What Is a Montessori School

Montessori schools follow the philosophy of Dr. Maria Montessori, Italys first female doctor who dedicated her life to discovering more about how children learn. Today, there are Montessori schools around the world. Heres more about Dr. Montessori and the Montessori Method based on her teachings. More About Maria Montessori Dr. Montessori (1870-1952) studied medicine at the University of Rome  and graduated, despite harassment over her gender. After graduating, she became involved with the study of children with mental disabilities and read widely in the field of education. She later helped to direct a school to train teachers to work with mentally disabled children. The school won acclaim from authorities for its compassionate and scientific care of children. After studying philosophy (which we would today recognize as closer to the field of psychology), she was involved in 1907 in opening Casa dei Bambini, a school for the children of working parents in the Roman slum of San Lorenzo. She helped to direct this school but did not teach the children directly. In this school, she developed many of the methods that became the core of her educational Montessori Method, including using light, child-sized furniture that the children could move as they liked, and using her materials instead of traditional toys. In addition, she asked the children to take care of many practical activities, such as sweeping, caring for pets, and cooking. She noticed that over time, children left to explore and play on their own developed self-initiative and self-discipline. Montessoris methods became so popular that schools based on her methodology spread across Europe and the world. The first American school based on the Montessori Method opened in Tarrytown, New York, in 1911. Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, was a huge proponent of the Montessori Method, and he and his wife opened a school in their home in Canada. Dr. Montessori wrote many books about her educational methods, including The Montessori Method (1916), and she opened training centers for teachers around the world. In later years, she was also an advocate of pacifism. What is the Montessori Method Like Today? There are currently over 20,000 Montessori schools around the world, which educate children from birth to age 18. Most of the schools serve young children from about age 2 or 2.5 years to age 5 or 6. The schools that use the name Montessori in their titles vary with regard to how strictly they adhere to Montessori methods, so parents should be sure to research the schools methods carefully before enrolling their children. There is some controversy in the Montessori community about what constitutes a Montessori school. The American Montessori Society keeps a list of schools and teacher training programs. Montessori schools intend to foster the creativity of their students by encouraging them to play independently. Students often can choose what to play with, and they interact with Montessori materials rather than with traditional toys. Through discovery rather than direct instruction, they work to develop independence, self-reliance, and confidence. Usually, classrooms have child-size furniture, and the materials are placed on shelves where the children can reach them. Teachers often introduce the materials, and then children can choose when to use them. Montessori materials are often practical in nature and include pitchers from which to measure, natural materials such as shells, and puzzles and blocks. The materials are often constructed from wood or textiles. The materials also help children develop skills such as fastening buttons, measuring, and building, and they are designed to help the children master these skills over time through their own self-directed practice. In addition, children are usually taught in mixed-aged classrooms so that older children can help nurture and teach younger children, thereby increasing the older childrens self-confidence. The same teacher generally stays with children for their entire time in one grouping, and therefore the teachers get to know the students very well and help guide their learning. Article  edited by  Stacy Jagodowski

Causes and Effects of Watershed Degradation - 7239 Words

USING SUITABLE EXAMPLES FROM KENYA, EXAMINE THE CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF WATERSHED DEGRADATION AND SUGGEST POSSIBLE INTERVENTION MEASURES TABLE OF CONTENTS CAUSES, EFFECTS AND SOLUTIONS TO WATERSHED DEGRADATION PREAMBLE Page 4 1. INTRODUCTION Page 4 - 6 2. Causes of Watershed Degradation Page 7 2.1 Land degradation 7 - 8 2.2 Deforestation 8 2.3 Removal of vegetation 8 2.4 Shifting cultivation without adequate fallow periods 9 2.5 Overgrazing 9 2.6 Poor farming methods 9 - 10 2.7 Cultivation of marginal lands 10 - 11 2.8 Improper crop rotations 11 2.9 Unbalanced fertilizer use 11 2.10 Pests and diseases 11 3. Underlying causes†¦show more content†¦But a watershed is more than a collection of streams and adjacent land areas--it is a natural resource system in which humans and other organisms interact with the land and its associated resources for sustenance, shelter, and security. The physical condition of a watershed, therefore, directly affects the health and well being of natural and social systems within its divides and indirectly affects those systems beyond its divides. Degradation of a watershed can have various forms: depletion of water resources, soil erosion and land degradation, impoverishment of the vegetative cover, and damage to the infrastructure. Land degradation is responsible for reduction of the vegetation cover. It can be caused by inadequate land management, overexploitation, and reduced soil fertility, but also by climatic factors. A poor vegetation cover leads to a reduced infiltration rate of the water into the soil and to a loss of water through surface runoff. Surface runoff is one of the reasons for the depletion of water resources on the one hand and for soil erosion on the other hand. Most of the surface runoff is not controlled or effectively used and so lost for the community. 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The purpose of this paper is to examine the cha nges in water temperature and dissolvedRead MoreThe Effect Of Temperature And Dissolved Oxygen Concentration Associated With Wildfires1374 Words   |  6 Pagesladder fuels within forests across this region. Both of these factors are now contributing to more frequent and more extreme fires in recent years. These catastrophic fires cause significant changes to ground cover along stream corridors. The loss of ground cover significantly increases the amount of sediment entering watersheds, which can alter both temperature and dissolved oxygen levels throughout the system. The purpose of this paper is to examine the changes in water temperature and dissolvedRead MoreHow Do Minerals Affect Society? Minerals1679 Words   |  7 Pagesground to reach the mineral ore and then constructing horizontal shafts or tunnels to the mineral ore. The ore is the pumped onto the surface. 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New York MTA Free Essays

Traditional market structure suggests that all market decisions should be based on utilitarian theory. We often witness market decisions which neglect other important aspects of the market activity. As a result, we appear under the impact of one-side unbalanced decisions which ultimately neglect the principles of morality and moral theology of the marketplace. We will write a custom essay sample on New York MTA or any similar topic only for you Order Now Rising fares and tolls by MTA  Ã¢â‚¬Å"After an unusually vigorous and spirited debate, the board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority voted to raise fares on subways, buses and commuter railroads and tolls on bridges and tunnels† (Chan, 2007a). Why is it so surprising that not all members of the MTA board wanted to turn into the proponents of fares and tolls’ increase? Does this mean that more and more political and business players realize the importance of morality in taking market decisions? Evidently, the situation is much worse than one may imagine. One may initially think that increasing the fares will lead to less traffic congestion, and will urge more people to use public transport; yet, the public transport fares are being raised, too. From the viewpoint of those who vote for raising fares and tolls in New York, this decision is the first step towards â€Å"fiscal responsibility. The authority had for long applied windfalls and real estate taxes hoping that someone would bail us out and turning a blind eye to our responsibility to put this MTA on a firm future monetary structure† (Chan, 2007a). Simultaneously, from the viewpoint of morality and theology of the marketplace, commercial activity is not limited by rational market decisions, but also â€Å"confronts us with the moral predicaments† (Gregg, 2004). The major concern within this situation is that the decision to raise fares has completely neglected the position of those whom we traditionally consider to be vulnerable populations. The representative of Working Families Party is confident that raising fares will seriously hit working people (Benjamin, 2007). â€Å"Today, once again middle class New Yorkers and those struggling to make it, are bearing the cost†, Rep. Anthony Weiner said (Benjamin, 2007). â€Å"A fare hike now is the wrong choice for New York. It would hit many people who are struggling hard to make ends meet and hurt the region’s economy. [†¦] This fare hike will hit 86 percent of the riding public who use fare discounts. These include pay-per-ride bonus MetroCards and 7- and 30-day unlimited-ride passes. It’s also a double whammy for most L.I.R.R. and Metro-North commuters whose railroad fares would go up!† (Chan, 2007b) The discussed fare hike will also cause the bonuses’ decrease for riders (from 20 to 15 percent), and the discounted fare will cost $1.74 instead of $1.67 (Chan, 2007b). The problem is that New Yorkers pay more than they have to for the transport they use. â€Å"In 2005, riders paid 55 percent of the costs of running the subways and buses† (Chan, 2007b). Objectively, this is much higher that the riders in other cities pay: those in Boston do not compensate more than 29 percent of the discussed costs, and those in Philadelphia pay no more than 37 percent (Chan, 2007b). As the M.T.A reports $140 million reductions, does this mean that they will make the riders pay this amount through higher fares and tolls? Doubtlessly, the suggested fares and tolls increase will help compensate the under-financing of the MTA by the state Government, but if the decision framework remains unchanged, this compensation will actually take place for the account of the already mentioned vulnerable populations. â€Å"To rely upon utilitarianism as the moral – philosophical foundation of the case for the market creates tremendous difficulties for Catholics† (Gregg, 2004). The utilitarian desire to find the greatest good and to satisfy the masses does not meet the ethical and moral criteria of religion. Those who were taking the decision to raise the fares and tolls in New York have neglected one essential aspect in their decision making: when one looks for the means to produce the greatest pleasure for the greatest number of people, one has to perform numerous calculations and to produce the decision which satisfies everyone. From the viewpoint of moral theology, such calculations in market decision-making are simply impossible. â€Å"No person can make such an assessment without admitting a tremendous degree of ignorance about all the possible effects that might proceed from a freely chosen act† (Gregg, 2004). The MTA governors have evidently gone beyond their reasonable abilities, trying to persuade us that that the future with raised fares and tolls for everyone was better than other possible alternatives. The MTA board members view the increased tolls and fares as the means to close the gaps in MTA’s budget and to provide safe and reliable system of transportation for the New York’s citizens. However, it is not the ultimate goal for those who use public transport and belong to vulnerable layers of the city population. Conclusion The moral theology of marketplace rejects any uniform measures in defining the goals of decision making. This is why the governors should have considered the financial opportunities of those who cannot afford paying more for using public transport. The diversified structure of prices would resolve all moral and ethical issues, and would not create serious obstacles on the way towards better functioning of the city’s transportation systems. References Benjamin, E. (2007). MTA fare hike reactions (updated). Daily News. Retrieved February 17, 2008 from http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2007/12/mta-fare-hike-reactions.html Chan, S. (2007a). Board approves subway and bus fare increase. The New York Times. Retrieved February 17, 2008 from http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/12/19/mta-board-approves-fare-and-toll-increases/index.html?hp Chan, S. (2007b). Hundreds stranded online by botched M.T.A. â€Å"Webinar†. The New York Times. Retrieved February 17, 2008 from http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/12/10/mixed-reaction-to-new-mta-fare-plan/?hp Gregg, S. (2004). Ethics and the market economy: Insights from Catholic moral theology. IEA Economic Affairs, June, pp. 4-10. How to cite New York MTA, Essay examples