Language: English

ISSN: 0889-5643

Abstract/Notes: The focus of this research is the spiritual experience of young children in early childhood educational settings. Spirituality is included in the New Zealand early childhood curriculum, Te Whariki, but is a relatively unarticulated aspect of educational practice. In order to find out how spirituality is supported in early childhood educational contexts this qualitative case study research took place in three early childhood settings: a Montessori casa, a private preschool and a Steiner (Waldorf) kindergarten. The methods used in the research included participant observation, interviews and focus groups. The teachers were asked to make a video about spirituality to reflect their own context and photographs were taken in each setting. The metaphor of spiritual landscape is used in this research. In this landscape everyday experience merged with the spiritual to form the concept of everyday spirituality. The cultural theories of everyday life supported a realisation that ordinary daily activity can become wonderful and mysterious when the spiritual dimension is realised. The themes that emerged from analysis of the case studies are conceptualised as transformative aspects of learning and relationships. They are aspects of everyday spirituality identified as spiritual withness; spiritual inbetweenness; and the spiritually elsewhere. Representing spiritual experience is challenging. The thesis is written in narrative form and contains core narratives as prose and poems. Using writing as a means of discovery made communicating spirituality through the medium of words a possibility. Spirituality is proposed to be an inclusive concept that affirms a sense of connection and this thesis found that all pedagogical practices in early childhood settings have the potential to include a spiritual aspect. In Aotearoa New Zealand many children lead their everyday lives in the context of an early childhood environment that includes teachers and parents as part of that community. This thesis argues that when everyday spirituality permeates early childhood contexts that all aspects of the curriculum are realised and the spiritual experience of everyone connected to that setting is supported.

Language: English

Published: Palmerston North, New Zealand, 2007

Abstract/Notes: The hypotheses shedding light on the presence-absence of Maria Montessori with regard to the New Education Fellowship are, in the first place, to be linked to the conditions of emergence and diffusion of her pedagogy, to the discussion about the status of her disciples, the conditions of formation, but also to profoundly make pedagogical and practical considerations about the place and status of the adult in Montessori’s education. It is especially important to provide historical documentation as to the expansion and movement details about Montessori education.

Language: English

ISSN: 2215-1249, 2772-7319

Abstract/Notes: Grit, patience and perseverance are cornerstones of Maria Montessori's pedagogy and the basis of this research. The purpose of this study is to describe how grit, patience and perseverance are character traits that help students reach their highest academic potential, and are essential to students' capacity to succeed and accomplish long-term goals. I used qualitative and quantitative inquiry to determine if the Montessori method elaborates grit and patience in children. The research took place in a children's house classroom located in an urban Montessori school. The results determined that students who received a Montessori education did have more grit and patience toward their long-term goals.

Language: English

Published: St. Paul, Minnesota, 2013

Language: English

Published: San Diego, California, 1970

Abstract/Notes: The frequency of early childhood education approaches spanning 10 years of publications was investigated. A content analysis of publications (N = 492) from Early Childhood Education Journal was conducted. From a previous content analysis six approaches or search words were identified: Bank Street, Head Start, High/Scope, Montessori, Reggio Emilia, and Waldorf. Overall, the current content analysis demonstrated that the Head Start approach most frequently appeared. The results indicate that approaches vary as to their frequency of appearance and that contributors of Early Childhood Education Journal have investigated, reflected upon, and expanded upon approaches to educating young children to different degrees. This finding may be beneficial to future contributors of Early Childhood Education Journal. In addition, we have provided a brief overview of each approach that early childhood professionals may use to aid parents with their early childhood education enrollment decisions.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1007/s10643-006-0080-4

ISSN: 1082-3301, 1573-1707

Abstract/Notes: This study investigates the dynamics of importing an innovative educational program across a cultural boundary. It is a case study of a particular Montessori School in Thailand that has practiced Montessori education for over sixteen years. The research's aim is to explore the process of adoption and adaptation as the program evolved, and to examine the cultural and social factors in Thailand that may be related to the adaptations. A combination of in-depth interviews and school/classroom observations was used in this study. The school was observed for a period of three months, and interviews were conducted with the director, twelve teachers, and eight parents. The method of triangulation and crosschecking were employed to ensure the validity and accuracy of the findings. The study explored in detail the various historical stages of the evolution of the school and analyzed them as involving different phases and types of changes, adaptations and conflicts. Much of the analysis relied on the perceptions of the director. These include her ideals and personal evolution with the program, her perceptions of difficulties as the program evolved, her perceptions of teachers' and 08 December 2012 Page 13 of 17 ProQuest parents' relationships to Montessori education, and her accounts of many decisions that she had to make. In addition, the teachers' feelings and attitudes regarding their work and the parents' perspectives and attitudes toward the school and education of their children also informed the analysis. The process of evolution of the imported educational method is conceptualized into four partially overlapping phases--Transportation, Translation, Transformation, and Nationalization. Aspects of program's implementation are classified into three features, representing three ways in which the existing cultural values and social expectations interacted with the program. These include adaptations to preserve the host's cultural values, adaptations to ensure the survival of the program, and conflicts of values and norms experienced by the teachers in their work at the school and by the parents in their vision of education for their children.

Language: English

Published: Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, 2002

Abstract/Notes: School design and operation are, at times, counter-productive to cultivating academic and personal success in all students. Teachers often lack adequate preparation time, and are pressed by class size and regulatory mandates. Thus, there is seemingly little time to focus on cultivating affective well-being or a supportive educational climate. This lack of support is linked to high drop-out rates, large numbers of academically unsuccessful students, and the disenfranchisement of many minority and English Language learners in our school system. The phenomenon of care, particularly as it relates to education, has been studied only briefly. Few comprehensive, qualitative descriptions regarding how students conceptualize care exist despite significant evidence that when students perceive teachers and schools as caring, they have higher and more sustainable levels of academic motivation. This research project endeavored to give children a voice regarding educational care through a qualitative study on the phenomenon of care from an adolescent perspective. The study employed multiple data collection methods including: interviews, art, and student writing with students ages 11-14 from two school environments. Data collected were analyzed using the vanKamm phenomenological method of analysis. Results indicated that the phenomenon of educational care was a complex set of actions and behaviors from the student vantage point. Five themes emerged including: (1) Relationships are a critical aspect of educational care, (2) Rules in educational settings should be simple and consistent within classrooms and institutions, (3) Students perceive some control of their learning environments as caring, (4) Educational environments and teacher behavior are both critical to care, (5) Basic safety and concern for physical space are necessary for educational care. Each theme is independently necessary but not sufficient when observed alone in educational contexts. Together these themes support Nel Noddings' ideal version of ethical caring, in that they involve motivated behaviors, reciprocal action, receptivity on the part of the students, and a sense of obligation to care in a manner above and beyond noticing the basic well being of the student. The themes indicated by the data demonstrated a multifaceted view of educational care previously undiscovered and provide useful fodder for educators to consider.

Language: English

Published: St. Louis, Missouri, 2010

Abstract/Notes: The highlights of Montessori's accomplishments are embodied in her cosmic views and organized into a Cosmic Plan of Education while she worked in the hills of Kodaikanal, India. The fruition of these cosmic views came late in her life and appeared to be synonymous with the development of her relationships with the warm and accepting Indian people. During this periodi Montessori devoted her energies to understanding how children naturally unfold into purposeful, yet interdependent individuals. Through all the professional challenges that Montessori faced in her lifetime as an educator of young children, her focal point continued to be 'the child'. This was especially true in connection with children during their transitional stage of growth from five- to seven-years of age when the acquisition of social, spiritual and cultural values are so strong. Montessori not only shared her methods and ideas with the people of India, but these people, in turn, influenced her views significantly enough to have caused her to formulate The Cosmic Plan of Education. This plan was designed especially for the transitional-age children but incapsulated within it was Montessori's own new-found East-West Cosmology. Through primary sources such as interviews, unpublished books and lectures, the dissertation gives the historical backdrop of the emergence of Montessori's cosmic views in the beginning five chapters. A description of the operation of the Cosmic Plan of Education during its conception is given in Chapter Six. The final chapters deal with how these views weathered the changes within the Indian society over the period of forty years.

Language: English

Published: Manoa, Hawaii, 1984

Abstract/Notes: This descriptive study examined the nature and degree of autonomous behavior among Montessori elementary students. A further aim of the study was to elucidate those elements of the Montessori educational model which may affect the development of autonomy. The study employed direct observation and comparative analysis to examine the actual classroom experience of Montessori elementary students and traditional elementary students. Thirty third-year students from two accredited Montessori schools and thirty third-grade students from two public schools were included in the sample. The research hypothesis stated that the nature and degree of autonomous behavior was expected to differ between the two groups. The first stage of the investigation involved ethnographic observations of classroom environments, focusing upon physical space and furnishings, materials, procedures, social interactions, and the role of the teacher. The second stage of the study compared classroom behaviors of the student groups as recorded by independent observers using the Classroom Autonomous Behavior Checklist. The results of the ethnographic observations demonstrated clear distinctions between the Montessori and traditional classroom environments in all five elements examined. Results of the observations of student behavior indicated that the Montessori students demonstrated significantly higher levels of independence, initiative, and self-regulation, the three constructs used to define autonomy. The nature of autonomous behavior also differed between the two groups with Montessori students initiating more social interaction and employing a more varied approach to task completion and problem solving. The results of this study confirm the effectiveness of the Montessori method in assisting the development of autonomy among children. As such, this research makes an important contribution toward evaluation of the Montessori model and the validity of its methods. For educators concerned about the lack of motivation and initiative among students in our schools, this study highlights the role of education in the development of autonomy and suggests important considerations in restructuring our educational system to address those concerns.

Language: English

Published: Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1992