Hello, Dear Parent Friends of the Web!
Here is a touch of my wisdom... to make a difference in the tapestry of life.
Montessori Models of Practice
Under the Guidance of Confused Leadership.
This is my personal reflection as an activist for change in the practice of Montessori.
Today, Montessori is a spectrum of practices⏤named in accordance with its interpreters, interpretations, and implementors. However, Montessori was founded by Dr Maria Montessori upon holistically balanced, compassionately grounded, 'living to learn' ideals.
Dr Montessori understood the cosmic scheme of interconnectedness underpinned by moral principles. She saw that everything exists to serve two concomitant purposes⏤directly and indirectly⏤in that of serving the direct purpose of survival, and the indirect purpose of cooperating to sustain the totality of ever-evolving 'life and being'.
She clearly understood the evolutionary principles in relation to inorganic matter⏤governed by the conditioned interactions of substances, and organic matter⏤subjected to processes of natural selection. Above all, she saw the advent of man empowered with the potential to surpass his inherent instinctual tendencies. Yes, this unique being endowed with an upright and adaptable physique along with a psyche powered by volition, reason, and imagination was looked upon as the determinant of unfolding human time operating in tandem with nature's sublime moral principles of 'equality and reciprocity'.
It is my conviction through my personal life-experience⏤from the very inception of my life ⏤in the treasured company of my mother (inspired and trained under Dr. Maria Montessori in 1944), that this educational model was founded based upon a crystallized vision of our intended human purpose, within the vast cosmic scheme of interrelatedness. This purpose is, however, centered upon the notion that the human being, by potential, stands above all other earthly forms of sentience for the simple reason that it is 'a spiritual being' endowed with the capacity to transform or sublimate its instinctual tendencies.
Today, I am deeply concerned about modern day Montessori practices⏤under the leadership of supposed pedagogues⏤whose lives may have been colored by the interpretations and diffusions of their own personal conditionings. Alternatively, these practices may be the outcroppings influenced by a consensus of confused idealists who missed the most basic premise upon which Montessori was founded. Whatever the case might be, under these diluted and deluded practices, so called 'farm school models for adolescents' continue to foster the primitive instinctual tendencies in children⏤in the name of 'organic farming' which I apprehend as an adulteration of what Dr Maria Montessori described and intended it to be.
It is truly disheartening that children in these farm school models learn only to nurture their selfish human traits in fulfillment of basic needs⏤as opposed to embracing the higher element of human spirituality⏤while overlooking the precious nature of another life wishing for its own happiness. This, I believe, is a deception of Dr. Montessori's point of perspective and a disingenuous path, overall, in misleading uninformed citizens who venture to understand Montessori, at its best.
I have come to learn that this farm school model seeks to immerse children in the reality of practical life experiences within a network of sociocultural commercial organization. In my opinion, practical life-experience must be grounded upon compassionate moral principles that are inclusive and altruistic wishing happiness for every form of sentience. It must take into consideration the developed earthly conditions of this day and age⏤ abundant with a multitude of choices for the exercise of the human free will⏤quite contrary to the primitive earthly conditions that prevailed long ago, justifying the need for hunters and food gatherers. The unfolding story of LIFE, needless to say, exemplifies the characteristics and conditions for human civilization through evolutionary time⏤unravelling our existential potential from the coarse, gross, physical to the spiritual ascent of man. In consideration of the aforementioned, why on earth should there be a necessity to revert to our centripetal tendencies?
In a civilized world of relationships, when choices are innumerable, to reiterate, it is beyond my level of higher consciousness as to why today's Montessori advocates learning by practical life experience⏤engaging adolescents in morally eroding and degrading contrived processes of learning. Under this scheme of staying abreast of a relational world, animals are raised⏤masked by the misconstrued notion of caring for them⏤influenced by selfish motives, of course! They are slaughtered for food and brought to the tabletop under the expression of 'cultivating self-sufficiency', while claiming to gain an understanding in regard to other intersecting facets of learning⏤to include trade and commerce.
However, this course of advocacy in learning is not in alignment with the hard core principles of PEACE and NON-VIOLENCE in Montessori while it only continues to inflict harm upon helpless creatures⏤diminishing the precious nature of these living beings and their right 'to live', as much as we do! There is obviously a systematic desensitization of the human sentiment through the cultivation of this type of utter selfishness⏤when, in fact, the relational world may be equally well understood by means of practical life activities that revolve around organic farming, centered upon the plant world.
It is my personal conviction that the moral principles genuinely advocated by Dr. Maria Montessori have been artfully modified⏤in keeping with the interpretations of the ‘modern day pedagogues’ leading the Montessori movement. No reasoning, however, surpasses the ultimate universal moral principles of ‘equality’ (by way of equal respect and reverence towards all beings of sentience) and ‘reciprocity' (by way of causes and their natural consequences in mutual creation) that underpin all acts of human body, speech, and mind.
I am questioning if Maria Montessori who was an ardent proponent of non-violence (during the time of my mother's pioneering training under her, some five decades ago) with her expression...
"when you swat the first fly in the presence of your child, you have set the first example of violence in your home!"
...changed her mind to deviate from her other-centered compassionate approach to grounding children.
All in all, it has always been Dr Montessori's plea to stand resolutely⏤in adherence to the twin principles of 'equal respect and responsibility'⏤in our efforts to sustain compassionately grounded learning, by experience.
Today, the world suffers from desensitized human conditioning. In our hopefully civilized conditions and settings, the human free will must be exercised nurturing PEACE through non-violence (or no harm inflicted upon other beings of sentience), besides us humans who claim⏤selfishly and instinctively⏤to reign supreme. Today our world is ravaged and entangled by human misconceptions, and thereby, the misconducts of human ignorance. All of the natural consequences by which we suffer as 'climate change' and a host of other interdependencies, are due to the ever broadening cracks of moral degradation caused by the misdeeds of human conditioning that we, together, may only transform⏤with altruistically balanced intentions.
Besides desensitizing adolescents in the name of achieving practical-life oriented, selfishly motivated educational objectives, wouldn’t it make more sense to show them how to protect the environment and its ecological balance⏤freed from rearing animals for gluttonous meat-consumption that has already taken a considerable toll on this Earth, to our rude awakening?
It is time that we wake up to realize that children of humanity, born innocent, do not deserve to be mislead and desensitized under the ideals of confused Montessori. While we aspire to be civilized beings treading upward along the spiritual ladder, we must never override the fact that we are bestowed with the capacity to mindfully cultivate higher values⏤emulating an attitude of loving kindness towards all beings of sentience that deserve our unconditional respect and reverence. Let us keep in mind, those who are conditioned with a selfish mentality are the very people who will potentially have no problem committing undue harm upon others, for they have been desensitized by life-experience⏤undermining the preciousness of life to suit their instinctual tendencies.
The aforementioned misuse and misinterpretation of Montessori marked by the expression 'Humane Kindness of the Erdkinder' raises controversy. Erdkinder⏤meaning 'earth child' in German⏤seeks to convey Dr. Maria Montessori's educational vision in aid of the psychophysical development of the adolescent. Regrettably, today's practice of 'humane kindness'⏤in so-called Montessori Farm School models⏤is centered upon the 'self-serving' human alone while over-looking the precious nature of non-human life; this is seemingly a moral degradation of Dr. Maria Montessori's all-inclusive compassionate vision.
ETHICALLY BALANCED OTHER-CENTERED COMPASSIONATE ACTIVITY IS THE GUIDING PRINCIPLE THAT MUST UNDERLIE ALL FACETS OF LEARNING.
This is is the only way to close the gap between violence and non-violence. This, I believe, is what Dr. Maria Montessori intended to convey always!
Let me walk you along the path of peace and grace. Humanity cries out loud for help.
