## The New Yorker published an article by Jessica Winter about Montessori education It opened up a controversial discussion on social media got criticized. --- \ [](https://www.newyorker.com/books/under-review/the-miseducation-of-maria-montessori) # [The Miseducation of Maria Montessori](https://www.newyorker.com/books/under-review/the-miseducation-of-maria-montessori) *Her method was meant for the public. Then it became a privilege.* **By [Jessica Winter](https://www.newyorker.com/contributors/jessica-winter)** **March 3, 2022**\ [https://www.newyorker.com/books/under-review/the-miseducation-of-maria-montessori](https://www.newyorker.com/books/under-review/the-miseducation-of-maria-montessori) --- ## Response by some Montessori Educators from the USA On March 9, 2022, a group of people with Montessori backgrounds in the USA responded to this article. [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-BEOLt4ynl5_Ryg_t3N_JsJkL9UW30dx/view](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-BEOLt4ynl5_Ryg_t3N_JsJkL9UW30dx/view) --- ## Response by Alicia Diaz David in Teach Learn Montessori On March 13, 2022 a response to this article was posted by **[Alicia Díaz-David](https://www.facebook.com/groups/508077912670003/user/9901713/?__cft__%5B0%5D=AZW_ya1wtPJ54ziMlNeMKhHcZCdfaXhJOZQHyLxdVDel3f9wAxnqbDHVmwrelT1R44T5c38NTN3spSV9SiX-H0hWwtKJV_qE0yUu4rE0Rdw7_NfsH0CbBhlIHJnf2ebg381697fibowr1qpmXNNeM91U37uvuhsG3_-W2_LPCfdalm3F6-d0urD8pupSZRc4dHg&__tn__=%2CP-R)** [https://www.teachlearnmontessori.org/blog/montessori-miseducation-conversation](https://www.teachlearnmontessori.org/blog/montessori-miseducation-conversation) --- ## Census Map of Montessori Schools in the USA Thanks to Angela Murray to provide the link to the Census Map about Montessori Schools in the USA: **[Angela Murray](https://www.facebook.com/groups/508077912670003/user/1379232623/?__cft__%5B0%5D=AZWYtXi3VHQGDybp2rpulUhtxZ4dkTyAqrJCgaaSZ5yvncKw-l2lpubyE2lo0Kqg8-2L7j44C2UkpobhPzI4y9jAVP2dU_e9RXrmdIisg-kPReYT970sNdnqO_wWlMx-3aj9vN67l7zQyu_7cSg1NDisbCar8IGEtzFnr0FgFMfFmfHVKwyUhiv0R_E2pWdoh9Q&__tn__=R%5D-R)** Given that this was an article in a U.S. periodical, the response was focused on the situation in the states. You can see the count of schools in the U.S. at [https://www.montessoricensus.org/](https://www.montessoricensus.org/) --- ## Mira Debts responses on Twitter to the New Yorker article [https://twitter.com/mira_debs/status/1500929771269763074?fbclid=IwAR3MXFUgQdzpFJItbb5ue51ySRzf_tJcpcw6l0Cct_-X4t3hIVDi9fphdkU](https://twitter.com/mira_debs/status/1500929771269763074?fbclid=IwAR3MXFUgQdzpFJItbb5ue51ySRzf_tJcpcw6l0Cct_-X4t3hIVDi9fphdkU) --- ## Our Response from MWC Here is our response to the article in the New Yorker and its responses: **[Andi Becker](https://www.facebook.com/groups/508077912670003/user/1145823842/?__cft__%5B0%5D=AZWYtXi3VHQGDybp2rpulUhtxZ4dkTyAqrJCgaaSZ5yvncKw-l2lpubyE2lo0Kqg8-2L7j44C2UkpobhPzI4y9jAVP2dU_e9RXrmdIisg-kPReYT970sNdnqO_wWlMx-3aj9vN67l7zQyu_7cSg1NDisbCar8IGEtzFnr0FgFMfFmfHVKwyUhiv0R_E2pWdoh9Q&__tn__=R%5D-R)** The article shows pretty well actually what many who like to enroll their children into a Montessori school think. Montessori = Expensive - no sorry it is VERY expensive and many schools work more like a private money printing machine for their owners rather than being a promoter for Montessori for All. \ Those Montessori Scholars who wrote and signed that response should better have done some proper research on FACTS rather than claiming that the article writer failed to do proper research. In the Netherlands, we have of course also have private Montessori schools. [https://www.zeinchildcare.nl/tags/montessori](https://www.zeinchildcare.nl/tags/montessori) is one of those. while there are a lot of public Montessori Schools too but many of them carry the name Montessori rather than being really one of those. \ \ [https://amsterdam-mamas.nl/articles/montessori-schooling-dutch-public-system](https://amsterdam-mamas.nl/articles/montessori-schooling-dutch-public-system)\ \ In an article about the Dutch public school system, you can read the following and it explains why we have so many Montessori Schools.\ \ What You May Not Get\ 1\. Teacher training - Dutch Montessori teachers receive their Montessori training as part of their teaching qualification. They do not follow a diploma from AMI, AMS, or other Montessori training organizations. Of course, there are many good Montessori teachers in the Netherlands, but it might be that their training is different from someone who went through a dedicated Montessori training program.\ \ 2\. Budgets - As schools are publicly funded, you may find that the quality of the Montessori materials is not the standard you would find in a private school in another country. The materials are expensive, and I have seen some materials that were incomplete and/or “well-loved”. Completely understandable given their budgets, but good to know.\ \ In Germany where I initiated a parent-run Montessori Kinderhouse 35 years ago, which is now a Family Center with multiple activities for all ages the Montessori Kinderhouse is only one aspect of it too. While the German Montessori Diploma given by the Montessori Vereinigung had been approved by Mario Montessori himself the training is often criticized for being not fully AMI conform - WHY - yes it is of course NOT conform if you think about the price and time to invest to get it! But all other parts definitely are following the strong AMI standards. Via AMI/AMS you need to take lots of courses to achieve a fully 0-12 compliancy while in Germany i.e. the AMI Montessori Diploma had cost 1500 DM now a little bit more. Euro, it lasted 15 months and at its end, you receive a Fully AMI-approved Montessori Diploma. In short, it is affordable for nearly everybody while the teachers go often into debt to pay 18.000 USD and more for only ONE course, and they even have to quit the job, pay for a rented premise and living during that time they participate in the course which covers only 3 years!!! if lucky 6. [https://deutsche-montessori-vereinigung.de/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Vertrag.pdf](https://deutsche-montessori-vereinigung.de/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Vertrag.pdf) The contract with Mario Montessori!\ \ While being a parent, a teacher, a Montessori guide, and an educational director of a Montessori School and now as Great Grand Father I have to say that the author might be mistaken here and there but she brings it somehow to the point, unfortunately leaving out the main reason for the fact that it is still something targeting wealthier people more than those who really are in need of it - the poor. I met lots of so-called Montessori Teachers and they had all kinds of diplomas incl. those of AMI/AMS but sorry, the only thing I saw was the paper they presented to be employed, while there were many who not even had a paper but were fascinated, even addicted to getting things done and they tried their best to implement as much as possible into their classroom often with very limited tools and support but they did it!\ \ Thailand was mentioned too and sorry- have you checked the situation of Public Montessori Schools in Thailand? Yes, there is a great initiative and we are working hard to get more and more public schools to be converted to be Montessori Schools.\ [https://montessori-international.com/s/thailand/](https://montessori-international.com/s/thailand/)\ All schools mentioned here with no banner and logo seem to be public schools but until now we only found some of them!\ \ And sorry 500 Public Schools for the whole USA??? That is a Joke - sorry to say that. It means less than 10 Montessori schools in a state. Could you please post a link where those 500 public Montessori schools have been documented and located?\ Again and again, the biggest problem in accomplishing that in a much faster and much cheaper way is \ \ 1\. copyrights\ 2\. patents \ 3\. accessibility (here mostly the financial situation!)\ \ and most of all COMPETITION. This competition actually had its main source in the US in the '60s when AMS got founded after the '60s a new PRIVATE Montessori School Movement started growing faster and faster even Montessori schools had nearly vanished after Maria Montessori had quitted her publisher.\ \ I am pretty sure that even Maria Montessori at one point also had to live from something after she had quit the university she never gave up on her original dream and that was on a Montessori school for ALL children in the world and not only for privileged ones.\ \ In 1943 she wrote that she is against any kind of competition and copyrights/patents/high costs/... are nothing else than pushing competition if they are used to monetize it. Fortunately, since a decade more and more books by Maria Montessori come into the public Domain, patents expired and lots of Chinese manufacturers meanwhile helped to drop the prices on Materials. But still, the biggest burden to make Montessori for All possible exists - Super High Priced Montessori Diplom Courses from all kinds of institutions incl. AMS/AMI! And there is also still the competition between Montessori organizations!\ \ "Everyone talks about peace but no one educates for peace. In this world, they educate for competition, and competition is the beginning of any war. When educating to cooperate and owe each other solidarity, that day we will be educating for peace.”\ \ Maria Montessori.\ \ The authors of that response letter should have known better - all of them who have signed! - Instead of starting to defend it might have been much better to reflect on the own incapabilities to provide a suitable approach so that every child in the world can access a Montessori School - no matter if rich or poor!\ \ So I like to ask all of those who have signed that letter to provide evidence that they are actively involved in projects that help to make Montessori for All becoming TRUE!\ I like to invite all of them to contribute with ideas and know-how on [https://montessori-international.com/](https://montessori-international.com/) where we try to build not only a directory of schools worldwide but also a resource center and most of all a course - or let's say courses - so that any teacher, any parent who is interested in Montessori can take it and can work through all materials, where he will be able to participate as an observer in existing Montessori Schools and where he will be like an Apprentice in learning more to become Master of himself by being mentored from professionals with years of experience, rather than having. nice paper hanging on the wall stating that they can do it. Erica Frank founder of [https://nextgenu.org](https://nextgenu.org) gave a great example fighting the shortage of health professionals in the world by providing FREE accredited courses and even Master degrees and we are looking forward to building Montessori Courses for that platform in the same way and with the same intention to fight the teacher shortage in the world. Only when teachers will be able to access high-quality Montessori Training without pricetags they can't afford we will have a chance to achieve what Maria Montessori wrote in the above quote. \ \ This becomes even more true since the Ukrainian had been invaded and many had to flee. It is a call to all Montessorians and it will separate the "wheat from the chaff". Let's LIVE MONTESSORI. Thank You! --- This response as well as the referred response to the article by the other group of people with Montessori background fails to mention the main problem of Montessori Education at its current state. The training to become a Montessori teacher! That is where the high price wheel starts and as long as we haven't got a Montessori teacher Training for All that won't change. I had responded to the NewYorker article already but as it is difficult FB to search I simply write it here again. Thanks to Angela Murray who provided me the link to the Montessori schools in the US (private and public) but again, and unfortunately, it is not visible what training the public school teachers actually went through and how many of them were able to participate on a high price AMI or AMS training, two main organizations in the US (now - since AMI started to intensify their efforts in the US). That wasn't always so and actually, it is pretty un Montessorians what is going on - It is competition and competition is the source for wars and conflicts. It wasn't always like that. 1962 the AMS and AMI actually signed an agreement to work together and support each other but unfortunately, that agreement was only a 5-year agreement and expired in 1967! Jana Morgan Herman had published the paper recently. Thanks! ---  **[Andi Becker](https://www.facebook.com/andibecker?comment_id=Y29tbWVudDoxODE2MDIzNjQ1MjcwMDU1XzE4MTYwNjk5Njg1OTg3NTY%3D&__cft__%5B0%5D=AZUhq9IxWWDH00Tcge9KcoZih4DQNHnjGtMQvpF4MyzahI1w-4CuOWcuzaVDBnyG-cYlJPAOmy6k27ColH3ngCr78gn0sGwxp9XngUpn6h7cR8Ao9eNrEMGdFdPsZETpc90WBggUYA4xsDaGSQO3UV9hTEmt7SvMUP8t34lzS8NxTA&__tn__=R\*F)** This was 1962 and it was actually agreed for only 5 years! (unfortunately) If that agreement would have worked out perfectly it would have been extended and absolutely no need to start an AMI USA Branch but things went in the other direction and now we have AMS with their conferences and we have AMI-USA with theirs too and both actually don't follow anymore the true Montessori Spirit to NOT COMPETE! as that is what they and meanwhile many others that followed that example of "cooperation" that did not work out and started their own programs and worst of all - meanwhile it is mostly about money and having the "Name" but the original intention and Montessori Spirit got lost. "Everyone talks about peace but no one educates for peace. In this world, they educate for competition, and competition is the beginning of any war. When educating to cooperate and owe each other solidarity, that day we will be educating for peace.” Maria Montessori. We all need to get back to this cooperation and solidarity - Inspire to share! instead of Inspire to run your own schools and print money Ethos.