Montessori Learning is a type of teaching method for preschool children. It was invented in the early 1900s by Doctor Maria Montessori. Since it has been around for over a century, there is a clear understanding of how it functions and how it can affect learning.
What Is The Montessori Method
This teaching method focuses on children. This means the children lead their activities to help promote independence, fun with learning, and an association of productivity that aligns with interests.
In the classroom, the activities are called “work” to stop this word from gaining negative associations as we progress throughout our lives.
In a classroom run in the Montessori style, you can expect various activities (or jobs) to be set up and ready for the children to choose from. They can switch from job to job throughout the day without instruction from their teacher.
Their teachers will then move from group to group, chatting, asking them what they are working on, and giving encouragement. These teachers don’t stand at the front looming over their students. Instead, they are simply there to help and guide if needed.
This type of education allows the teachers to look at a student as a whole person. Their emotional education and social education are just as important as their intellectual and physical development.
Because the children aren’t following a curriculum, and instead following their interests, the grading system for the classroom is different from traditional schools. Instead, the student is taken in as a whole to see how they have approached a situation, adapted, and managed this new task.
What Are The Pros Of Montessori?
Not everyone is impressed with this style of teaching. To help you understand the good and bad points of the method, we have compiled a list of pros and cons.
Independent Learning
Montessori classrooms are often very pretty. They are designed to let in a lot of natural light and contain a lot of space. The idea is to create a beautiful space for a child to learn in – again creating positive feelings with learning and work.
Because the activities are placed around for children to pick up or ignore, they are given the space to learn on their own. They can decide if they want to digest more information on a topic, or if they prefer to spread their learning to multiple ideas.
Social Interaction
Children love to see what interests their friends. In Montessori schools, the children are mixed together from different age groups. This stops the idea that children can only be interested in something that matches their age.
Instead, they can engage in topics that others think are too advanced for them, or they can find comfort and complexity in activities that others deem below their age group.
Mixing in this way allows children to learn how to socialize, ask questions, and learn about acceptance and inclusion.
Create a Love For Learning
As the children aren’t forced into learning a subject they have no interest in, they don’t associate the idea of learning with a chore. Instead, they will see learning as a fun and enjoyable activity that helps them develop ideas within their interests.
When they enter secondary education, they will carry on this concept, knowing that learning grants them new experiences.
Inclusive
Because children of all ages are allowed to follow their interests and learn at their own pace, it doesn’t put up barriers for children with physical or mental disabilities.
Children with dyslexia won’t compare how fast they are reading to the other children, as these kids will be doing their own tasks. There will be nothing to compare.
With this direct comparison out of the way, the dyslexic child will be less likely to develop a negative association with reading.
What Are The Cons Of Montessori?
As with every learning technique, there will always be negatives.
Some People Need Structure
Some children need structure. Without a plan, they don’t know where to go or what to do next. This can make the looseness of the lessons hard for some kids.
They may end up excelling at one subject and knowing very little about another. This can lead to an unbalanced educational system which some children will find hard to self-balance.
Students Need To Learn More Than Independence
Although knowing how to work by yourself, and becoming self-guided is an important skill, it isn’t everything. Most employment structures don’t work in this way, which means kids may not be prepared for the rigid world of most jobs.
Summary
The Montessori teaching method is based on independence and happiness. Creating a welcoming environment for children to learn will make education seem like a fun activity. Allowing children to learn without structure can help them find their interests.
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