Montessori Philosophy Essay

Montessori Philosophy Essay

Introduction

The Montessori Philosophy is based on the idea that every child has a natural way of learning. If encouraged and nurtured, the child will flourish and become an educated person: “Supposing I said there was a planet without schools or teachers, where study was unknown, and yet the inhabitants—doing nothing but living and walking about—came to know all things, to carry in their minds the whole of learning; would you not think I was romancing? Well, just this, which seems so fanciful as to be nothing but the invention of a fertile imagination, is a reality. It is the child's way of learning. This is the path he follows. He learns everything without knowing he is learning it, and in doing so he passes little by little from the unconscious to the conscious, treading always in the paths of joy and love” (Montessori, 2000). This paper discusses relationship between discipline and obedience from the Montessori perspective in a concise and comprehensive way.

1- Define the Terms Discipline and Obedience from the Montessori's Perspective

The word discipline has a harsh connotation in today's society. It conveys images of strict teachers with canes and authoritarian figures laying down the law. From the Montessori's perspective, it is something enforced by external forces and maintained by fear of repercussions or punishment. But this kind of forced discipline only appears from the outside to be effective. Rather like a regiment of soldiers on parade. It is really a form of acting on the part of the submissive child to play by the rules and to either be rewarded for this or to be punished for doing the opposite. This is sadly a serious deviation from the natural way of life (Dohrman, 2003).

The word 'discipline' has a harsh connotation in today's society. It conveys images of strict teachers with canes and authoritarian figures laying down the law (Montessori, 2000). It is something enforced by external forces and maintained by fear of repercussions or punishment (Montessori, 2000). But this kind of forced discipline only appears from the outside to be effective. Rather like a regiment of soldiers on parade. It is really a form of acting on the part of the submissive child to play by the rules and to either be rewarded for this or to be punished for doing the opposite. This is sadly is a serious deviation from the natural way of life.

2- How Discipline Is Fostered Through the Favorable Environment

It is absolutely right to say that discipline is fostered through the favorable environment. For Montessori, classroom environment plays remarkable role in fostering discipline in children. Discipline from the Montessorian perspective is not something external but growing from within the individual. A disciplined child is a free individual able to make choices for him or herself. It is a natural law of life that is an on going process dependent on personal freedom. It cannot be taught through words but by action (Miller and Bizzell, 2004).

Many people assume that discipline is something that ...