Maria Montessori

 

Maria Montessori was a doctor, educator, mother, and icon in the educational sphere. She became one of the first female physicians in Italy in 1896. Her early work as a physician led to her being employed as a surgical assistant in Rome. It was through this position that she came to work with the poor, children in particular. From there, she went on to work on a research program, where she worked with children in an asylum in the slums of Rome. It was here that her method and her role as an innovative educator were born. 

She became an advocate for social reform through education. She petitioned heads of state for the education of teachers to work with children with special needs and asked that adequate provisions be made available to these children to help them learn and grow. She studied sensorial education for children with special needs at an institution in Paris. It was there, under the tutelage of Edouard Séguin, that Montessori developed respect for the needs of each individual child and came to learn that there could be equipment to help develop the sensory perceptions and motor skills of intellectually challenged children.

Over the next few years, Maria Montessori went on to further develop these notions of the child as a whole person worthy of respect. She lectured to other educators about the needs of children and advocated for social and educational reform. She later went on to open the Case dei Bambini in Italy in 1907, and throughout the next few years, more of these schools were opened by educators throughout the world. 

In 1912, Maria Montessori brought her son Mario to live with her in Rome upon the death of her mother, and her educational method and pedagogy took off from there. Schools and training centers were being built all over the world. Her notes and findings from her training and teaching were published in 1912 in what is now known as The Montessori Method. Maria Montessori was nominated for the Nobel Prize three times for her work for peace and education for all children. She died in 1952, but her legacy continues to live on today through the multitude of Montessori programs, training centers, and educators across the globe.