Malm, 2004), uniting them around a shared knowledge and belief system (Fairclough, 1992, 2003). While a social identity can connect individuals and provide security and purpose, it can also limit beliefs and behaviors by producing a prescribed way of being (Foucault, 2010). Research (e.g., Sumison, 2002) has shown that when teachers are confronted with instances that challenge their teacher identity and social practice (Fairclough, 1992), they may experience dilemmas and uncertainty (Cuban, 1992; Lampert, 1985) that call their self and social identification as a teacher into question. This post-intentional phenomenological study is an attempt to better understand what is produced and provoked (Vagle, 2018) when Montessori teachers engage in anti-bias and anti-racist (ABAR) teacher self-reflection, a critical first step to implementing antiracist teaching practices in an early childhood classroom (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). Specifically, I explored what is produced and provoked in the Montessori self and social identity as teachers consider ways of being a teacher that possibly differ with the Montessori teacher way of being. Six Montessori early childhood teachers participated in three workshops on ABAR self-reflection which I developed and facilitated over the course of three and a half months. Participant experiences, including my own, and additional phenomenological material (e.g., Montessori's writing, current initiatives in the Montessori social world) offered important insight into the life and evolution of the phenomenon. To guide analysis, I used Jackson and Mazzei's (2012) thinking with theory and Deleuze and Guattari's (1987) notion of the rhizome to conceptualize the life and growth of the phenomenon. Findings revealed elements of the Montessori social identity that provide meaning and purpose for teachers working towards dismantling oppression as well as limitations in the form of a regime of truth (Foucault, 1977/2010) that can challenge the development of a dialogic identity. Implications suggest recommendations for Montessori teacher education programs including strategies of incorporating ABAR reflective practices into Montessori teacher development, reevaluating the words and position of an adored leader for relevance as society evolves, and encouraging social activism by disrupting the notion of objectivity and neutrality in teaching.

Language: English

Published: Minneapolis, Minnesota, 2018

Abstract/Notes: The research consisted of a qualitative case study of three urban public Montessori schools with a population of 51% or more of students of color and a commitment of 2 years or more of CRP-ABAR within a Montessori setting. The theoretical framework used for the study was the critical race theory, which is the conceptual foundation for examining inequities in public education. This research dissertation had a focus on gaining an insight into the perceptions of administrators, teachers, and parents toward CRP-ABAR in Montessori schools by examining the practices in three public Montessori schools. The possible connections to student outcomes, such as behavioral referrals, suspension rates, and academic achievement for students of color were explored to determine if any connections exist between CRP-ABAR and outcomes for students of color within a public Montessori setting. Three major themes emerged of the perceptions of administrators, teachers, and parents about the impact of the CRP-ABAR in a Montessori setting. The CRP-ABAR could be delivered through a curriculum-oriented approach or a systemic-oriented approach and the CRP-ABAR connects to Montessori through peace-global education and the prepared teacher-environment. The CRP-ABAR practices impact students of color primarily through social emotional growth with limited academic outcomes. Even with an intentional focus and diversity training, many non-Black teachers’ perceptions of students of color included deficit theory thinking. Some parents believed racism is being dismantled through the curriculum and celebrations of diversity. Other parents identified some teachers-staff with underpinning instances of biases and insensitivity.

Language: English

Published: Boca Raton, Florida, 2020

Abstract/Notes: While many BIPOC Montessori educators engage in anti-racist and culturally responsive teaching, Montessori education remains predominantly race-evasive. As a philosophy, it is rooted in colorblind perspectives in its focus on "all children" and lack of explicit centering of BIPOC students’ experiences. Teaching must account for race and racial lived realities in order to better support BIPOC students’ ways of knowing in culturally relevant and sustaining ways. This study seeks to center the voices of BIPOC Montessori educators and disrupt the pattern of Montessori research conducted without a critical racial lens. Framed by Critical Race Theory, this study focuses on the strengths, assets, and anti-racist teaching practices that one BIPOC educator brings to her classroom. I use critical ethnographic methods to better understand how a BIPOC Montessori teacher at a public charter Montessori school interprets and enacts the Montessori method to support BIPOC students. I consider how her racial identity informs her practices, and the structural barriers she faces at her school when enacting anti-racist and strength-based approaches. The guiding research questions of this study are: How does a Black Montessori teacher interpret the Montessori philosophy to more relevantly support her BIPOC students? How does she practice the Montessori method through culturally relevant and sustaining practices? What are the structural barriers that continue to challenge her as a Black educator doing her work? My analysis suggests that the teacher maintains her classroom space as a tangible and intangible cultural space that reflects and maintains her students' identities; that her own identity as a Black woman deeply contribute to the school's work around anti-racism and culturally responsive pedagogy; and that there are external barriers that both the teacher and the school face, that prevent them both from fully achieving culturally responsive teaching practices. At the core of the study, I seek to understand the possibilities and challenges of Montessori education from the perspective of BIPOC Montessori educators, and how we could learn from them to better support BIPOC students. I hope to begin a path toward more counter-stories in the Montessori community to specifically support BIPOC Montessori educators and understand the structural barriers they face to anti-racist teaching in Montessori programs in the United States.

Language: English

Published: College Park, Maryland, 2023

Language: English

Published: New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 2023

ISBN: 978-0-19-026409-3

Series: Oxford Research Encyclopedias

Abstract/Notes: This self-study was designed to assess the effects of engagement with antiracist media on the work of a Montessori educator in the classroom. Conducted over eight weeks, the study used nightly readings, daily reflections, a tally of daily antiracist thoughts, and a scale of one through five measuring the participant’s optimism regarding the integration of antiracist pedagogy with Montessori philosophy and practice. The study was performed at a racially and economically diverse private Montessori school in a Midwestern metropolitan area in a class of twenty children ranging from 2.7 to 5 years old. The results indicated that, although the intervention had no negative effect, it was not optimal for the participant’s learning style. While the participant gained confidence in communicating antiracist concepts and teaching methods, further study investigating the effects of working in a community of educators engaged in antiracist integration into Montessori practice is recommended.

Language: English

Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2017

Abstract/Notes: [...]when we talk about systemic oppression, it is with the understanding that it is a part of our infant country's identity, the very bedrock from which it was built, on land we viciously stole from Native Americans. Ashley Causey-Golden, owner of Afrocentric Montessori, a company that sells handmade materials and curriculum for Black children, says that before we can begin this work, we have to recognize the history of education in the United States: When we talk about decolonization, we have to acknowledge the origins of the education system within the United States. Education has been a tool that has been weaponized to limit access to non-white children and families, strip the language and cultural identity from Indigenous children, and, through the use of textbooks and learning materials, provide teachers and students with a Eurocentric view of world history. Conversely, the ways in which the American educational system has operated as a system of cultural deprivation and dominant white cultural assimilation is further problematic, and a key structural component of colonialism. (personal communications, 7/10/20,10/19/20) Once we identify the problem, it is time to search for solutions. When we approach the child with our personal biases in check, allow for expansive thinking and creation with the help of the prepared environment, we can facilitate children's journey of finding their cosmic task and the ideas and subjects that uniquely inspire them.

Language: English

ISSN: 1054-0040

Abstract/Notes: Jewell approaches the topic through an intersectional lens, using gender-neutral terms to ensure that each person reading the book feels represented. Rather, the work is a lifelong process that perpetually offers opportunities to learn, grow, make mistakes, and expand our understanding of the bias, predispositions, and prejudice inherent in our culture. [...]as I mentioned before, this book is just one step in the lifelong j ourney of antiracism on an individual level and as a society.

Language: English

ISSN: 1054-0040

Abstract/Notes: This action research project was completed to test the effects of reading and discussing multicultural children’s literature on young children’s positive self-concept and appreciation of human differences. The setting was a Montessori primary (preK-K) classroom of 18 children, ages two years 10 months to five years 10 months. Ten children were White, four were biracial, three were Asian American, and one was Latin American. Data was collected using a tally sheet, picture test, self-concept test, discussion log, and self-assessment journal. Readings took place each day and books centered on topics such as individuality, race, skin color, diversity, inclusion, and activism. The results indicated that children did show a decrease in negative attitudes towards human differences and an increase in positive attitudes towards human differences throughout the intervention. The action plan implications conclude that the study could be conducted with a narrower focus and within an intersectional framework.

Language: English

Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2019