At the beginning of the 20th century, Maria Montessori revolutionized the field of education with her groundbreaking child-centered approach. In 1907, she opened the first Casa dei Bambini in Rome, a school for disadvantaged children. Through her scientific observations of these children, she discovered that they responded to materials with deep concentration and a profound sense of peace and order. This led to the development of the Montessori method, which emphasizes independence and natural interests rather than traditional teaching methods.
The Montessori method quickly gained traction in the United States, with the first school opening its doors in 1911 in New York. Prominent figures such as Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell supported the movement, and Maria Montessori's first book, The Montessori Method, was published in 1912.It was translated into 20 different languages and became a major influence in the field of education. In 1915, Maria Montessori traveled to San Francisco to demonstrate her method at the Panama-Pacific International Exhibition and give an international training course for future Montessori teachers. This visit helped to fuel American interest in Montessori education and spread it across the country.
Today, Montessori schools are part of both public and private education systems, and Montessori influence is particularly evident in early childhood education and early childhood special education. The Montessori method has also spread around the world, with over 5,000 schools in the U. S. alone.
In addition to early childhood education, some Montessori schools now include programs that offer intergenerational relationships between students and seniors for meaningful interactions. Many people have said that their experience in Montessori education contributes to their success, raising public awareness of Montessori as an approach that helps people from all kinds of fields reach their full potential.Maria Montessori's legacy lives on today through organizations such as the American Montessori Society and the Association Montessori Internationale. Her philosophy has been adapted for preschoolers, elementary and middle school students, and continues to be used in many parts of the world. The Montessori method has been a major influence in the field of education for over a century, providing an innovative approach to learning that emphasizes independence and natural interests.
