by I had an interesting conversation with a prospective parent recently who teaches at a local college. She shared that she and her colleagues are constantly discussing “how underprepared kids are for college in terms of ‘soft skills.’” By soft skills she meant skills other than the purely academic — the personal qualities, habits and attitudes that make someone a successful college student and, by extension, a good boss or employee later in life. She had just come from an observation in toddlers and primary and was surprised to have seen that in Montessori, “starting in toddlers students develop the self-motivation, independence, and follow-through that many college students lack!” In other words, beginning at these very young ages, Montessori children are already developing the soft skills that will benefit them so greatly later in life.
It was a pretty astute observation for a prospective parent seeing Montessori for the first time, and it got me thinking. When I talk to parents, I often describe a Montessori learning material, like the binomial cube, detective adjective game, or golden beads, that leads to the acquisition of academic or “hard skills.” Obviously, hard skills are important, but soft skills are equally so.
One of the most important is self-motivation. In my experience children are born self-motivated. Any parent reflecting upon their own child’s acquisition of the skill of walking is bound to agree. At no point did you need to motivate your child to learn how to walk, did you? Instead, he did it all on his own, through arduous repetition and gradual improvement. And what did he do after he taught himself this difficult skill? He added the next movement challenges — running, climbing stairs and carrying objects – entirely on his own initiative! So perhaps our job is often just to get out of his way, to remove obstacles from his path, and give him the time he needs to do his work. In other words, our job is not to motivate him but rather to be sure that we don’t inadvertently blunt his own internal motivation.
One way we can avoid that is by not doing things for her that she can learn to do them for herself. We can also allow her the time she needs by slowing ourselves down to match her pace, rather than forcing her to conform to ours. Of equal importance is allowing her to choose her own activities. When are you more likely to be self-motivated – when doing something someone else has chosen for you? Or, when doing an activity you have chosen for yourself?
Doesn’t this perfectly describe the atmosphere of a Montessori classroom? From their earliest days in Montessori, children are shown how to do a thousand and one activities for themselves, and then given time and choice. They are shown how to care for their own needs, as well as to care for their friends and their environment. We train ourselves as Montessori adults to get out of the way, let them do for themselves, and never to give more help than they need.
And what will you acquire if you are choosing things to do without undue help and without external motivation? Independence, the second of the soft skills to which our college professor referred. And if you have chosen it for yourself, you will have the self-motivation to follow-through and persevere through whatever challenges or difficulties may arise.
Obviously, the hard skills are important, but they don’t do you much good without the personal qualities, skills and attitudes that allow you to use the hard skills effectively. That’s why in Montessori we are working with children to develop the whole range of skills, hard and soft, that he or she will need as they take their place as an adult in society many years from now.
Please Note that the American Montessori Society certifies teachers trained in many American Colleges as Montessori School Head Teachers.
I was trained in a program that required 2 Full Years, at the Graduate School level. Coursework included all subject matter areas of Montessori, as well as Education courses, Child Development, and a One Year Internship, in the 2nd year, Teaching Everyday for 9 months in a Montessori School Classroom.
AMI training is much shorter, often only 6 weeks, and is not at the college level.
Parents need to inquire as to the length and level of the training of the teachers in the Montessori School they are considering for their child.
Barbara you are totally wrong about the Montessori training. The shortest course which is shorter because it’s very intense lasts 9 months. Of course there are Montessori courses that last 2-3 years. Finally it’s not the classical education knowledge that you get, it’s the understanding of the Montessori philosophy and how it’s reflected in the materials that become part of the environment.
The biggest issue of all the associations is that unfortunately a course being it AMI or AMS can’t make you become a good Montessori teacher if you aren’t an individual who lives his daily life based on these characteristics that this model of education wants to share.
I would appreciate it if you van give me a link where someone can get an AMI certificate in 6 weeks.
Such a pity that you felt you had to sully this great article with your negative, and incorrect, comments. Didn’t you ever think that maybe there would be a “better” place for such a comment? This was not it.
Just need to clarify that AMI training is an Montessori training program initiated by Maria Montessori herself and it’s not a short course but instead a year long training.
It’s more detail oriented than any other Montessori training.
AMI training requirements are consistently college level or above and quite rigorous.
It is certainly true that prospective parents must do their homework and seek the truth about the training their children’s potential teachers have received.
Parents can see more about AMI’s very stringent training requirements at: http://ami-global.org/training
It makes be sad that we are still fighting this battle! As someone who has been in this profession for almost 40 years we are both great programs and as Stefan J states that it is really about those who are great teachers and “get” teaching who are the models as Montessorians.
I wanted to share this article, but Barbara, your negative message is something that I do not want to pass on to parents. And I am also AMS trained.
It does not matter who writes great info about Montessori to be shared as long as some one does!
Peter, Thanks for the great article. I was wondering what was meant by “soft skills”. I will share your blog with our parents.
As the author of this article, I have to say that I am puzzled by the first comment, as the article has nothing whatsoever to do with teacher training. I do appreciate comments when they pertain to the actual content as that guides me in writing future posts. I think it’s important to note that all of us who contribute to this website are volunteers, most of us with more-than-full-time jobs. I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we hope our blogs promote a better understanding of childhood. Hopefully, that is a goal we can all share.
Didn’t MarIa Montessori say that we should educate for peace? Competition is the beginning of war, while cooperation and solidarity are ingredients for peace? Training, becoming a Montessori “person”, is what it’s all about. You know you have become one, when you find yourself observing everyone and everything. When an empty toilet paper roll, can become many things. When every single bottle and box are seen as something useful. When learning becomes a joy. When Montessori becomes a way of life, flowing through your veins. When you see that you have changed the way you view others…When others mean so much to you, and the little ones have your heart melting… You are definitely a Montessorian no matter where you trained!!
This is the best comment I read on here. The one that made me proud to be a Montessorian because it is what I learned most importantly from my training and what we want to pass on to the children, our future generations….. Peace, acceptance, and how working together makes for a better world. Not the criticism and separation.
Mr. Davidson, it was a wonderful article which I truly enjoy and believe. Keep them coming!
May I request that the administrators of this website delete these comments that are comparing AMS & AMI?
I’d love to share this beautiful piece about “soft skills,” which are so key in Montessori education. As I was reading, I was prepared to print this and attach it to all of our Progress Reports and also send a link in my class newsletter. However, as Susan noted, I do not wish to pass these negative comments along to parents.
I respectfully support this request. I’m quite saddened to think parent communities will be seeing this dialogue.
Hello
Its a great article. Could you explain how montessori methods can help children with autism? My son is 5 yrs and has moderate autism. He is enrolled in a montessori school but he does not take interest in any activities except animals that too just holding them in hand.
Any guidance would be appreciated.
Thanks
Anjali
Thank you for the great article! I am a Montessori kid (well, I’m turning 48 this week so maybe more of a kid at heart), and I find these “soft” skills still prevalent in all that I do. 🙂 A few years ago while at my parents’ house I found one of Maria Montessori’s books and read it. I not only loved it, but I was also amused to discover that many of her practices have beco.e a part of me :). Look at any scrap of paper that is nearby when I am on the phone, and you will see squares, triangles, circles and all sorts of shapes all filled in with carefully spaced lines! 🙂 Not surprisingly, I have a pretty good eye for space these days! 🙂 Thanks Maria! 🙂
Omah, what a great comment! So much fun to read. You are why we do what we do. And yes, please remove the negative comments about our trainings. Let’s speak as one voice to share the terrific work that is Montessori.
Admin note: I did consider deleting the comment, but decided against it to protect the freedom of expression on this forum. Barbara’s comment about training is misguided (read: not factual) but I hope that we can educate her with the same patience, love and support that we all strive for in our work with children.
Dear Anjali,
It’s quite difficult for me to give good advice about any child I don’t know personally, since each is so unique and different. You seem to have a confident diagnosis of autism. That diagnosis must have come from a specialized professional. That may be a person to ask for advice as to your child’s fit in different kinds of environments. If nothing else, you may be able to put your child’s Montessori teacher into contact with this professional, so that he/she has a resource with whom to discuss autism and your child. I hope that helps a little bit.
Nowadays there is a great awareness among people and many are concentrating towards soft skills than hard skills. It seems to be a good sign!!
It’s very interesting that soft skills have been ignored at schools and various studies now show that Generation Y graduates don’t have the necessary soft skills to lend a job despite their academic or technical skills. It’s good to know they are institutions that try to introduce learners to soft skills as early as possible. Great article!