Education and Class
My dear friend Krystel, soon-to-be midwifery student, recently sent me this link to a blog called Education and Class. I was particularly drawn to the June 24th post “Teaching With Urgency”, which links to another blog of a teacher moving from a Title I school to a very wealthy school in an unnamed Midwest suburb. The photos are unbelievable. As her friend says,
“All this school needs is a Starbucks”. Another said she had been disoriented when touring her school for the first time because the upper level resembled a high-dollar mall in its architecture and décor (second photo).”
I’ve been thinking long and hard in recent months about the rather odd place that Montessori now occupies in the landscape of social class. Begun in the slums of Rome and now implemented in private schools charging more than $10,000 a year, Montessori has morphed into a method of education that even the most articulate, passionate practitioners cannot seem to make palatable enough for mainstream public education.
On a small scale, it’s true, there are public Montessori programs. I even attended one of them (Seward Montessori, in Minneapolis). But by and large, public school districts have a hard time being persuaded that setting up a school of Montessori classrooms (which can cost up to $25,000 just to purchase all the materials!) is aligned with public school ideals of low-cost efficiency.
So what can we do as Montessorians to change the perception that we’re an upper class, rich-kid program? What kind of language do we need to use to be able to speak effectively and persuasively to those outside the realm of Montessori? My parents are a prime example of those who typically fall into public Montessori–working class, non-college educated people who still, even after having watched their daughter attend a private liberal arts school and now work toward a Master’s degree in education–are still not exactly sure what Montessori is.
This is a great tragedy, because I do believe that a Montessori education should be available to every family that wants it. But the reality of public school economics–and social class structures in general–create some barriers that will require more than wishful thinking on the part of the Montessori community.
Filed under: blog reviews, montessori | 4 Comments
Tags: class, montessori, montessori in the 21st century, public school
Hello- I’m glad you found my recent post at In Practice of interest.
As I’m unsure as to how you’re using the reference, please allow me to clarify: I am a public school teacher, now beginning my fourteenth year with kindergarten students. I’m a fan of developmentally appropriate practice and find the Montessori Method most suitable for not only my students, but my own children. It is out of my own effort that I structure my students’ classroom experiences by attempting to blend the best of what is developmentally appropriate with those requirements under which I’ve been hired by my respective employers. Not all colleagues feel the same inclination, and to be honest, the program I deliver each year takes a lot of extra effort and planning due to the dichotomy of my personal teaching philosophy and the goals of public education today. If, in seeing the photos of my room and the school district in which I teach, you see the best of the Montessori Method, I assure you, its use was not consciously chosen by the school administration.
It has been quite the eye opener for me having taught in Title-I schools up until last year- even more interesting because my school is housed in a small school district surrounded by a larger district, and that larger district IS Title-I.
I look forward to exploring your blog further- please do not hesitate to visit mine. Though I contribute posts to In Practice, my personal teaching/family/craft blog is at Kindergarten’s 3 R’s.
Best regards,
M. Sommerville
Michaele,
Thanks for your reply.
I was struck in your post by the incredible contrast between those schools with money and resources and those without…from the pictures I got the sense that this was a very well-to-do community, or at least a school district with a fair amount of money to spend on their school buildings!
I was educated in the public school system and currently work in the private school system because I don’t think that there are schools in my community that would allow me to fully implement the Montessori method in the way that I have been trained…and also because I’m positive that I would get burnt out from the bureaucracy.
I struggle every day with this choice, because I feel so strongly that Montessori should be more widely available…
Mostly, my post was a commentary on the Montessori community and its inability to move beyond the public perception that it is a method for “smart kids”, or “wealthy kids”. This could not be further from the truth, and I wish that the Montessori community were doing more to change this perception head on.
Wishing you all the best,
Lena
Hi! I just found your blog, and I find it so interesting.
It sounds like my experience is the opposite of yours – I went to a private (Primary) Montessori followed by private traditional education. Now, I am a Primary Montessori Teacher in the DC public school system. Making Montessori more widely available is something about which I’m very passionate. But yes, it’s incredibly hard. I’ve been pushing and pushing to add an Elementary classroom to my school (Currently we are 3 Primary classes within a traditional school), but with no success. I suppose that I don’t have any good advice on how to “spread the word” but that acknowledging the need and trying is just as important.
I look forward to reading more of your blog!
Thanks for posting! I’m wanting to connect with more public school Montessorians to really get a sense of the day to day reality…usually I hear about public elementary programs, so it’s great to discover that there are primary classes out there as well!