Essay Example on Maria Montessori: A Journey of Self-Improvement and Service

Introduction

Maria Montessori was born in Chiaravalle in the year 1870. She attended a public school at six years old, where she was awarded the certificate of better behavior in grade one. Maria at the age of 13 entered a secondary school, and she studied different subjects such s accounting, Italian, sciences among others. She further joined university of Rome to study medicine (Kramer 4). After her graduation, she volunteered to help the children who were mentally disabled where she ended up with an audit on the university courses in pedagogy.

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Therefore, the Montessori Method emerged which was a strategy to the learning which insisted on independence learns actively and learning in peace with every child's unique developmental pace.

The Montessori approach to educating young children

Montessori came up with different methods of education, which were based on some premises, namely, the sensitive periods of a child, the respect for a child, the mind that absorbs, auto education, and a well-prepared classroom environment(Isaacs 18). Therefore Montessori emerged all the premises mentioned above to form a theory known as child development.

The philosophy

The philosophy emphasizes on different planes of development. In the event, children pass through four different planes with each having a unique psychological and physical development. Therefore, each plane triggers child's environment to transit appropriately and offering learning experiences (Izabela 121). The aircraft of construction are discussed below;

From birth to six years old - the premise of sensitive periods and the mind that absorbs are the main characteristics in this stage. The two aspects cause unparalleled learning ability as they work together. Therefore learning takes place in the infancy stage when children are allowed to do things on their own.

From 6 years to twelve years- it is the stage where children move out of their absorbent mind, and they tend to learn through imaginations and cognitive reasoning. Therefore children are made to understand the environment surrounding them, how different things work and why.

From twelve years to eighteen years- it is also called the adolescence stage; therefore, the learning should be interlinked to the living skills of everyday. In this manner, adolescents would be more prepared for the world of adulthood by learning to live in peace with others and also become independent.

From eighteen years to twenty-four years- it is the stage whereby one begins to explore a career. Therefore, it`s crucial for an individual to acquires the necessary social and cognitive skills in the first three stages to be in a position to make satisfying and exact career choices.

Names and goals of specific areas of the classroom

The primary classroom of Montessori encompassed the table o the teacher and the blackboard, the small chairs, stove, armchairs, lockable cabinet for the materials, and the children's group table. The children were shown the work of different elements that Montessori has developed in the classroom (Izabela 101). The main activities for the children were; caring for the environment like sweeping and dusting, garden care, and personal care like dressing as well as undressing. Further Montessori observed that children could show more passion in the practical work if they are given a free choice of activity (Izabela 118).

Montessori implemented some activities based on the observation, which included; replacing the furniture which was massive with the light tables and chairs, which are child-sized (Izabela 200). She also made an open-air session within the classroom to encourage free movement of children. Finally, she viewed independence as a significant intention of education. The role of the teacher was to observe and direct the innate development of children psychologically.

How Montessori differs from other early childhood programs

Montessori is different from other early childhood programs because of the continued growth of human which she expanded to the older children. Montessori viewed human behavior as led by the innate and universal characters in the psychology of humans (Isaac 20). Therefore, Montessori saw distinct features, modes of learning and essential development, which is active in each of the periods, which called for the specific educational strategies to each plane.

Finally, over 4000 classrooms of Montessori were created by Maria all over the world, and several books were translated into more distinct languages to be used in training new educators (Izabela 107).

Positive aspects of the philosophy

• The system of education helps children to expound things, lessons, and activities that help them to concentrate and coordinate more with traditional learning.
• Soft skills are developed in children
• Independence in learning

Negative aspects

• The Montessori school is costly.
• The opportunities are not adequate.
• The independence that children get is not helpful to them.

Classroom environment of Montessori

The classroom environment, according to Montessori should be pleasing and should only involve activities that the teacher may want a child to experience. The environment should also encompass materials used by children from different interests, ages, and characteristics.

Role of Montessori teacher

The purpose of the Montessori teacher differs a bit from the ones of the education methods which is classic. The Montessori teacher is there to initiate the process of independent learning of a child, and she is less prominent (Isaacs 8). The teacher also has the role of deciding the kind of learning materials and their organization. At the same time, the Montessori teacher is an observer who is active and assesses the children if they have attained sensitive planes or periods where new methods may be implemented or introduced (Isaacs 10).

Works Cited

Isaacs, Barbara. Understanding the Montessori Approach: Early years education in practice. Routledge, 2018.Kramer, Rita. Maria Montessori: a biography. Diversion Books, 2017.

TC, BARBIERU Izabela. "The role of the educator in a Montessori Classroom." Revista Romaneasca pentru Educatie Multidimensionala 8.1 (2016): 107-123. Published by Editura Lumen, Asociatia Lumen