Dr. Maria Montessori
“Within the child lies the fate of the future.”
— Dr. Maria Montessori
Maria Montessori began her professional career as a physician, but she also studied special education and brain development. Her early work centered on women’s rights and social reform and evolved to encompass innovative approaches to education. She was a true pioneer as she sought to bring forward a science-based approach to how human beings develop and learn. Her success with her first early childhood classroom in the slums of Rome in 1907 led to international recognition. In the decades that followed, she traveled all over the world, lecturing, writing, teaching teachers, and establishing training programs. Over the decades, she expanded age groups from infancy through adolescence. After watching two horrific world wars impact her work, Montessori’s commitment to education for peace became a guiding principle, and she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize three times.
As soon as you enter a Montessori classroom, you notice that something different is unfolding. With plants, pets, and an open, beautiful environment, Montessori classrooms are immediately recognizable. Teachers act as compassionate guides, protecting a peaceful but productive learning environment. Children work independently and in groups, with multisensory, often self-correcting materials; deeply engaged in their work; and respectful of themselves and their surroundings.
The Montessori Method fosters rigorous, self-motivated growth for children and adolescents in all areas of their development — cognitive, emotional, social, and physical. The implementation of Montessori varies, depending on which age group is being served, but aspects remain the same: multi-age groups, offering freedom within limits, and using observation as a tool to guide the interactions. Montessori educators are attuned to the natural development of the individual at each stage of their journey — the powers of the absorbent mind, sensitive periods, and human tendencies.
Historical Timeline
1896: Maria graduates to great public acclaim from the University of Rome School of Medicine. She is one of the first women in Italy to receive a medical degree. Maria also studied anthropology, biology, and psychiatry. As an early feminist she represents Italy at the 1896 Women’s Conference in Berlin where, among other things, she is a strong advocate for equal pay.
1896-1907: Dr. Montessori’s work brings her into close contact with children. During this period, the Italian Minister of Education appoints her as the Director of the Scuola Ortofrenica. This institution was dedicated to the care and education of youngsters that were considered “cognitively challenged”. Through the development of her Montessori method, many of these 8-year-old students are able to pass standard testing with above-average scores.
1907: Dr. Montessori opens Casa dei Bambini or “Children’s House,” for children ages 3 to 6 years in one of the poorest neighborhoods in San Lorenzo, Italy.
1913: Dr. Montessori makes her first visit to the United States. Montessori Educational Association is founded by Alexander Graham Bell and his wife, Mabel.
1915: Panama-Pacific International Exhibition in San Francisco: Dr. Montessori receives international attention with her “glass house” schoolroom exhibit. During this visit, Dr. Montessori leads a teacher training course while in the states.
1922: Italian government asks Dr. Montessori to return to become a government inspector of schools.
1929: Dr. Montessori founds the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) in Amsterdam, Netherlands, with her son, Mario, to ensure preservation of her educational principles.
1939: Dr. Montessori and her son travel to India to give a series of teacher training courses. Both are detained in India during World War II.
1947: Dr. Montessori starts a training center in London and continues to spend time in India.
1949: Dr. Montessori is nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
1950: Dr. Montessori is nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
1951: Dr. Montessori is nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
1952: Dr. Montessori died in the Netherlands assured that her legacy would be continued through the work of the Association Montessori Internationale.