Pros & Cons of Montessori schools?

Question

Trying to decide on a preschool for my child... any input would be great.

Answer 1

Montessori is okay for some kids and not so great for others. One of the pros is that this program teaches independence. One of the biggest cons is that they are not always to bring this out of their little space, classroom, into a bigger world.

I have seen this first hand at my school. We have both montessori and traditional programs in my preschool.

Answer 2

PRO'S:

Montessori schools use specific equipment:

- didactic materials: blocks, cylinders, rods, etc to encourage children to use their hands

- constructive play materials: to encourage children to develop their sensory skills, such as learning to differentiate colour and shape

- real apparatus for practical life skills: such as garden tools and household implements.

CON'S:

Montessori did not believe in make-believe play or its values.

Children are graded on their use of the didactic materials.

Answer 3

I’m a public elementary Montessori teacher. My program is in one of public schools in my district so that it has become quite easy to compare traditional and Montessori education.

To begin with my students are primarily a mixture of second language, low income, minority students.  Many come with labels such as ADD, Asperger’s, and dyslexia. Many come in below grade level, and  yet, by the end of the year they consistently out score not only a similar make up of students, but the white upper middle class students (they are in a another school in my district) and the children in our Gifted and Talented Program(Supposedly the best and brightest in our district.).  

Besides their high test scores, other teachers have noticed that the children in the Montessori classrooms have greater self confidence, are intrinsically motivated, take responsibility for their learning, have a higher vocabulary, and are better at conflict resolution.

In the 10 years that our program has been in existence, over 95 percent of the students who have gone all the way through our program (k-5) have been placed in accelerated classes when they entered middle school; this is especially amazing when we remember the “labels” that they come to us with.

Lastly, our 2/3 Montessori students were tested this year in history and geography by an outside source.  Their scores were amazing.  Their knowledge of history was on a high school level while their geography knowledge rivaled most college graduates.

There are cons though.  The main one being that not all schools that call themselves Montessori truely are. These schools give all the others a bad name because their children leave them  and are below grade level or have behavior problems.  

The only other con  is that children who come from Montessori schools often have a hard time leaving Montessori and going into classrooms where the teacher constantly gives "busy work" and wants to the child to just "sit down, shut up, and do as he is told".  Sadly I have heard this from other teachers.  "Those Montessori children have a mind of their own!  They don't just sit there and do workbook pages quitely like the other kids, they always want to be researching new information and writing reports!!!!"  Like that is a bad thing???

In the December 4, 2006 article titled Montessori the Early Years: Evaluating Montessori Education in the Journal of Science by Angeline Lillard. This research was not done on my program so you can see that the statistics that I quoted are not an aberration, but rather the norm.

Answer 4

I work at a Montessori school.  I think that there are many pros and cons.

The Pros is that the children are taught everything in a creative, hands-on-approach.  Everything tends to be reality based, as Fantasy is not encouraged, creativity is (there is a difference between the two).

Cons include the fact that because it is a child centered approach to education, the less motivated child tends to fall behind his peers in regards to learning.