Verbalizations With the Young Child, Montessori Essay

Montessori teachers are different from traditional instructors. The teacher continually strives to give children the independence to work by themselves. Students in Montessori are given a guide to finding information by themselves; that is why the teachers do not consider it a job to provide students with the information. Children are given a general direction and tools to find the required information rather than being shown the information directly. Doing this helps the learner be independent and self-sufficient without a teacher.

A teacher in Montessori works with each child separately while others focus on the assignment given to them, hence helping the instructor to discover the weaknesses of any learner independently. Teachers should provide opportunity to children to “to explore the environment and make that environment open to children’s exploration.”¹ The system is different from the traditional way of teaching, where the teacher stands in front of a class and gives general information to all students simultaneously. In Montessori, a teacher works quietly with individual children or a group while the rest of the classroom works on their assignments. The main aim of this culture is meant for the children to work and learn on their own without teachers, as the system “is a dialogue between observation and action.”² Therefore, the child learns to be independent and believes in themselves. Every child is given the freedom to express and stand on their own independently.

A child learns well with practices and demonstrations rather than the theory to grab concepts, therefore ensuring that every child is independent on their own and can research various topics they learn. Practice is a vital element for any Montessori teacher since they create a classroom that is inviting and appropriate intentionally. Doing this allows them to work with each student independently as they discover the needs of each student. A child is allowed to learn by doing practices to help children reflect on what they have been taught, debate with fellow students, question teachers, and develop their thesis on what they have been taught. ³ Here, “attention to the community and respect for the needs of other are highly valued.”⁴ Therefore, the learning process is inclusive and meant to improve children’s reasoning, questioning, and learning across the curriculum.

Montessori teachers undergo special training programs to think like scientists to achieve this. These pieces of training are demanding and intensive, thereby it is impossible to compare them to any college degree. In these certifications, teachers are trained on how to develop “a variety of skills that sharpen various aspects of their [children] behavior.”⁵ With this knowledge, teachers can assist students in maneuvering their arts and theoretical education. In turn, discovering talents becomes easy for students, teachers, and parents since students are allowed to practice what they know at home or in school.

In Montessori, teachers can consider the big picture when interacting with students. The studies that they should give to students are considered helpful in the long term and not just the three-year cycle in Montessori. By nature, students are given a chance to learn and grab every concept at their own pace, yet they are not generalized when it comes to learning. ⁶ They are considered sane and can understand every concept taught so long as they are given a chance to understand it. Tutors are mandated to understand a child and their families for a few years r to support this concept. Doing this helps the teacher identify and know how to deal with each student as a special case because a child’s background is vital and affects how they learn.

Children in Montessori classrooms have abundant choices in their pursuit of education; however, this does not mean they have freedom over everything since the school’s philosophy believes in freedom with limits. A child will always rely on a certain amount of structure where they are allowed to take some risks or experiment themselves. Teachers at Montessori set these rules and help students how to navigate through them.⁷ As Maria Montessori says, “education should help the child to develop confidence in their emerging abilities and offer them the opportunity gain independence.”⁸ The teacher’s mandate is to make sure the child learns a subject and can do tasks the teacher does this by having a gentle conversation with the child and setting achievable goals. In Montessori, students have freedom, but teachers help them find success in their educational pursuits.

While at Montessori, it was essential to introduce the name and the outcome of each material used for learning for teaching practice. After that, I was to sit back, observe, and record each student’s progress. The only time I could intervene is when a child is having difficulties in their progress and help them how to achieve their tasks. In the art class, I had a group of students who did not like to paint since they could not differentiate colors. The first thing was to teach them all primary colors and how they relate to each other. In two days, they were able to integrate colors and paint them. In one week, they picked interest in painting and were able to paint beautiful pictures.

Allowing students to practice independently is vital for a child’s educational development. Children tend to repeat and redo what they have seen being done in practice. This practical concept helps students in Montessori to independently analyze, critically think and make decisions independently. The importance of education is to help learners make sober decisions alone. As a tutor is an outstanding achievement to see a student grab a concept thought to them, and they are proud to do it without difficulties.

References

Montessori, M., Hunt, J. M., & Valsiner, J. (2017). The Montessori Method. Routledge.

Lillard, A. S. (2017). Montessori: The science behind the genius. Oxford University Press.

Alburaidi, A., & Ambusaidi, A. (2019). The Impact of Using Activities Based on the Montessori Approach in Science in the Academic Achievement of Fourth Grade Students, International Journal of Instruction, 12(2), p. 695.

Namuddu, B., Vance, E., & Litton, V. (2019). The Effects of Implementing Montessori at Home on Children’s Independence and Self Regulation in a Montessori Classroom.

Nelson, S., & Banfegha, N. V. (2021). Education as the Development of Human Potentialities in Maria Montessori’s “Education for a New World.”

Footnotes

1. Montessori, M., Hunt, J. M., & Valsiner, J. (2017). The Montessori Method. Routledge, p. 13.
2. Montessori, M., Hunt, J. M., & Valsiner, J. (2017). The Montessori Method. Routledge, p. 14.
3. Lillard, A. S. (2017). Montessori: The science behind the genius. Oxford University Press.
4. Lillard, A. S. (2017). Montessori: The science behind the genius. Oxford University Press, p.19.
5. Alburaidi, A., & Ambusaidi, A. (2019). The Impact of Using Activities Based on the Montessori Approach in Science in the Academic Achievement of Fourth Grade Students, International Journal of Instruction, 12(2), p. 695.
6. Namuddu, B., Vance, E., & Litton, V. (2019). The Effects of Implementing Montessori at Home on Children’s Independence and Self Regulation in a Montessori Classroom.
7. Nelson, S., & Banfegha, N. V. (2021). Education as the Development of Human Potentialities in Maria Montessori’s “Education for a New World.”
8. Nelson, S., & Banfegha, N. V. (2021). Education as the Development of Human Potentialities in Maria Montessori’s “Education for a New World.” p. 90.