Anyone read montessori books and have comments on it? Urgent please?

Question

Hi,

I need to summarize and comment on one of montessori books ASAP so I need help. If anyone have read one of those books and have comments on it:

The Montessori Controversy, by John Chattin-McNichols

Montessori in Contemporary American Culture, ed. Peggy Loeffler

Understanding the Human Being, by Dr. Silvana Montenaro

The Absorbent Mind, by Maria Montessori

Montessori, The Science Behind the Genius, by Angeline Lillard

Montessori From the Start, by Paula Polk Lillard and Lynn Lillard Jessen

Please let me know and I appreciate your help. Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

With so many books on Montessori, you most likely are getting a degree in comparative education, child development or some similar field. I'm sorry, but it is very, very important that you have more than a summarized understanding of Montessori philosophy.

Over the years I've run into "experts" who think they know about "Montessori".  They misquote her and misinform people about her work.  Many don’t mean to debase her, but since they only had to read one book (or worse yet, one chapter), about her philosophy, (and often just get someone to summarize that one book), they have no true understanding of what she believed in, how great her influence has been on today’s educational norms, and how applicable Montessori is to our current and future educational needs.

Montessori philosophy is so deep and all encompassing, and yet so very flexible, that there is no real way you could understand it with just a superficial reading of the material or a comment on a book. Sorry, but if you want the credits and the degree, you really need to read and understand the material.

I know you are probably thinking, “But I’m not going to be a Montessori teacher, why do I need to understand this stuff?” But if you are anywhere near the field of education, you will come in contact with Montessori in some form or another and you being an “expert” are going to have to comment.  It is important that you truly know what you are talking about.

Check my profile.  Click on most any of the questions that I have answered about Montessori.  You will notice a bunch of answers from people who state things like “I’m a certified early childhood teacher and Montessori is….”  Then look at all the work the trained Montessori educators like Matt and I have to go through to show how wrong their statements were. Hopefully then you'll understand our frustration and lack of desire in doing your classwork for you.

Go read the books.  You’ll be surprised at how interesting and compelling you will find them.

Answer 2

let's try reading one or more of the books by yourself before asking for others' comments... she was a fascinating woman who changed the way we have looked at educating children since. she started as a Dr. in Italy. she was able to train what we now call mentally challenged young children to do tasks no-one thought they could do. She then branched out to "normal" kids. Can you imagine having to sit in adult size furniture in kindergarten? that was just ONE of the radical things her thinking brought about. Read, young person.

Answer 3

I will be MORE than happy to help you with this.

I can be reached by e-mail through the link in my profile.  You may have to send me quite a few messages, but I will gladly read the comments you posted on the book you chose to read and give you some feedback.

I only have the Absorbent Mind actually on hand here in Taiwan, so it may be the best choice if you read that one, but I am familiar with the others that I may be able to help in at least some capacity.

Again, I will gladly CRITIQUE what you thought of the book you read.  Once I read your opinions, I might have a different perspective to add as well.

Matt