Montessori learning vs traditional school system learning

Montessori Learning Vs Traditional School System Learning Student Name University Course Professor Name Date Montessori Learning Vs Traditional School System Learning Education is a pillar in society’s growth, development, and personal fulfilment. In the quest to achieve a better education system, several philosophies have emerged, with varying approaches and principles to achieve their objectives. Montessori learning and traditional school system learning are among the most prominent educational approaches. Understanding existing education models is essential to parents and educators as they choose the best learning environments for their children. This essay argues that Montessori education fosters a more effective foundation for learning than the traditional school system. It cultivates a lifelong love of learning, promotes independence and critical thinking, and nurtures social and emotional development. This essay will examine each system’s model beliefs, classroom environments, teaching methods, and learner outcomes through a comparative analysis of the two approaches. Montessori Learning’s emphasis was on self-directed, hands-on learning and holistic development. It was developed in the 20th century by Dr. Maria Montessori (Lillard, 2017, p. 2). This philosophy is centred on nurturing a child’s natural curiosity, independence and love for self-driven learning through a student-centred environment. In this philosophy, children are viewed as naturally curious and can direct their learning. With the facilitator’s support, the students explore various subjects at their own pace. This exploration promotes independence and critical thinking, fosters emotional and social development, and increases the interest in learning (Isaacs, 2018, p. 29). The classrooms are shared with varying age groups, and materials for student exploration are provided to cater for diverse needs. The learning materials provided are designed to be visually appealing and organized in a child-friendly manner regarding size and accessibility. The traditional school system follows a structured curriculum led by a teacher with standardized exams and tests. This approach is based on the belief that students should use similar materials at the same pace in classroom settings, grouping the same age groups together (Denervaud et al., 2020, p. 172). There is extensive use of written materials and lectures as students demonstrate their understanding through assessments. The main advantage of Montessori education is its ability to cultivate intrinsic motivation. In comparison, the traditional system depends on academic performance: exam grades, which are extrinsic motivators. This behavior lowers the child’s natural curiosity and creates a pressure-filled environment. Self-regulated learning increases the effectiveness of education in comparison to reciprocal teaching. Montessori education allows the children to self-discover their learning areas of interest and pursue them, thus creating a sense of ownership and self-drive. They can quickly develop solutions to challenges they encounter in their learning (Isaacs, 2018, p. 29). The self-correcting mechanism adopted by this approach allows children to learn individually at their own pace and master content. Montessori education classrooms are made to spark the children’s interest in learning. The materials provided are multisensory; thus, they emphasize exploration and self-discovery. This model gives students the freedom to delve into topics they have an interest in. Thus, they do them passionately with a sense of ownership and engage in deeper learning of all concepts (Lillard et al., 2017, p. 20). Studies show that Montessori students have a more significant level of intrinsic motivation than those in traditional schools. The arrangement of Montessori classrooms includes having low-placed shelves to place learning materials for all the diverse subjects, such as art, music, mathematics, and sciences. The chairs are also designed to be child-friendly in size and height. It contrasts the traditional system, which depends on writ...