The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of structure in instructions and materials on preschool children’s creativity as measured by a drawing task. Subjects were twenty children from a traditional laboratory preschool, and twenty from a Montessori program. The children, ranging in age from forty-eight months old to seventy-one months old, were assigned to four experimental groups (A/B/C/D). Each group was exposed to four treatments consisting of: Structured Instructions-Structured Materials; Structured Instructions-Unstructured Materials; Unstructured Instructions-Structured Materials; Unstructured Instructions-Unstructured Materials. The order of treatment was determined by the group. The results indicated that the Montessori and Laboratory subjects differed significantly on baseline originality, (Montessori, M = 2.1, SD = 1.61; Laboratory, M = 5.25, SD = 2.09), thus baseline originality scores served as a covariate. Results indicated no significant differences for treatment between children from the two schools, or between the groups on originality scores. Results indicated an order effect for treatment for Montessori group B, which had a significantly higher mean. / Master of Science

La présente recherche porte sur le développement de la gestion du temps en tant que composante de l'apprentissage autorégulé chez des élèves de cinquième et de sixième année fréquentant une école à pédagogie Montessori. Cette étude qualitative réalisée auprès de trois élèves, un de leur parent et leur enseignant nous permet de mettre en lumière le niveau actuel de développement de leur compétence de gestion du temps dans un contexte d'interaction autour d'un outil de gestion du temps inclut dans un plan de travail. La source et le mode de transmission des médiations établis par Buysse (2012a) sont analysés et permettent d'identifier les processus de monitoring et d'évaluation déjà intériorisées par les élèves et celles qui nécessitent encore le soutien de l'enseignant et/ou de l'outil.

The thesis is focused on the use of the Marie Montessori method at the second stage of the primary school. The first part explains the principles of Montessori education and training, including the introduction of appropriate didactic recommendations. There are mentioned possibilities of project teaching and description of the cooking project that is the subject of the research. The aim of this work was to find out what changes pupils perceive after completing the annual cooking project. The results showed that pupils learned how to cook, work in a team and how to resolve conflicts. They started eating more vegetables. Cooking is fun. In the future, pupils want to choose whether or not to participate in the project.

The purpose of this study was to construct a holistic education school evaluation tool using Montessori Erdkinder principles, and begin the validation process of examining the proposed tool. This study addresses a vital need in the holistic education community for a school evaluation tool. The tool construction process included using Erdkinder literature to justify the development of each item through the use of an item matrix, ultimately leading to the development of the 23 item formative Montessori Erdkinder School Evaluation Survey. The validation process included a series of three Rasch Rating Scale Model analyses with data from a sample school. The validation process used item anchoring estimates from the earlier analyses in the later analyses and included determining the tool’s dimensionality, reliability, item fit, possible differential item functioning, and comparing the order of item difficulty levels to the holistic model of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Results of the study showed that six items had issues with fit and would need to be revised, and that the items in the cognitive and moral facet will need to be revised to better match Maslow’s model. This study provides the foundation for the development of a holistic education evaluation or accreditation system, and constructed a resource that could be directly implemented in schools.

Happiness should be a fundamental aim of education. This philosophical assertion raises the practical question of how teachers generate happiness in their classroom programs while operating under the current paradigm of educational accountability. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the perspectives of early primary teachers, students, and parents on what makes a happy classroom. Data were collected through interviews of 12 teachers from public, independent, Waldorf, Froebel, and Montessori schools; over 72 hours of observation in eight early primary classrooms; interviews with 23 students (ages 3 to 8), drawing and photography with 64 students (ages 3 to 8); 66 parent surveys, and eight teacher exit interviews. Four cycles of analysis, including descriptive and conceptual approaches, resulted in the identification of five core conditions of happy classrooms: (a) relational pedagogy, (b) embodied learning, (c) pedagogical thoughtfulness (d) an ethos of happiness, and (e) an ethos of possibility. These five conditions were supported by 17 facets, which describe practical and conceptual ways to support pedagogical thinking and decision-making about children’s happiness in the complex worlds of busy classrooms. Five of the facets are spotlighted: (a) kids need to play, (b) stepping in stepping out, (c) sounds shape feelings and experience, (d) rhythms and routines, and (e) romancing children into delight. In addition, student and parent participants identified that play, positive friendships, time outdoors, experiences involving the arts, and experiences of positive feelings make children happy at school and when they are learning. The discussion centers on the role of teachers in establishing the tone of happy classrooms, considers the notion of strong pedagogy, discusses the generation of happiness in early primary classrooms in the form of lessons to be learned from different pedagogical traditions, and argues that, above all, children’s interests, needs, and development should be a teacher’s first point of consideration for all decisions about instruction and learning in the classroom. The discussion concludes with implications for teaching professionals and offers suggestions for future research. / Thesis (Ph.D, Education) -- Queen's University, 2013-08-02 11:13:05.998

The thesis focuses on the Maria Montessori's method of religious education, how it has taken root in christian catechesis. The purpose of the Petra Bandhauer thesis is to analyse its principles, to describe its development and the way of reception by the educationalists. To provide a deeper glimpse into the field of the theological anthropology the author compares some of Montessori's opinions, most criticised, with the views of Wolfhart Pannenberg and Karl Rahner. The last aim is to introduce the way of reflection of Montessori religious education in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and in Godly Play, to examine their practice both in Germany and in the Czech Republic and to highlight the potential they have for the spiritual formation of children in the ecumenical christian society.

Academisch proefschrift - Amsterdam. / Issued also without thesis statement.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-08-20T13:47:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Cristiane de Avila Lopes_Dissertacao.pdf: 2672560 bytes, checksum: 63eeb36e6ab35397e81ac5572475e6de (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-03-26 / This study describes, analyzes and compares the quality of oral and written narratives produced by two groups of first and second graders. Tolchinsky s four discursive categories (1995) were applied to the analysis: i) the relation among the events and what is said ii) the presence and the absence of the narrator; iii) the actions of the characters and their motivation; and iv) the events and their interpretation, as well as the size and variety of vocabulary. The first group (G1) comprised children that had undergone the Montessori Pedagogy in Pre-school and had experienced activities which aimed at oral and written language. The second group (G2) consisted of children who had neither had contact with such methodology nor taken part in activities which aimed at language practice. Data on oral and written narratives were collected in workshops in which oral and written narratives were produced whereas data on vocabulary were collected by a test that was exclusively designed for the research. Firstly, based on Tolchinsky s discursive characteristics, the description and the analysis of the data on narratives were carried out (first category of analysis). Afterwards, the data on vocabulary (second category of analysis) were analyzed. Results of both groups were then statistically compared. Besides, results of the categories of analysis were discussed and correlated. Results showed that the group that had undergone the Montessori methodology in Pre-school had better results in the categories under analysis. A positive correlation was also established between the children s performance in the discursive categories and the one in the vocabulary tests, both in terms of size and variety. When the results of oral narratives were compared with written ones, the former had higher quality, in both groups, G1 and G2. Furthermore, this study showed that the quality of the narratives is prone to be improved and intensified as children get older and advance in their schooling processes. Finally, the fact that the group whose teaching model is the Montessori one performed better may be related to the kind of tasks the children had to carry out, mainly the ones which aimed at working on oral and written language. / Este estudo descreve, analisa e compara a qualidade das narrativas orais e escritas de dois grupos de crianças do primeiro e do segundo ano do Ensino Fundamental tomando como critério para análise as quatro categorias discursivas propostas por Tolchinsky (1995), a saber: i) a relação entre o dizer e o dito; ii) a presença e ausência do narrador; iii) as ações das personagens e suas motivações e iv) os acontecimentos e sua interpretação; bem como a extensão e a variedade de vocabulário. O primeiro grupo (G1) é formado por crianças que tiveram contato, na Educação Infantil, com a Pedagogia Montessoriana, e que experienciaram atividades voltadas à linguagem oral e à escrita; e o segundo (G2), por crianças que não vivenciaram tal metodologia e que, de modo geral, não foram expostas a atividades voltadas à prática da linguagem. Os dados de narrativas orais e escritas foram coletados a partir da aplicação de oficinas de produção de narrativas orais e escritas e os dados de vocabulário foram coletados por meio de teste elaborado especificamente para a pesquisa. Primeiramente foi realizada a descrição e análise dos dados de narrativa, (primeira categoria de análise) com base nas características discursivas de Tolchinsky (op. cit) e subsequentemente foram analisados os dados de vocabulário (segunda categoria de análise), cujos resultados dos dois grupos foram comparados estatisticamente. Os resultados obtidos nas duas categorias de análise foram discutidos e correlacionados. Os resultados mostraram que o grupo que vivenciou a metodologia montessoriana na Educação Infantil apresentou melhores resultados em se considerando as categorias analisadas. Foi possível também estabelecer uma correlação positiva entre o desempenho nas categorias discursivas e aquele observado nos testes de vocabulário, tanto no que diz respeito à extensão quanto à variedade. Comparando os resultados de narrativas orais com os resultados de narrativas escritas, observamos que, no que se refere à qualidade da narrativa, as produções de textos orais, tanto no G1 quanto no G2, apresentam mais qualidade. Além disso, nosso estudo revelou que há uma tendência de as qualidades da narrativa serem aprimoradas e intensificadas com o passar da idade e do processo de escolarização das crianças. Os resultados desta investigação apontam para um desempenho melhor no grupo onde o modelo de ensino é o montessoriano, o que pode estar relacionado ao tipo de atividades oferecidas em sala de aula para um e outro grupo, especialmente aquelas voltadas para o trabalho com a linguagem oral e escrita.

This project focuses on the installation, teaching, and developing Information Technology in a self-maintained collective organisation: the Montessori Training Centre, Lushoto, Tanzania. Our practical endeavour consists in implementing modern technology in this environment. We have organised teachings for the staff of this organisation based on basic knowledge in computer use. We also studied how Information Technology may be implemented and its impact on their schooling system, their administrative tasks as well as their business activities (such as hostel and small scale manufacturing). The expected result of our work is to provide the Montessori personnel with independent means of computer management with built-in facilities for extensions, as well as technical means to maintain their technical equipment. / Ett försök att introducera modern teknologi i en skola för montessori förskolelärare. / Kristoffer Sakaria, 0708-284551

The purpose of this qualitative study is to increase the knowledge of how Montessori teachers include mathematically gifted pupils through differentiated teaching. This was accomplished through semi-structured interviews with nine Montessori teachers from all over Sweden. The teachers were asked to describe how they plan their teaching, how they execute it and to share their thoughts and attitudes regarding this part of their job.    The results show that the Montessori teachers in this study use differentiated teaching based on the Montessori principles of individualisation. They make individual lesson plans for every pupil, based on the pupil’s level of knowledge, interests and needs. These plans are made together with the pupils, who thus have an impact on their own education. As the lesson plans are put into practice the pupils get to choose what to do when, during three hour work cycles. This means there are many different activities happening at the same time in the Montessori classroom. This seems to be beneficial to mathematically gifted pupils, as they appear to be offered an education at their individual level of knowledge. They are also able to set their own work pace and thus advance at their own speed. The Montessori manipulatives are important to the teachers, but the mathematically gifted pupils are able to leave them behind quickly and instead work with more abstract mathematics.    The study also shows that the teachers consider it exceedingly important that the mathematically gifted pupils are challenged and stimulated. For that reason, the teachers do not limit the pupils’ knowledge acquisition. The pupils are allowed to advance much further than what is expected at their age. In addition, the results of this study show that the Montessori teachers view working with gifted pupils as a positive and fun challenge and they consider it important to include these pupils in their teaching, instead of letting them work on their own.    The results of this study may also suggest that Montessori schools can be beneficial to mathematically gifted pupils. / Syftet med denna kvalitativa studie är att öka kunskapen om hur montessorilärare inkluderar matematiskt särbegåvade elever genom en differentierad undervisning. Detta gjordes genom semistrukturerade intervjuer med nio montessorilärare från hela Sverige. Samtliga undervisar, eller har undervisat, i matematik i årskurs f-3 och de har alla erfarenhet av matematiskt särbegåvade elever. Montessorilärarna ombads beskriva hur de planerar sin undervisning, hur de genomför den rent praktiskt samt att reflektera kring den här aspekten av deras jobb.    Resultatet visar att montessorilärarna differentierar undervisningen utifrån montessoripedagogikens principer om individualisering. De gör i stort sett helt individuella planeringar för varje elev som baseras på individens nivå, intressen och behov. Denna planering görs tillsammans med eleverna, som alltså kan påverka sin undervisning. När undervisningen sedan omsätts i praktik görs detta under arbetspass som är tre timmar långa. Där får eleverna själva välja vad de vill arbeta med och när. Detta innebär att det pågår en mängd olika aktiviteter samtidigt. Detta tycks vara gynnsamt för de matematiskt särbegåvade eleverna, då de tycks få en undervisning på just deras nivå. De kan också själva välja arbetstempo och därmed avancera i sin takt. Montessorimaterielen har en stor plats i lärarnas undervisning, men de särbegåvade eleverna kan, enligt de intervjuade lärarna, snabbt övergå till en abstrakt matematik.   Resultatet visar också att lärarna anser att det är av stor vikt att de matematiskt särbegåvade eleverna får utmaning och stimulans och begränsar dem därför inte i deras kunskapsinhämtning. Eleverna tillåts avancera långt över sin årskurstillhörighet. Studien visar dessutom att lärarna ser de särbegåvade eleverna som en positiv och rolig utmaning och att de tycker att det är viktigt att dessa elever inkluderas i undervisningen, istället för att lämnas ensamma i sin inlärning.    Sammantaget kan studien tyda på att montessoripedagogiken kan vara gynnsam för matematiskt särbegåvade elever.