Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

231–240 of 259 posts

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#231

Post by mcv »

My children are both going to Montessori schools in Netherland. One to primary school, the other to secondary. And not because we absolutely need to have our kids in a Montessori school, but simply because the primary school is very close to our home and seems like a decent school (though they've had a few issues a couple of years ago), and the secondary school is the only one in Amsterdam that offers 4 hours of programming per week.

I do sometimes worry that the freedom might not work well for my kids; maybe they need a bit more guidance. The youngest (7) simply refuses to do his work, and while the oldest (now 13) skipped a grade when he was 7, he failed last year because he was not doing any homework and not turning in his assignments. Stricter guidance might help them both. Or maybe not. It's hard to tell.

My parents apparently did consider Montessori for me, but I've only gone to regular schools, never did my homework, always passed, and in university discovered I had no work discipline at all, so it seems like everybody in our family is going to run into that problem at some point. Maybe it's better to learn it early.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#232

Post by ramtatatam »

SoftTalker wrote: post #146
ramtatatam wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> On the other hand, I also have a notable lack of respect for authority figures. I went through "classical" education system (with lots of aggression, as somebody else already mentioned in another thread here) - and can tell I also obtained no respect for authority figures. School taught me to survive school by tricking those teachers who had no respect to pupils. Give them what they want and you'r going to be fine…

There might be some confusion over what "classical education" means. Do you mean a traditional/mainstream public school? Or classical as in structured around the trivium? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_education_movement

I meant traditional public school, it's what I referred to as "classical" ("classical" in a sense what I believe most of us went through), though I understand there are private schools that in principle operate in similar way.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#233

Post by technothrasher »

_mh0j wrote: post #157

I attended a Montessori in the Midwest until third grade. When I entered the California public school system, I was in some ways years ahead of my class (especially in reading comprehension). I coasted through every gifted program they threw at me until high school. Montessori gave me a huge advantage at one of the most critical stages in my development. I wish I could have been there longer.

It is interesting if you look at the data on this. Your advantage from Montessori school by third grade is well documented, but then you typically see that by high school the traditionally schooled kids catch up and the Montessori kids come back toward the average, even if they are still in a Montessori school. Obviously this all depends upon the individual child (which is, of course, a big component of Montessori philosophy) but statistically over a population, that's how it plays out.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#234

Post by technothrasher »

jkestner wrote: post #63
pibechorro wrote: post #3

My mom is a Montessori teacher of many many years and I did summercamps as a swim instructor in one. While they are all reviewed by the Montessori board and certified, they are all a bit different. Shop around, the gap in quality between different schools can be quite apparent. That being said, I would not hesitate to put my kids in one, especially over public schools which are a disaster.

My mother's also a longtime Montessori teacher, and yeah, there’s a lot of variety. Montessori is not a protected trademark. Look for AMI-certified for a school that has to meet some standards. I attended Montessori from 2-14, but have no advice that can be generalized to every kid or school. But doesn’t the same variety apply for public schools? They’re not all a disaster. My kid goes to a good dual language immersi…

> Look for AMI-certified

Just be sure you know the difference between AMS and AMI. They're pretty different in their approach to Montessori. AMI is strictly traditional Montessori, whereas AMS is a more progressive model. My mother founded an AMS school, so you can guess which one I think is better. But you have to decide which style makes more sense to you.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#235

Post by bawolff »

mod wrote: post #187
bawolff wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The transition out wasn't that bad. I did 5th grade again (June baby) at a standard private school. The biggest things: - I had never written a formal essay, or an essay outline. - I had never taken nor prepared for a real test I went to public school. Im pretty sure grade 4/5 is around where tests and formal essay writing started anyways, so that doesn't sound that terrible.

We started spelling tests in first grade in the 1980s. We also read (aloud as a class) The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe that year.

I guess it depends if spelling tests are "real" tests.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#236

Post by technothrasher »

alexb_ wrote: post #85

I'm curious as to what the "failure state" of a Montessori education is. There's a lot to support that good Montessori teachers are better than good "traditional" schoolteachers, but what about the bad teachers? Assessing a system based on good conditions only can miss a lot - anyone here have a bad teacher while going through one of these programs?

I see two big failure states at Montessori schools.

The first, and biggest, is constant parental pressure to move away from Montessori and more toward traditional education. This is typically because parents don't actually understand or value Montessori, they either want to brag about sending their kid there, or they're simply using it as a preschool with no intention of keeping their kid there after public school options begin. A school without a strong leader at the top will get kicked around by the parents and start to implement weird and non-useful policies and educational choices. The end failure state here is parents on the board, and a school which moves away from Montessori and ends up a middling small private school with nothing to guide its direction.

The second, as you're alluding to, is just poor teachers. It's very obvious when you walk into a Montessori classroom if the teacher has control of the class. A good Montessori classroom will have the kids engaged in group projects or quiet individual work, some kids helping other kids or giving lessons, and the teacher simply watching ready to step in if a child needs a lesson or some help moving forward. A poor Montessori classroom will have kids scattered about, chatting with each other, running around or being inappropriately loud, and a teacher haggardly running from problem to problem trying to fix it. The best Montessori teachers know how to give constant joy and encouragement, but also come down like a ton of bricks for misbehavior. But they also need to be able to know each child well. If you don't know the kid, you cannot keep them pointed in the right direction, because each kid is different, and you'll lose them to idleness and lack of motivation.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#237

Post by krn1p4n1c »

spooky_action wrote: post #186
krn1p4n1c wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's definitely a strong overlap in that sense. Probably also because these institutions tend to have smaller class sizes which allow better teach/student interaction and more time. Public schooling in the US could do this too, but has been hamstrung for decades. In math the kids definitely leveraged the binomial/trinomial tools, beads and other tactile methods to have a better understanding of the concepts of mul…

By IB do you mean international baccalaureate? Do you recommend that over standard curricula?

Yes and yes. All of the teachers at the IB here hold a masters or higher in their topics and teach it like it would be at uni. Only one of high schools around here offer anything near it in course depth and focus.

I also like that philosophy is compulsory, I feel that the humanities are under served in our current school systems.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#238

Post by ForHackernews »

I attended Montessori school for many years and, in retrospect, I don't think it was very good for me.

Montessori education allows children freedom to explore and follow their own interests, and this lack of structure can be problematic. I was a bright kid and many things came easily to me, so when I encountered something that didn't, I would get frustrated and quit.

Unfortunately there are many topics that require pure grinding to master: multiplication tables, musical scales, foreign vocabulary[0], etc. Not only was there nobody to force me to focus on repeating difficult, unpleasant work, I also failed to learn the meta-skill of how to make myself stick at doing things I suck at.

This eventually came to hamstring me later in my education, and even in my adult career I struggle to make myself do necessary yak-shaving.[1]

[0] maybe less so for young children

[1] https://softwareengineering.stackexchange.com/questions/3880...

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#239

Post by dekleinewolf »

I did Montessori from age 4-8 and then transitioned because of a move.

Montessori worked really well for me. I have always been 'ahead' and I could explore my own interests. I was never bored in school which is something that changed later on in life. I have very fond memories of that school and my own kids (currently 5 and 3) are in a Montessori school and day care as well.

My son specifically is also doing awesome in Montessori and loves going to school. They have themed shelves with 'tasks' (this is translated, not sure about the common English terminology). Every day they have to do at least one task from the 'language' shelf and one from the 'math' shelf. They also have geography, practical life skills and 'cosmology' (basically anything else) shelves.

Teachers keep track of their skills and accomplished tasks and basically sweep behind if they are lacking in one or more areas by encouraging them to pick up more tasks from those areas.

According to the school on average Montessori kids are more independent, great at critical thinking, more self-confident and tend to pick up leadership roles later in life (I do feel like this applies to me, but I've only had a couple of Montessori years so hard to judge).

I am a big fan.

Is there anything specific you are worried about/interested in?

Re: Ask HN: Anyone go through Montessori education until age 12 (end of grade 6)?

#240

Post by devilbunny »

naet wrote: post #228
slt2021 wrote: post #217

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just look at their salaries [oublic school system]. Their pay weeds out quite a lot of good people

American private school salaries are often lower than equivalent public school salaries, because you don't need credentials to teach at a private school, and because private schools can be an easier work environment than public schools. I did three years in education before switching to software development. I would have done a lot more if the pay was better and the schools provided more support to the teaching staff…

Better work environment, and private schools typically discount tuition significantly for the children of teachers. At current tuition rates, that's a massive benefit.
Post reply on HN