Maria Montessori

Maria Montessori was an Italian physician and educator who is best known for her philosophy of education. She was born in Chiaravalle in 1870. A woman ahead of her time, Montessori was one of the first women to graduate medical school in Italy. Her career as a physician led her to work with children with additional support needs. Her advocacy for these children, expressed in a pedagogical congress in Turin in 1899, led to an opportunity to direct an orthophrenic school for two years, which laid the foundation for her scientific pedagogy and her turn into education.

After her resignation, and while facing a challenging time in her personal life, Montessori went back to school and attended courses in philosophy and psychology, which further prepared her for what was to come. She also continued to lecture and practice medicine during this time. In 1907 a unique opportunity arose for Montessori to work with young children in the slums of Rome,

It was in the area of San Lorenzo where Montessori accepted the responsibility to care for sixty children under six years of age in one room within a tenement house. Through observing the child diligently and with a scientific mind, Montessori was able to see how children learn and what best supports their development through different stages of life. This experience and what followed is what made her name known all over the world as the Montessori movement widely spread. Today Montessori schools can be found in 154 countries.

Montessori brought the natural characteristics of childhood to the conversation of education while devising a pedagogy that gives children the upmost respect. Montessori education allows childrern to learn at their own pace in an environment that stimulates their natural desire for learning and promotes their independence and inner strength.

Maria Montessori traveled the world giving lectures and training courses. She passed away in her house in Holland in 1952.