Are you sending your child to a genuine Montessori?

She was a teacher, academic, writer, philosopher, physician, daughter, and mother. So many hats but not even she could have imagined the impact that she would have thousands of miles away from home and close to a century after her death on 16 crore young children. We are talking about the legacy of Maria Montessori in India.

Born on August 31, 1870 in a small town of Italy, Maria Montessori used her dogged nature, scientific outlook, and supportive parents to overcome the hurdles that befell a working woman in the 19th century. She went on to establish what came to be popularly known as ‘The Montessori Method’. So what is the connection between Italy and India? No pun intended.

Maria Montessori got associated with Theosophical Society — Adyar in India around 1907. The Theosophical movement promoted Montessori method as a panacea to lack of education in poorer Indian masses. But the real fillip came when Rabindranath Tagore backed the pedagogy and established ‘Tagore Montessori’ schools across the country in the 1920s. During world war II, Maria stayed in India for 7 years until 1946 and further contributed to the growth of Montessori education in India. The principles are sound and methodology is structured. But as any experienced teacher will tell you about working with young children, the devil lies in the details of execution.

Fast forward to 2016. We interviewed over 500 preschools in Mumbai. Only 7 of them (~1%) identified themselves as following purely Montessori method. While ~30% of the preschools followed Montessori as part of a mix along with one, two, or three other approaches. While you might think that you are sending your child to a Montessori, you are most likely not. Well, not at least in Mumbai.

We have heard from many parents who wish to send their child to a Montessori. But do they really understand what it means? Or is it a term that they heard from other parents around them who might be equally unaware. Maybe it is pushed by schools who are eager to find a competitive edge in an overcrowded market. To help parents understand the teaching philosophy in sufficient depth, we have summarized below some of the defining characteristics of Montessori:

1. Mixed age groups: Children between 2.5 to 6 years of age work together in the same classroom. Younger students look up to the older students as mentors and learn by role modeling.
2. Structured classroom environment: The physical environment of a Montessori classroom is not free flowing. It is carefully prepared based on principles laid out by Maria Montessori herself. All furniture is appropriately sized, and materials are placed to be accessible by the children in the room. The environment is prepared with developmentally appropriate materials designed to stimulate multiple senses and stimulate learning. In short, there is a purpose to every piece of equipment in the classroom.
3. Role of spirituality: The Montessori Method is not affiliated with any particular religion, but it stresses that all religions should be respected. Morals such as kindness, joy, love and fundamental goodness are encouraged. This also stems from her association with the Theosophical Society and why the society chose to support this method over other pedagogies.
4. Children’s independence: Montessori believes that children have a desire to take care of themselves and their surroundings and that adults should not help children as it will ultimately hurt their self-esteem and growth.
5. 3 Rs (Reading, Writing, Arithmetic): Maria did not support the introduction of 3Rs expressly for young children i.e. under 6 years of age. The Montessori schools usually supply children with sandpaper letters so that they can combine their tactile needs with their curiosity about reading and writing. Students in these schools often write before they read. This is not the case with certain pedagogies like Waldorf-Steiner where 3Rs are not introduced until the child has completed 6 years of age.

So does your child’s school follow these principles in their word and spirit? And more importantly, does the Montessori method match with your own parenting philosophy? In order to answer such a question, you will have to take a hard look at your own parenting style.

We have to understand that there are no absolutes in parenting. Maybe that is why the various pedagogies exist. Do not get enamored by brand names. Go beyond the fancy titles to understand what they truly mean. It might make the difference between being a good or great parent.

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