Summer 2012
volume 24 number 2
...Finland has built an effective system of education that really achieves educational equality. The performance of Finnish schools as measured by PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) is excellent; it is interesting to note that test scores of individual schools are not released so there are no consequences, positive or negative, attached to an individual school’s performance. Apparently there need not be because the Finnish system is structured so that the only tests students take until the completion of high school are tests developed by their teachers, and these vary from school to school.... The preoccupation with Finnish education, though limited in its dissemination, should provoke Montessori teacher educators as well as Montessori teachers to look long and hard at our preparation for the classroom, and perhaps at our requirements for continuing education.
We are now at a crossroads in the history of Montessori education: A growing number of individuals in the worldwide Montessori community recognize the urgent need to build a strong Montessori movement. My vision of the movement is one that is inclusive and respectful of diverse thinking, but with a single objective: to dramatically increase opportunities for children to attend quality Montessori schools. Many are ready to join forces, ready to create alliances. The time to act collaboratively is now!
The duty of an educator is to serve. We provide information, support, and nurturing to those in our care. We have an enormous responsibility both to the children and to the future of our global interactive society. But who is charged with our care as teachers? Ultimately we are. Each role we play, each facet of our lives, has dibs on our time, efforts, thinking, and well-being. Our greatest gift to ourselves is to find balance among many life roles so we are able to achieve maximum satisfaction from...
Over 10 years ago, my husband, Tony, and I traveled to Entebbe, Uganda, to work on a Rotary International microfinance project for women. There we met Lawino Christine Kijange, wife of Rotarian Olanya Joseph Okwonga. Through our discussions, Christine, a public school teacher in Uganda, became interested in Montessori education for peace. Christine was born in 1970 in what is now the Amuru District of Northern Uganda; at age 18 she moved to Gulu, also in the north. Civil strife in the region, led by the rebel leader Joseph Kony and the Lords Resistance Army, prompted...
The AMS 2013 Living Legacy is Dr. Joyce Pickering. Joyce is executive director emerita at Shelton School and Evaluation Center, Dallas, TX, the world’s largest private school for children with learning differences. A longtime Montessorian and member of AMS, she currently serves on the AMS board as vice president, has consulted with numerous Montessori schools, is a frequent presenter at AMS conferences, and contributes to Montessori Life and other Montessori publications. She is AMS-credentialed (Early Childhood).
Joyce has been interested in reaching students who...
Are there things that we, as Montessorians, can work on, do better, as we march more deeply into the 21st century? Of course. In my opinion, we could engage our children in more projects of a deeper nature. We could muck about more, especially in the sciences, in early childhood and lower elementary programs. We can pay more attention to the serious topic of play as a human construct; this most essential of collaborative skills strikes at the heart of the 21st-century need to create, explore, and collaborate. And the technology issue is...
Unquestionably, Maria Montessori’s insights into child development were both innate and learned, derived from her many years of working with children. Her work, practices, philosophy, and passion have staying power that, so far, spans a century and are a testament to her dedication and abilities. I, personally, have been inspired and intrigued by her insights and instincts and often wonder what enabled her to see...
Dear Montessori Teachers,
First, let me apologize for addressing you as “teachers.” All of you should stand up in protest. Probably not one of you will. But it is not your fault. We have become accustomed to the imprecision of language, though imprecise language has a subtle way of misguiding our thoughts and actions. The term “teacher” in reference to the Montessori practitioner is a distortion of...
The roots that Dr. Montessori established are strong. Her understanding of children and learning continues to be relevant today. The content, sequence, and presentation of lessons still provide relevant learning experiences for today’s students. Montessori teachers continue to present these lessons in ways that strike the imagination and guide children on their learning journeys.
However, the album and expectations surrounding it need to be brought up to contemporary standards. Albums in their current format do not provide adult learners with the most direct path to becoming competent teachers. I would like to recommend that the...
My time as a college student is rapidly approaching its conclusion, and it is during this time that I optimistically look toward my future of higher education, pursuing an MA and then a PhD in Psychology in order to fulfill my dream of helping others. However, as many of us have been told throughout our lives, you can’t know where you are going unless you know where you came from.
So while my future is right in front of me, my recollections of being a Montessori student are never far behind. Maria Montessori once said, “It is the child who makes the man, and no man exists who was not made by the child he once was” (Montessori, 1995, p. 15). I believe these words are even more powerful when we assert that the early education of a child is a catalyst for the potential to have a complete and healthy life. My own foundation is deeply rooted in...
Dr. Montessori observed that very early in life, young children demonstrate the need for order and organization in their environment. She told numerous stories of little children who became, seemingly for no reason, agitated and upset in ways that bewildered even the most attentive parents. As it turns out, in each instance the child was intensely distressed by an item removed from its usual or expected location in the environment. Whether it be a misplaced umbrella, a coat, or a throw pillow, all evoked a dramatic response in a child who could not be placated until the item was returned to its proper place. As in Montessori’s day, adults today do not generally consider that...
Maternal Drug Abuse and Neonatal Addiction:
As prescription drug abuse ravages communities across the country, doctors are confronting an emerging challenge: newborns dependent on painkillers.
Infants may cry excessively and have stiff limbs, tremors, diarrhea, and other problems that make...
AMS Annual Conferences
March 14–17, 2013
Sustaining the Light in Every Child
Hilton Orlando Destination Parkway
Orlando, FL
March 27–30, 2014
Hilton Anatole
Dallas, TX
March 12–15, 2015
Philadelphia Marriott Downtown
Philadelphia, PA
I am in my 6th year of teaching the 3-6-year-old age group. And in all my years of teaching, nothing like this has ever happened to me. Below is an excerpt from a letter I sent to the parents of my students, which says it all:
“Dear Parents,
Where do I begin? Having a classroom pet has been the most...