The beauty of Montessori is that every kid has an individualized education plan. They meet the kids where they are at. Some kids will excel in some areas and with limits (they can’t do math 100 percent of the time if they want for example) they can go wherever they are ready. Other kids will need extra help and they get that too. If you leave before the three year cycle iis up you don’t see the full rewards. |
+100. “Working on” algebra and long division doesn’t mean these kids have a solid grasp on the fundamentals. Are they getting correct answers? Do they have a deep understanding of the concepts? Otherwise, it’s just optics, which appears to thrill parents of younger students. But if your child is truly struggling with these concepts, you see beyond this smoke and mirrors. |
Yes let's definitely wait three years and only then find out how far behind the kids are.
We're not allowed to visit classrooms. So what else is there that could make anyone believe that the majority of Lee students are on grade level? |
This sounds like something Bernie Madoff said to his investors. |
We're not allowed to go in the classroom. What else ya got? Look, you can homeschool or find a private school for Montessori woo-woo and let your own kid fall behind as much as you want. But for a publicly funded school, it's a very hard sell to see performance so low. We owe children a real education in which they learn to read and do math. Is that happening at Lee? For some kids, sure. But not for others. And the racial gap is so sad. Or is that a feature of Montessori as well? |
So you expect the parent of a MC or at-risk child to simply trust that at the end of the “3 year cycle” their child will be at grade level, even if you cannot afford outside supplementing or other supports? Ask yourself if this is a reasonable expectation. |
+1, all of this is the sales pitch you get at private Montessori schools. With a wealthy, highly educated parent base it’s even persuasive because the private schools get full buy in by families and major at home support. I have done good friends whose kids are at a private montessori that seems amazing. The mom is a SAHM and the dad is a math professor. The kids do awesome but let’s get real— they’d do awesome anywhere. To do public Montessori you need to be able to adjust the program so it works EVEN IF a family doesn’t “follow montessori philosophy at home.” Even if some kids aren’t getting lots of academic encouragement or support at home. Even if the child’s parents don’t have the time or point of reference to go in the classroom and check learning levels. You need ways to make this work for a broader audience. I like Montessori but it’s unreasonable to expect a public school system to conform to the Montessori system. You need to be able to adapt the system to public schools and most importantly, the public school population. |
Why can’t you visit? I loved the bring your parents to school night. My kids were far ahead, not far behind. And by far ahead I mean years in some areas. |
Yes, yes, yes!!!! Montessori math is amazing. They absolutely have an understanding of the concepts way being traditional school. Every school should adopt Montessori metrics to teach math. Even what they do are 3 or 4 builds on what they do next to take them to understand advanced concepts in geometry for example. If there’s in’s thing I’m absolutely persuaded of it’s how well Montessori teaches math and gives kids a solid foundation. There is no reciting facts, it’s actually learning how the decimal system works and how numbers and shapes relate to each other, for example. Way beyond anything kids get that age elsewhere. |
| Sorry for the typos. Methods not metrics and hopefully the other errors are easy to understand. |
Because people who don't have a child at the school can't just go busting in. |
Oh please. You have no idea how non-Montessori math works if you think other kids don't also learn those things. If the kids are really soooo advanced they should be able to order numbers 1-100 in 3rd grade FFS. |
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Look you can insult me as much as you like, but I have extensive experience in both systems and I can tell you that the traditional school with rote learning and strict boundaries on what you learn in what grade (no addition beyond 10 and no multiplication or division in second grade for example) is considerably inferior to Montessori. Given that you clearly don’t have broad understanding of Montessori math you’re not in much of a position to dispute this. |
Even the math PARCC involves considerable typing. Kids also have to explain their work (typed). A written explanation of math work is not something that happens in Montessori. Ask the kids to demonstrate or explain and they do, but do it on a screen and then type an explanation is not some thing they are familiar with. Neither is following test instructions to be honest. |