Abstract/Notes: What may be the continent’s first two Montessori Native language immersion schools opened on the Fort Peck Reservation in northeastern Montana in January.

Language: English

ISSN: 2163-3622

Language: English

ISSN: 0571-1142

Abstract/Notes: Ensuring equitable access to high-quality early education for families from all racial, ethnic, and income backgrounds is a critical component for addressing systemic racism and inequality within the public education system. This study examined one piece of this issue by investigating access to public Montessori pre-K, as well as barriers that may hinder equitable access. While many public Montessori pre-K programs report that students are admitted through a random lottery process, initial efforts to study these programs indicated that certain enrollment policies may create barriers to access. Potential barriers to accessing public Montessori pre-K include lottery priority status for siblings, neighborhood residents, and children of staff; a lack of targeted recruitment practices for families from underserved communities; and affordability. These barriers to access may disproportionally affect Black and Latino families and families facing poverty, who have unequal access to high-quality educational opportunities overall. The Montessori model was originally created to give children with learning challenges (e.g., children who exhibited concentration, attention, and discipline challenges) a high-quality educational environment where they could thrive. Given the origins of the Montessori pedagogy and existing disparities within the educational system, questions of equity should be at the center of policy development for accessing public Montessori pre-K.

Language: English

Published: Bethesda, Maryland, Mar 26, 2021

Abstract/Notes: Montessori Partners Serving All Children (MPSAC) is a collaborative between the Montessori Center of Minnesota (MCM) and metro-area organizations. The goal of MPSAC is to demonstrate how the Montessori approach, starting with early education, can be viable, effective, culturally responsive, and accessible for all Minnesota children, including low income children from culturally distinct families and communities. Toward that end, MCM commissioned a three-year evaluation of its MPSAC initiative, currently a partnership with four participating community-led schools. This report presents comparative data and findings from that evaluation process, including data and analysis for this third and final year. The MPSAC initiative engaged partners in community-led Montessori schools in a three-year evaluation to assess the progress of children, staff, and schools in the following areas: School structures and quality (classroom environments, professional development, ongoing mentoring, and administrative technical assistance for newly formed schools); Children’s academic, cognitive, social, and physical health; and Successful inclusion and support of parents and community.

Language: English

Abstract/Notes: In the period 1919–1933 the experimental and community schools in Hamburg tried to put into practice a new model of schooling without a set curriculum that was based on providing a considerable amount of freedom for pupils and teachers. These experiences were introduced in the Netherlands by way of magazines published by the New Education Fellowship (NEF) or Dutch journals edited by educationalists and university professors. The Hamburg schools were also visited by Christian Anarchist teachers who were connected with new schools in the Netherlands and who already had experimented with new ways of life in small communities. In this article we describe their experiences in Hamburg. Their observation reports would not trigger a growing interest in a social community type of schooling; in general Dutch teachers, even the socialist ones, did not change their preference for the traditional classroom system of education. More individualistic methods from Montessori and Parkhurst (Dalton Plan), supported by university professors and inspectors of education, were considered to have more potential for changing the classroom system from within.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1080/00309230.2014.927513

ISSN: 0030-9230, 1477-674X

Abstract/Notes: The present call for structured mathematics programmes in preschools continues a trend from the nineteenth century, in which young children’s lack of mathematical knowledge was considered to have a detrimental effect on their individual futures and those of the wider society. In this paper, an investigation of the philosophies behind several early childhood programmes shows that there is a long-standing acceptance that those not living in poverty should make decisions about the education, including the mathematics education, that children who are living in poverty should engage in. Consequently, the philosophies behind these programmes, and with them the advocated mathematics education, contribute to a homogenised view of the child. This fails to recognise the attributes that children and their communities have and situates those living in poverty as being deviant. The strong promotion in this century of structured mathematics education programmes is solidifying this homogenising process in a manner not seen in previous early childhood programmes.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1007/s11858-014-0578-y

ISSN: 1863-9704

Abstract/Notes: Montessorians in 2021 are demonstrating and responding to a mounting awareness of social justice as an urgent and elemental component of Cosmic education, Peace education, Grace and Courtesy, and social-emotional learning. Beyond the initial relief (computer systems held fast and the apocalypse failed to materialize), pundits of all description made, and continue to make, grand predictions about a range of global changes in the new age, on subjects varying from climate change to world population growth to the globalization of economies. The Industrial Age, it was generally agreed, was now a dinosaur lumbering toward extinction; the recently hatched term "Information Age" became the new framework for an era in which ideas and data offered more promising j ob prospects than assembly lines and production of consumer goods. To achieve the desired results, discrete strands of curriculum (20 minutes of math, 30 minutes of science, etc.) must now be thoughtfully interconnected; age-specific grade levels must become communities of learners; rote memorization must give way to the use of knowledge to solve real-world problems; competition for grades and prizes must shift to collaboration with classmates; learning must become student-centered and driven by inquiry rather than imposed by textbooks; and the role of the teacher must become that of skilled coach rather than central knower and dispenser of information.

Language: English

ISSN: 1054-0040

Abstract/Notes: From a 6-year-old carefully spreading and assembling a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich for our soup kitchen to a 17-year-old triumphantly hammering the final nail into a newly constructed wheelchair ramp, children of all ages have grown as they explored their souls by interacting with the communities that surround them; I've been privileged to serve alongside them.[...]these stories have the power to alter hierarchical structures that are built into society and which perpetuate social inequality.Join members of the AMS Peace Committee for the upcoming AMS Peace Retreat, "Implementing Meaningful Service Learning in a Montessori Classroom."

Language: English

ISSN: 1054-0040

Abstract/Notes: AMS now has the opportunity to operationalize justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in every area of the organization, and resources will be continually allocated to support the creation of just communities in schools and teacher education programs. The committee will also provide guidance on strategic initiatives, such as the development of a Montessori Equity Audit, a comprehensive benchmarking tool to assess diversity, equity, and inclusion for AMS schools and AMS-affiliated teacher education programs, as well as for AMS itself (the board, commissions, committees, and staff). [...]the committee will develop a rubric and review process for the newly minted AMS DEI Scholarship and will coordinate with the AMS Development Committee on fundraising efforts.

Language: English

ISSN: 1054-0040

Abstract/Notes: AMS staff, directors, and members also participated in a "context mapping" exercise that provided an opportunity to observe different perspectives on trends, political and technological factors, economic climates, and member needs and uncertainties. [...]stakeholders completed a comprehensive survey to provide critical information to help drive a new strategic plan. Institutional Advancement: AMS will ensure that it has significant resources, practices, programs, and facilities to deliver services and cultivate relationships, in order to expand and strengthen its position as a voice for Montessori. Here are a few ways you can be involved: * Advocate for high-quality Montessori programming at your school * Support Montessori programs in the public sector and under-resourced communities * Join your state's Montessori organization to support national public policy efforts and strengthen advocacy (info at montessoriadvocacy.org) * Present at local events and settings, including colleges and universities, state NAEYC-affiliated conferences and workshops, and regional Montessori groups * Join us on AMS Connect, our online community message board (connect.amshq.org) * Read AMS's free, open-source Journal of Montessori Research, to stay current on research and educational practices (amshq.org/research) * Volunteer your time and talent to give back to your AMS community I hope you will consider your membership in AMS a privilege and become an active part of our association.

Language: English

ISSN: 1054-0040