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I went to a Montessori school for four years (K through 3rd grade). It was horrible. I wasn't expected to do anything. Most days were spent bored to tears. Th

I went to a Montessori school for four years (K through 3rd grade). It was horrible. I wasn't expected to do anything. Most days were spent bored to tears. There was no oversight of the teachers; in fact the principal herself was the "teacher" for grades 1-3. We were expected to keep a journal of our activities and show it to a teacher at the end of each day, who would sign it and let us go home. (The point was to encourage us to do things, rather than nothing.) There were two teachers on duty each day (the principal and her assistant) so I would simply lie; I wrote "did X at 9:34AM" "did Y at 10:53AM" etc then forged the assistant teacher's signature and showed it to the principal, who dutifully approved it (or vice-versa). Since there were about 60 kids and 2 teachers, there was no chance of them noticing. A classmate intentionally smacked me in the head with the edge of a metal shovel and got off with a light warning, even after my parents came to explain the severity of the situation. The activities that you could do in 1st grade were exactly the same as those you could do in 3rd grade. The next "transition" (room with different activities) was grade 4. In my experience, the purpose of this particular Montessori school was to be a daycare, not to educate. It was just awful. I'm not saying all Montessori schools are awful; I'm saying the one I was forced to endure was awful.

quesera 14y ago
As everywhere, incompetents are attracted to situations where evaluation is non-traditional. Especially when they get to use a sophisticated label for themselves and get away with abusing the term. Sorry your experience sucked so badly. I hope someone fixed that school.
hamai 14y ago
Sorry to hear that, I was lucky to spent my early years in a awesome Montessori school. The principal was probably responsible for it's success, she was a visionary. When I finally went to an ordinary school it felt like an overpopulated prison. On the bright side, everything was so easy, it was like vacation on a shitty environment.
peterb 14y ago
Agreed. The business of "Montessori Schools" and the teachings of Maria Montessori are often two very different things.
brlewis 14y ago
There is no trademark protection for the word "Montessori" so any school can call itself that. Do you know if this school was accredited? I can't think of a more anti-Montessori environment than one where it's possible for a student to lie about daily activities. The central focus of a Montessori teacher is observing and directing students.
- thejteam 14y ago
  In Maryland in order for a school to call itself "Montessori" it has to be approved by some national Montessori association. The sole purpose of this seems to be to make money for national Montessori associations. My daughter went to a Montessori school for pre-K. Based on my observations of the school it was great for pre-K and K, but awful above that. There were a lot of the same problems you describe. Half the kids seemed to have ADD and parents opposed to medication. Groups of kids tormenting others so that the class will consist only of their group. And teachers that just stand by and let this happen. And in my case, the owners of the school were complete idiots. Still, for that year in pre-K my daughter got a great education.
  - chogg 14y ago
    Standards vary widely, in part because of the lack of trademark protection mentioned above. It's critically important to observe in person before sending your kids to any "Montessori" school. We've sent our daughter to Montessori for a year and a bit, and it's been a joy to watch her blossom. We're moving soon, and keeping an eye out for a Montessori school that goes up to 6th grade.

quesera 14y ago

As everywhere, incompetents are attracted to situations where evaluation is non-traditional. Especially when they get to use a sophisticated label for themselves and get away with abusing the term. Sorry your experience sucked so badly. I hope someone fixed that school.

hamai 14y ago

Sorry to hear that, I was lucky to spent my early years in a awesome Montessori school. The principal was probably responsible for it's success, she was a visionary. When I finally went to an ordinary school it felt like an overpopulated prison. On the bright side, everything was so easy, it was like vacation on a shitty environment.

peterb 14y ago

Agreed. The business of "Montessori Schools" and the teachings of Maria Montessori are often two very different things.

brlewis 14y ago

There is no trademark protection for the word "Montessori" so any school can call itself that. Do you know if this school was accredited? I can't think of a more anti-Montessori environment than one where it's possible for a student to lie about daily activities. The central focus of a Montessori teacher is observing and directing students.

thejteam 14y ago
In Maryland in order for a school to call itself "Montessori" it has to be approved by some national Montessori association. The sole purpose of this seems to be to make money for national Montessori associations. My daughter went to a Montessori school for pre-K. Based on my observations of the school it was great for pre-K and K, but awful above that. There were a lot of the same problems you describe. Half the kids seemed to have ADD and parents opposed to medication. Groups of kids tormenting others so that the class will consist only of their group. And teachers that just stand by and let this happen. And in my case, the owners of the school were complete idiots. Still, for that year in pre-K my daughter got a great education.
- chogg 14y ago
  Standards vary widely, in part because of the lack of trademark protection mentioned above. It's critically important to observe in person before sending your kids to any "Montessori" school. We've sent our daughter to Montessori for a year and a bit, and it's been a joy to watch her blossom. We're moving soon, and keeping an eye out for a Montessori school that goes up to 6th grade.