Blog 9

Dewey and Montessori

Scientific Pedagogy for Montessori:

The method of teaching according to Montessori is described as helping the student achieve success by merely aiding to their education. She states that teachers today are simply showing students how to get the right answer, whereas, in a Montessori-type school, they are simply helping the child figure out what they need to do in order to succeed with little to no help at all from the educator. Children love to explore, so the more opportunity teachers and parents give students to figure out a problem and solution on their own, the easier it will be for the children to succeed and be more prepared to learn new things. This is proven not only through children, but adults and young teenagers, too. When you think about it, if you are in a relationship with someone who everyone around you knows is not the best person for you to be with, until you realize that this guy or girl is not the one for you, regardless of how many times your friends and family warn you about them, then you will stay with them. The second you realize that you can do better than this, you leave. So, not only is it proven that educating the student in this matter helps them learn better in an academic environment, but it also prepares them for similar instances, as described above.

School Furniture and Children:

School furniture can either have a positive or negative effect on how the student learns. For example, when I was in high school, in all of my math classes, we had 6-7 rows, with five desks in each row. The walls were white and the teacher stood in one of two positions: the front of the classroom, or the slight corner by his/her desk. In my health class, however, we had these roll-y-chairs, all different colors, and one giant table where we sat in pods of four. It was in no organized manner, but the teacher was able to move freely from one point to another. It was also nice because we were able to use these pods that we were in as set groups for our semester class. I'm not one who is very interested in health education, but I passed that class with flying colors, and I really think that the arrangement and the different type of furniture helped me succeed in that class. So, if we make furniture that is somewhat painful to students, (causing back pain, or restricting our access to move around freely) I believe that students will continue to struggle in this type of classroom environment. Better furniture calls for better test scores.

Freedom in Education:

Freedom takes a large toll on the educational advancement of a child. If children are free to explore as they choose, not only will they be more successful, but it will give them the opportunity to realize what they are and are not interested in. I taught at a preschool during my senior year of high school, and we had a set time everyday for kids to choose which station that they wanted to go to. Some kids would go to every station that was offered, while others, like this little boy named Bryner, always went to the block building station because he loved the idea of solving problems in that manner. If we give students the opportunity to learn in this manner, it will take some longer than others. But, at least we will know that it will give them the most success in figuring out who they are and what they want to become. Isn't that what school should be about in the first place?

Maria Montessori is well known for her concept of aiding the child in

learning, rather than teaching the child and asking them to remember it.

"Thinking In Education":

Dewey's idea of "Thinking in Education," revolves around the idea that all thinking is experimental. Children will not be able to learn a new subject without having some prior experience or relationship to the thing that they are learning about. So, whether it be reading a book on the subject at matter before diving into the educational and experimental aspect of it, or just having students connect the concept that is to be learned back to past, current or future experiences, students will be able to successfully learn as individuals, with guidance from the teacher and their peers.

Conditions for "Thinking in Education":

Dewey suggests that in order to get students to think this way, they need to be able to solve problems. This helps stimulate their brain and causes them to think more about a scenario, in the class, or in real life. He also suggests that problems should be stimulated. These problems do not have to be super relatable to the individual, but should make sense. If Mary has two marbles, and Sally has three, how many marbles do they have together?: this is a problem that could occur in the classroom environment. But, for problem's that ask about why Kevin has two 3 legged, octopi, is that really relevant to the education of a child, or does it get their imagination rolling and thinking about unrealistic things. Problems that are mathematical and scientific should not be fictional because it distorts the truth to the child. Growing up, their imaginations are thriving, which is acceptable in the writing, reading, and creative activities that are encountered in class, but they should not be confused with reality, as they have the potential to be in STEM-related subjects. Overall, Dewey states that students will be able to think in education successfully and correctly, if they solve problems and are able to find probable solutions.

Best Process of Education for Dewey:

According to Dewey, the best process of education should be shared. Working with a group of individuals with similar experiences helps to combine ideas. If there is a problem on skiing and at least one student in the group has done it before, the children are likely to learn something new. Although the student telling the story is just sharing his experience in the field, this does not mean that he does not learn anything. When a new problem arises, he will then experience what others are learning from his current story, but in different context. Also, just because a story is shared to relate a problem to an individual's life, it could have no connection to the problem what-so-ever. However, when the child is trying to remember how to do this problem with a different sporting activity in the mix, he will think back to this problem and remember how he did it by making a connection to skiing. So, the best process of education is sharing and connection. Combine creative ideas from one student and let them create a new idea from another. It is truly a remarkable concept.

John Dewey, is best known for his ideas in stimulated problem solving to

help a child achieve academic success early on in life.