Preview

Philosophy Essay Montessori

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2109 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Philosophy Essay Montessori
Maria Montessori, the first Italian woman to qualify as a physician, is renowned worldwide for her devotion to the philosophy of education and for the educational method that bears her name. Amongst others ground-breaking innovations, Montessori had a unique approach to discipline and obedience in the education of children. In this essay I will define and explain the terms ‘discipline’ and ‘obedience’, paying particular attention to the relationship between them. I will then address the issue of self-discipline together with the notion of will and analyse how they are at the root of the development of obedience. Finally, I will describe the three levels of obedience as outlined by Maria Montessori herself.

First of all, it is necessary to explain and define the two major concepts of this essay: discipline and obedience. To use Montessori’s words (1967, p49):
The discipline that we are looking for is active. We do not believe that one is disciplined only when he’s artificially made as silent as mute and as motionless as a paralytic. Such a one is not disciplined but annihilated. We claim that an individual is disciplined when he’s the master of himself and he can, as a consequence, control himself when he must follow a rule of life.’
According to Montessori, the discipline that is worth working for is the one that is fostered through freedom and independence; it is an internal discipline that is already naturally within the child, just waiting to be awakened by the practitioner. Montessori believes that discipline begins when children find an activity that has some value to them. For this reason, Montessori introduced the idea of ‘prepared environment’, an environment which allows children to have freedom, opportunities and all the tools needed to develop concentration skills and to foster inner discipline. The Montessori method suggests surrounding the child with interesting tools and materials tailored to his/her inner needs, therefore leaving the child free

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Maria Montessori was a visionary woman, passionate about providing quality education to all children. Born in 1870, at a time where few women attended college and were not expected to work in any area other than teaching, Maria grew up determined to become a doctor in spite of society, and even her father’s reservations. She was not accepted into the University of Rome, but with her spirit of perseverance, Maria gained the help of Pope Leo XIII to intercede on her behalf. In 1896, she graduated and became the first woman to gain her doctorate in Italy (A Biography of Maria Montessori, n.d.). Maria Montessori brought her passion and education as a doctor into a philosophy of education centered around the idea that each child has an intrinsic ability to learn through self-selection and exploration. Her beliefs around child development bear a similarity to Piaget 's and were based on her extensive observations of children. Maria’s observations of and work with children began with school of “deficient” children and within two years those children were able to pass the standardized tests for Italian public schools (Lascarides & Hinitz, 2000, p. 144). In 1907, the Casa dei Bambini was created by Maria with a group of children in an apartment complex with working parents whose children needed to be cared for during the day . It was a time of development in Rome and the poor working class was growing, which also meant that their children would need childcare. These years with Casa dei Bambini would continue to shape her philosophies and be the basis for her book, The Montessori Method. There were five Casa dei Bambini’s by 1908 which was a testament to Maria’s success as well as the society’s needs at that time. Maria’s influence continued to spread as she opened her own schools to train teachers in the Montessori Method. Sadly, with the rise of fascism in Europe, by 1933, most…

    • 1360 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The teacher is a Montessori has to be a keen observer of the children in her class. Maria Montessori herself worked and developed her theories using this method and her findings are based on her observations and experiences with children. By observing the needs, progress and sensitive periods of a child they are able to modify the environment and her lesson plan accordingly. She is a dynamic link between the prepared environment and the children.…

    • 720 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lut1 Task 1

    • 1439 Words
    • 6 Pages

    References: Alderman, T. (2001, April). In Good Discipline, One Size Doesn’t Fit All. Education Digest, 66(8), 38.…

    • 1439 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Montessori Method

    • 317 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Traditionally it is felt that if we want to have disciplined children then we must exert some…

    • 317 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Sensitive Mothering

    • 1747 Words
    • 7 Pages

    The process of attaining discipline and obedience in a child is very challenging, but also very…

    • 1747 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Education being a necessary part of our lives, there has been several ways to teach a child and thus creating a teacher dominant learning. But, it was about a century ago when a revolutionary thought “teacher within” came to existence. It was the one woman who changed the world with her new innovative method of teaching and would break the stereotype in teaching method. This was Maria Montessori who developed Montessori Method of teaching with a firm belief in the motto "Within the child lies the fate of future". Montessori Method focuses on the idea that children learn best when they are placed in an environment full of learning activities and given the freedom to work on their own. Montessori model believed that children at liberty to choose and act freely within an environment prepared accordingly would act spontaneously for optimal development. Montessori education is characterized by an emphasis on independence, freedom within limits, and respect for a child’s natural psychological development, as well as technological advancements in society. Although a range of practices exists under the name "Montessori", the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) and the American Montessori Society (AMS) cite these elements as essential [1, 2]: Mixed age classrooms, with classrooms for children aged 3 to 6 years old by far the most common, student choice of activity from within a prescribed range of options, a "constructivism" or "discovery" model, where students learn concepts from working with materials,…

    • 1646 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The child is given freedom of movement to move about the environment of his own accord, this freedom is of utmost importance as it allows the dirctress to observe and cater for the child's needs. “it is only in an the atmosphere of freedom that the child can reveal himself to us” Montessori: A Modern Approach, by Paula Polk Lillard. The child is given the freedom to choose to work with any materials that draws his interest for any period of time, providing the selected material has been presented by the directress. The child is also allowed freedom to interact socially within the environment . The child's freedom does however have limits of basic respect and safety, i.e. the child may not run in the classroom, disturb a child that is concentrating on work, use the materials in a way the defeats the purpose of the particular activity or is damaging to the material. The child is given freedom to progress at a rate that is comfortable to his individual stage of development. Through this freedom the child learns self-discipline as an individual. “Freedom and limits: a natural path to self discipline at home and at school” quoted by Margot Waltuch. It is through this freedom that the child is given the greatest freedom of all: freedom of choice which goes hand in hand with the internal development of discipline.…

    • 1527 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Thesis: There are cases where child discipline has been so extreme that certain parents or guardian beats up a child to death, while some parents do not disciple their children at all, but child discipline can be moderate in a way that would mould the child into being a better person in life.…

    • 199 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Born in Chiaravalle in the Province of Ancona in 1870, Maria Montessori was the first woman to practise medicine in Italy, having graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Rome in 1896. As a physician, Dr. Montessori was in touch with young children and became profoundly interested in their development. Through careful and exhaustive scrutiny, she realised that children construct their own personalities as they interact with their environment. She also observed the manner in which they learned as they spontaneously choose and worked with the materials she provided.…

    • 3136 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    A woman of pure determination Maria Montessori had a very interesting early life. Born in Chiaravalle, Italy on the 31st of August in the year 1870 (Maria-Montessori,2017, p.1) she would grow to become a very successful and influential woman of her time. In a world that belittled female knowledge, strengths, and opportunities, she was the billboard for woman across Italy in the late 1800s. She broke social normality’s that would then be, considered disgusting in the eyes of many, but astonishing in the hearts of woman who thirst for change. Montessori sparked my interest in learning about a strong independent woman she was who opened many doors in the light of social developments of children that still takes great…

    • 1357 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    A key in the Montessori doctrine is freedom within limits. Instructors watch to make sure the children are not abusing their privileges. Rosanava explains that teachers must keep careful records of what the students are working on, to be sure their learning stays well balanced. The kids are required to adhere to a list of tasks which they have to accomplish within a given amount of time, discouraging them from avoiding subjects they don't enjoy (Kawawada). The Montessori system trains them to handle their time efficiently, and even shapes the manner in which they care for others (Kawawada). There is absolutely no tolerance for those who bully or act in a rude fashion (Kawawada). Such behaviors are discouraged in traditional schools merely because it is unfair, in addition to interfering with the learning process. However, in a Montessori setting, such negative actions are contrary to the very goal of the…

    • 1846 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Montessori first used the term normalization (Montessori, 1966) to describe the observations that she saw in her classroom work with children in Italy in the 1960’s. The concept of normalization is recognised as a series of characteristics that define the point at which children concentrate with unbroken repetition and acquire self discipline for a task or activity that ultimately results in self-satisfaction. Montessori (1966) identified the child’s conversion to normalisation as a “psychic cure, a return to what is normal” (Montessori 1966, p148). At the same Montessori recognised that during the process of normalization certain characteristic traits disappeared. She recognised these traits as deviations that occur when the child “has not been able to actualise his “primitive plan” of development” (Montessori, 1966, p155). In other words these deviations may have been caused by an influencing adult or other external factor. These deviations were identified by Montessori as fugues and…

    • 1762 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Prepared Environment

    • 1010 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Montessori’s idea of the prepared environment was that everything the child came in contact with would facilitate and maximize independent learning and exploration. This calm,…

    • 1010 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Discipline and obedience could not therefore be inflicted on a young child as had been traditionally thought, nor could it be sustained through rewards and punishments. “Obedience is seen as something which develops in the child in much the same way as other aspects of his character.” (Montessori, 1988, p.234)…

    • 1827 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The discipline we are looking for is active…… We claim that an individual is disciplined when he is a master of himself and when he can, as a consequence, control himself when he must follow a rule of life." (Montessori, 1988a, p. 49)…

    • 613 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays