Language: English

Abstract/Notes: Lecture delivered at the Institute of Medical Psychology, London, 1936.

Language: English

ISSN: 0519-0959

Language: English

Language: English

Abstract/Notes: This action research was conducted in an early childhood Montessori Primary classroom using intentional teaching practices with core curriculum materials to engage students in creative thinking. In the form of questions or suggestions, an open-ended inquiry was given to the ten participants, aged three to six years old, as they worked with Montessori materials in academic areas, including science, math, and language. The research utilized mixed methods of collection in the forms of quantitative and qualitative data and demonstrated successful intervention with a steady increase in work times of the students. A longitudinal study would contribute to this theory and provide further information regarding the increase of student understanding through creative thinking endeavors. This study provided evidence that intentional teaching practices can engage children in creative thinking, problem-solving, and collaborative learning while extending working times with materials, which contribute to a deeper level of comprehension of the direct curricular aims.

Language: English

Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2021

Abstract/Notes: The purpose of this study was to see how using High-Leverage Practices with a novice teacher would affect her classroom management skills in a lower elementary, Montessori classroom. Teaching in a lower elementary, Montessori classroom is always difficult as it is a mixed-age environment of first through third grade students. It is also difficult when the teacher is new to the field of teaching. Since many teachers come to teaching from other careers, learning how to effectively manage their classrooms is an on-going struggle. This study focuses on what happens when a master teacher, with more than 20 years of experience, works with a novice teacher who has taught for less than 3 years. The researcher used High-Leverage Practices to model teaching practices in the novice teacher’s classroom based on observed areas for growth. Improvements were seen in the areas selected by the novice teacher, such as giving individual and group lessons, redirecting students who are not engaged, and lesson preparation. Research should continue in this area as there is little history of this practice in Montessori teacher education. Research should also continue to see if the effects of the interventions would be more significant over a longer period of time.

Language: English

Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2020

Language: English

ISSN: 1054-0040

Abstract/Notes: The effectiveness and challenges of teacher collaboration as a tool to drive teaching outcomes has been observed in various educational settings. This research project was designed to answer the question, “Would collaboratively creating a Useful Words Handbook for teachers increase the number of language teaching opportunities that could occur during the day?” This action research project, conducted in a Montessori preschool setting, focused on two classroom teachers who educate children between the ages of two and three. Three intervals were identified for data collection. Four weeks of collaboration on the Useful Words Handbook began after two weeks of baseline data collection, during which the frequency of language teaching opportunities were recorded. A weekly topic was presented to the teachers, who provided feedback the following week, in addition to ideas for improving the topic for the handbook. Collaboration involved creating an introduction and four topics about teaching useful phrases to early language learners. The data showed a positive correlation between collaboration and an increase in the number of teaching language opportunities that occur during the day. The data also show that while it is possible to make short-term changes in the classroom through collaboration, changing teacher beliefs about teaching language and collaboration remain a challenge that is characteristic of the teacher collaboration process. Investigating strategies to increase awareness about teaching language should continue.

Language: English

Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2013

Abstract/Notes: One of the pre-school education programs widely implemented in our country is the Montessori education approach developed by Montessori. The impact of the Montessori approach, which places a lot of emphasis on the prepared environment, the materials that make up this environment, and the prepared adult instructor, on the classroom management practices of instructors, cannot be ignored. In order to determine the applications applied to classroom management by Montessori instructors working in early childhood classes where Montessori education approach is applied in public and private preschool education institutions in Turkey, this research was created in a qualitative research pattern by adopting a phenomenological approach. In educational settings, the phenomenological approach is used to make concrete the participants ' knowledge, perception, experience and feelings about the identified phenomenon. The phenomenon covered in this study is the classroom management practices of Montessori instructors who are working at the early childhood level within preschool education institutions in our country. The Working Group consists of 13 preschool teachers and master instructors who are Montessori instructors. The "criteria sampling" method was used to determine the Working Group. It is taken as criteria by the researcher that the instructors are employed in the kindergarten or kindergarten level of 3-6 years of early childhood, have received Montessori instructor training from a formal educational institution and have completed one-year internship periods and have earned the right to receive their certificates. All of the data were collected in the 2019-2020 school year. Personal data form and structured interview and follow-up interview were used as data collection tools. Interviews with participants were conducted individually and face-to-face. The data obtained; it is collected under four dimensions in the form of the regulation of the physical environment, communication and behavior management, time management, and plan and program studies. According to the results of the research, Montessori instructors ' applications for these four dimensions have similarities and differences with the studies that have been done, and they relate these practices to the three basic elements of classroom management: "prepared environment", "prepared adult" and "learning materials". The findings were discussed within the framework of the studies in the field. / Ülkemizde yaygın olarak uygulanan okul öncesi eğitim programlarından biri de Montessori tarafından geliştirilmiş olan Montessori yaklaşımıdır. Hazırlanmış çevreye, bu çevreyi oluşturan materyallere ve hazırlanmış yetişkin olarak adlandırılan eğitmene çokça vurgu yapılan Montessori yaklaşımının eğitmenlerin sınıf yönetimi uygulamalarına etkisi göz ardı edilemez. Bu araştırma Türkiye'de resmi ve özel okul öncesi eğitim kurumlarındaki Montessori eğitim yaklaşımının uygulandığı erken çocukluk sınıflarında görev yapmakta olan Montessori eğitmenlerinin sınıf yönetimine ilişkin başvurdukları uygulamaların ve bu uygulamaları sınıf yönetimiyle nasıl ilişkilendirdiklerinin tespit edilmesi amacıyla, fenomenolojik yaklaşım benimsenerek nitel araştırma deseninde oluşturulmuştur. Eğitim ortamlarında fenomenolojik yaklaşım, katılımcıların belirlenen fenomen hakkındaki bilgi, algı, deneyim ve duygularını somut bir hale getirmek için kullanılmaktadır. Bu çalışma kapsamında ele alınan fenomen, ülkemizde okul öncesi eğitim kurumları bünyesinde bulunan erken çocukluk kademesinde görev yapmakta olan Montessori eğitmenlerinin sınıf yönetimi uygulamalarıdır. Çalışma grubu, Montessori eğitmeni olan 13 okul öncesi öğretmeni ve usta öğreticiden oluşmaktadır. Çalışma grubunu belirlemek amacıyla "ölçüt örnekleme" yöntemi kullanılmıştır. Eğitmenlerin MEB'e bağlı anaokullarında veya anasınıflarında 3-6 yaş erken çocukluk kademesinde görev yapmaları, resmi olarak eğitim veren bir kurumdan Montessori eğitmen eğitimi almış ve bir yıllık staj sürelerini tamamlayıp sertifikalarını almaya hak kazanmış olmaları araştırmacı tarafından ölçüt olarak alınmıştır. Verilerin tümü 2019-2020 eğitim öğretim yılında toplanmıştır. Veri toplama aracı olarak kişisel bilgi formu ve yapılandırılmış görüşme ve takip görüşmesi formları kullanılmıştır. Katılımcılarla yapılan görüşmeler bireysel ve yüz yüze gerçekleştirilmiştir. Elde edilen veriler; fiziksel ortamın düzenlenmesi, iletişim ve davranış yönetimi, zaman yönetimi ve plan ve program çalışmaları şeklinde dört boyut altında toplanmıştır. Araştırma sonuçlarına göre Montessori eğitmenlerinin bu dört boyuta yönelik uygulamalarının yapılmış olan çalışmalarla benzerlikleri ve farklılıkları bulunmakta ve eğitmenler bu uygulamaları sınıf yönetiminin üç temel öğesi olan "hazırlanmış çevre", "hazırlanmış yetişkin" ve "eğitici materyaller" ile ilişkilendirmektedirler. Elde edilen bulgular, alan yazındaki çalışmalar çerçevesinde tartışılmıştır.

Language: Turkish

Published: Istanbul, Turkey, 2020

Abstract/Notes: The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) requires schools to be held accountable for academic performance. It is believed the pressure of accountability will lead teachers to narrow the curriculum by engaging students in test preparation activities. The purpose of this two-phase, explanatory mixed methods study was to examine elementary teachers’ perceptions of the impact of the Stanford Achievement Test 10 (SAT-10) and the Alabama Reading and Math Test (ARMT) on classroom teaching practices from a sample of third-grade, fourth-grade, and fifth-grade teachers in three large school systems in Alabama. The purpose of the first, quantitative phase of the study, was to reveal teachers’ perceptions of the impact of high-stakes testing on curriculum and instructional approaches, the amount of time spent on critical thinking skills, the amount of time spent on test preparation activities, and the perceived impact of state tests on students and teachers by surveying 123 third-grade through fifth-grade teachers in three large Alabama school systems. In the second, qualitative phase of this study, purposeful sampling strategy and maximal variation sampling strategy were employed to interview nine teachers who responded to the survey in the first, quantitative phase of the study to explore the results from the statistical tests in more depth. Findings suggested urban teachers spent more time on critical-thinking skills than rural and suburban teachers, and low-socioeconomic, rural teachers experienced more stress caused by high-stakes testing than their geographical counterparts. All teachers independent of socioeconomic status or school geographical location reported they increased their focus on reading and math, which were the subjects assessed on high-stakes tests and de-emphasized subjects not tested such as social studies and science. Finally, most teachers reported they decreased the teaching of critical thinking skills due to the SAT-10 but increased the teaching of critical thinking skills due to the ARMT. Due to the lack of research regarding high-stakes testing in Alabama elementary schools, there was a need for teachers to discuss the specific impact of testing on classroom teaching practices because they work directly with students and are cognizant of the challenges that teachers face.

Language: English

Published: Birmingham, Alabama, 2010