Montessori vs. Traditional School
Educational Comparison
Traditional Approach to Education |
Montessori Approach to Education |
|---|---|
| Children grouped chronologically | Non-graded (two or three year age span) |
| Class seated at desks much of time | Students “work” at tables, group lessons on floor with freedom of movement |
| Class, as a group, studies one subject at a time | Children pursue their own self-paced curriculum, individually or in small groups, in various parts of environment |
| Class schedules and frequent interruptions limit child’s involvement | Long blocks of time and relatively few interruptions permit invaluable concentration |
| Postponement of cognitive development until first grade | Critical cognitive skills developed before age six |
| Basal readers (traditional “see and say”) or “whole language” (non-traditional “see and say”) | Phonetic-based, multi-sensorial; more flexible writing and reading opportunities |
| Teacher “corrects” pupils’ “errors” | Children learn from peers, self-correcting materials; teacher’s role as a guide |
| Children are different. Some can learn - others cannot | All children can learn. They are the same all over the world |
| No implicit trust and respect for every child | Implicit trust and respect for every child. |
| Teacher centered | Child centered |
| Teacher is transmitter of knowledge | Children learn through their own discovery and experience |
| Homogeneous grouping | Multiage grouping for community atmosphere |
| Answers are provided by teacher | Children correct themselves through control of error |
| Time periods allotted | No time restrictions |
| Some are held back, some are pushed ahead | Each child learns at his/her own pace |
| Children are dependent on the teacher | Children work independently |
| Teacher-directed with very little choice | Children are self-directed and make their own choice |
| Subjects are compartmentalized | Subjects are intertwined |
| Competitive | Non-competitive |
| Rewards and punishment (grades) | Self-motivation |
| High student to teacher ratios | At Sunrise Montessori, the student to teacher ratio is usually 10:1 or lower. |
Below is an excerpt from an article that appeared in the Sept. 29, 2006 issue of the journal, Science. It discusses the benefits of a Montessori approach to education:
Montessori Education Provides Better Outcomes than Traditional Methods
A study comparing outcomes of children at a public inner-city Montessori school with children who attended traditional preschools indicates that Montessori education leads to children with better social and academic skills.
Montessori education is characterized by multi-age classrooms, a special set of educational materials, student-chosen work in long time blocks, a collaborative environment with student mentors, absence of grades and tests, and individual and small group instruction in academic and social skills.
The Montessori school studied is located in Milwaukee and serves urban minority children. Students at the school were selected for enrollment through a random lottery process. Those students who "won" the lottery and enrolled at the Montessori school made up the study group. A control group was made up of children who had "lost" the lottery and were therefore enrolled in other schools using traditional methods. In both cases the parents had entered their children in the school lottery with the hope of gaining enrollment in the Montessori school.
"This strategy addressed the concern that parents who seek to enroll their children in a Montessori school are different from parents who do not," wrote study authors Angeline Lillard, a University of Virginia professor of psychology, and Nicole Else-Quest, a former graduate student in psychology at the University of Wisconsin. This was an important factor because parents generally are the dominant influence on child outcomes.
The children who attended the Montessori school, and the children who did not, were tested for their cognitive and academic skills, and for their social and behavioural skills. "We found significant advantages for the Montessori students in these tests for both age groups," Lillard said. "Particularly remarkable are the positive social effects of Montessori education. Typically the home environment overwhelms all other influences in that area."
Among the 5-year-olds, Montessori students proved to be significantly better prepared for elementary school in reading and math skills than the non-Montessori children. They also tested better on "executive function," the ability to adapt to changing and more complex problems, an indicator of future school and life success. Montessori children also displayed better abilities on the social and behavioural tests, demonstrating a greater sense of justice and fairness. And on the playground they were much more likely to engage in emotionally positive play with peers, and less likely to engage in rough play.