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= = Photograph from http://www.casparimontessori.org/images/mmontessori.jpg (permission pending) //"Humanity reveals itself in all its intellectual splendor during this tender age as the sun shows itself at dawn, and the flower in the first unfolding of its petals; and we must respect religiously, reverently, these first indications of individuality. The teacher must have faith that the child will reveal himself through work." -Maria Montessori// (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 325)
 * Maria Montessori (1870-1952) and Her Teaching Methods**

The history of education is always evolving. Some historical shifts have remained in education while some have been unsuccessful and dwindled into the past. One historical influence that still appears in schools today is the work of Maria Montessori. Her ideas and participation in special education and early childhood education have developed a style of teaching that may seem unorganized to outsiders, but actually encourages young children to create their own way of learning.

A native of Italy, Montessori made a name for herself as she set out to obtain a degree in a field that wasn't considered an ideal profession for women until Pope Leo XIII; she wanted to enroll in medical school (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 320). She received admission to the medical school at the [|University of Rome] and in 1896, "she became the first woman in Italy to receive a medical degree, graduating near the top of her class" (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 320). Clearly focused on her studies, Montessori earned a job at the university's psychiatric clinic and began working with disabled children (Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood in History and Society, 2008, p.1). This is where her interests in education began as she created methods of teaching children in the clinic and observed that "most of these children could be trained to some degree and that society owed them that much" (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 321). Before her work, people with disabilities were considered to be "feebleminded" (Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood in History and Society, 2008, p. 1) and "were viewed with fear and superstition" (Colarusso and O'Rourke, 2007, p. 9). People believed that those with disabilities couldn't survive well in the real world and mental asylums and psychiatric clinics such as the one Montessori worked at were created to "protect them" (Collarusso and O'Rourke, 2007, p. 9). Maria Montessori wanted to prove these notions wrong and "worked, wrote, and spoke" on disabled people's behalf to allow people to realize that those who were disabled could function in the real world if given the opportunity (The International Montessori Index, 2009, p.1). Her hard work made her a "preeminent authority" in the world of special education (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 321).

From this interest in special education, Montessori began to explore teaching methods in early childhood education. Doing her studies during the [|progressive movement,] she was inspired by the works of men such as [|Jean-Jacques Rousseau] (Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood in History and Society, 2008, p. 2). Before the progressive movement, students were expected to learn from the textbooks and recite to the teacher what they learned. They were only taught writing, reading, and arithmetic, and it was believed that memorization was the "key to learning" (Yuen, 2003a, p. 1). The teacher was expected to make sure the students read from their textbooks and recited information back to him or her correctly (Yuen, 2003b, p. 1). These practices changed during the progressive movement, especially within the methods created by Montessori.

Montessori's teaching strategies became known as "The Montessori Method" (Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood in History and Society, 2008, p. 2). Her method emphasizes "observation by the teacher, individualism, and autoeducation" and that "the children would educate themselves in a prepared environment with little help from a teacher" (Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood in History and Society, 2008, p. 2). These core ideas were first put into use in 1907, when Montessori opened her [|Casa dei Bambini] (Children's House) in the "San Lorenzo district of Rome" (Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood in History and Society, 2008, p. 2). The Casa dei Bambini is designed for the children in every way possible. E. M. Standing (1998) describes his visit to a Casa dei Bambini that was established in California: //"Our first impression as we enter the building is that we have passed into a different kind of world . . .From the garden with its small paths, miniature lake and bridges . . . we pass into a sort of entrance lounge ornamented with palms and flowers. Beside the walls there are tiny arm chairs and sofas . . .We see some thirty to forty children. aged four to seven, scattered over a large room, all doing different things . . . it seems at first glance as if the teacher herself has vanished . . . This is obviously a kind of school in which the adult has retired into the back ground, whilst the children are correspondingly more active//." (pp. 183-182)

In schools such as the one Standing describes, the children are in control of what they are learning. The teacher is "helping here, encouraging there, give new 'presentations,' correcting work which has been brought to her" (Standing, 1998, p. 198). He or she is merely there for support when he or she observes that it is needed. The teacher is not there to correct a student while he or she is in the middle of trying to overcome a task on his or her own. In Montessori's own words: "teach, teaching, not correcting" (Standing, 1998, p. 219).

Along with the classroom and the role of the teacher fitting the environment for children, Montessori developed theories for how children will teach themselves under her teaching method. Although children are allowed to choose what they learn according to their interests, Montessori believed that children learn in stages and must prepare themselves for a task before they can act it out. For instance, "a child could not learn to use a needle and thread might first be helped to weave strips of colored paper together" (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 321). Following this notion of learning, Montessori created "educational toys" to give children access to materials to help them perform a future task that they wish to learn (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 321). Montessori also believed that children were in a sensitive period between three and six years of age. In her eyes it was important to have children begin exploring their interests at this time because they learned "effortlessly and joyously" (Caspari Montessori Institute, 2008, p. 1). Furthermore, Montessori "insists that, in order to get the best all-around results, there should be a definite overlap in age-groups of two or three years" (Standing, 1998, p. 197). This is why many schools using the Montessori method such as the one observed by E. M. Standing (1998) have children in the same classroom who are of different age groups and different levels of learning (p. 197).

Montessori's teaching could appear unorganized to an outsider, but Montessori proved that her methods were successful. For example, at her Casa dei Bambini in San Lorenzo, "some of the four- and five-year-olds were reading and writing . . . (children typically learned to read one or two years later) . . . students also made strides in the practical activities of daily living" (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 323). People realized that Montessori's method of allowing students to enforce their own learning with encouragement from a teacher brought significant success in student's learning, and Montessori's teaching strategies spread throughout schools around the world (The International Montessori Index, 2009, p. 2). In the 1950s, the Montessori Method spread dramatically through the United States and "remains a vital force in early childhood education" (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 325).

Although people acknowledge the idea that children can learn on their own with support, Montessori's methods aren't always practiced at their full potential in today's world. One example is the mass amount of homework that teachers give out to their students. Homework is viewed as a way for teachers to force students to learn something that they may not even have interest in. It bores a student and doesn't encourage him or her to keep learning and thinking about the subject (McCarthy, 2007, p. 26). Under the Montessori method, children are allowed to choose what they want to learn about throughout the day and aren't required to do homework or exams (McCarthy, 2007, p. 26). Colman McCarthy (2007) argues that giving out homework instead of allowing students to explore their interests in the way that Montessori suggested years ago, teaches students "how to put up with a job they dislike" (p. 26). This is not what Montessori encourages in her teaching methods.

Maria Montessori brought a lot to the world of education during and after her life. Being nominated for three Nobel Peace Prizes (D'Epiro & Pinkowish, 2001, p. 324), Montessori engaged herself in a work that achieved worldwide support and a new sense of how children can learn. **References** Caspari Montessori Institute. (2008). Montessori Principles. In //Caspari Montessori Institute: Teacher Education Courses.// Retrieved from http://www.casparimontessori.org/principles.html

Colarusso, R., & O'Rourke, C. (2007). //Special Education For All Teachers// (4th ed.). Dubuque: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company.

D'Epiro, P., & Pinkowish, M. D. (2001). //Sprezzatura: 50 Ways Italian Genius Shaped The World.// New York: Anchor Books.

Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood History and Society. (2008). Montessori, Maria (1870-1952). In //Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood History and Society: Me-Pa.// Retrieved from http://www.faqs.org/childhood/Me-Pa/Montessori-Maria-1870-1952.html

McCarthy, C. (2007, March 9). Inspire kids with enthusiasm, not homework. //National Catholic Reporter.// Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.

Standing, E. M. (1998). //Maria Montessori: Her Life And Work//. New York: A Plume Book.

The International Montessori Index. (2009). Maria Montessori, MD (1870-1952). In //The International Montessori Index//. Retrieved from http://www.montessori.edu/maria.html

Yuen, M. (2003a). Curriculum. In //Public Schools in the Progressive Era//. Retrieved from http://history.sandiego.edu/GEN/st/~myuen/curriculum.html

Yuen, M. (2003b). The Role of the Teacher. In //Public Schools in the Progressive Era//. Retrieved from http://history.sandiego.edu/GEN/st/~myuen/roleoftheteacher.html

**Links in Text**
University of Rome: Sapienza Universita Di Roma. In //Sapienza Universita Di Roma.// Retrieved from http://www.uniroma1.it/home/eng/domotic.php

Progressive Movement: University of Houston. (2008). 1930s: The Progressive Movement. In //A Hypertext History of Instructional Design.// Retrieved from http://www.coe.uh.edu/courses/cuin6373/Idhistory/progressive_movement.html

Jean-Jacques Rousseau: Delaney, J. J. (2006). Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778). In //The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.// Retrieved from http://www.iep.utm.edu/r/rousseau.htm

Casa dei Bambini: Casa dei Bambini. (2002). In //Casa dei Bambini//. Retrieved from http://www.casadeibambini.net/index1.html

[|Клиники Израиля]