Language: English

Published: DeKalb, Illinois, 1967

Language: English

ISSN: 0571-1142

Abstract/Notes: Early childhood education plays a critical role in establishing positive social-emotional behaviors and promoting the development of skills needed to succeed in elementary school. Although inclusion of children with disabilities (CWD) in early childhood classrooms is increasing throughout the world, numerous social, logistical, and political factors continue to present challenges to full inclusion. The Montessori educational approach, established at the beginning of the 20th century and now applied widely throughout Europe and the United States, may present a highly suitable learning context for CWD, particularly given its historical basis in efforts to meet the needs of underprivileged and cognitively delayed children. On a theoretical level, the inclusion of CWD should be an accepted practice for Montessori programs yet reports of the number and characteristics of CWD attending Montessori programs are scarce. This paper reports upon the findings of a survey of U.S. Montessori early childhood programs’ current enrollment of CWD. The survey indicated that CWD represent 3.75% of the infant and toddler (0–3 years) population and 8.49% of the preschool/early childhood (3–6 years) population at responding institutions. Additionally, although school directors indicate that their teachers generally feel confident and competent including CWD in their classrooms, they expressed a need for ongoing professional development and additional support from special education experts to further empower the inclusion of CWD in all aspects of Montessori education.

Language: English

ISSN: 2378-3923

Abstract/Notes: The Day 1 Academies Fund aims to support a network of high-quality, full-scholarship, Montessori-inspired preschools in underserved communities. To provide insight into the fund's pedagogical inspiration, in this report I provide a high-level overview of the Montessori preschool landscape in the United States. This overview includes 5 key programmatic elements of a traditional Montessori approach to teaching and learning in classrooms serving preschool-aged children, the reported availability of Montessori programs that enroll 3- and 4-year-old children, and what is known about enrollees' demographics. To situate this information in the larger, publicly financed, early education policy context, I also provide similar data for state-funded pre-K and federally funded Head Start programs for preschoolers. In addition, I review research on children's outcomes after participating in U.S.-based Montessori preschool and elementary programs. This overview provides some context for understanding how the Day 1 Academies Fund eventually defines the constructs of high quality, Montessori inspired, and underserved. This review also suggests it could be useful for the Fund's stakeholders to undertake short-term research examining the current early education options of families with low incomes living in low-access-to-Montessori states as well as long-term research aimed at expanding the research base on the effects of Montessori programs aimed at preschoolers.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1002/ets2.12252

ISSN: 2330-8516

Abstract/Notes: This exploratory study examined the changing role of music education and the availability of musical experiences for students attending Montessori schools in the Midwestern United States. On a survey instrument designed by the researcher, Montessori school directors (N = 36) from eight states shared descriptions of the current role of music at their schools, the challenges faced when teaching music, individual perceptions of the impact of music on development, and beliefs about music as a valuable component of the curriculum. Data included responses to Likert-scale items and open-ended questions in an online survey. Analyses revealed that while school directors believed music could be used to engage students in learning or to build upon issues of multicultural understanding, opportunities for musical engagement were limited as a result of stringent budget cuts or time restrictions in the classroom. Implications are discussed in terms of including music in the Montessori classroom in ways that align with Maria Montessori’s pedagogies situated within an international context.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1177/0255761416659508

ISSN: 0255-7614, 1744-795X

Abstract/Notes: Focusing on the transnational circulation of ideas about suffrage and education, this article explores the work of suffragist Muriel Matters (1877–1969), and teacher educator Lillian de Lissa (1885–1967). It begins with Matters’ and de Lissa’s childhoods and education in post-suffrage Australia, and their initial work as an actress and kindergarten teacher respectively. The second section focuses on the development of their politics when Matters migrated to England in 1905 and joined the Women’s Freedom League, and de Lissa became the foundation principal of the Adelaide Kindergarten Training College in 1907. The third section discusses their engagement with Maria Montessori’s educational approach, which Matters incorporated into her socialist feminist activism during the First World War, and which led to de Lissa’s recruitment to England as a liberal feminist teacher educator in 1917. The final section highlights their advocacy for Montessori education in the United Kingdom during the interwar years.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1080/0046760X.2021.1906457

ISSN: 0046-760X, 1464-5130

Language: English

ISSN: 1071-6246

Language: Japanese

ISSN: 0286-5467

Abstract/Notes: El Boletin, May 2002

Language: English

ISSN: 1071-6246

Abstract/Notes: El Boletin, January 2001

Language: English

ISSN: 1071-6246