You Can't Know Where You Are Going Until You Know Where You Have Been

"The Greatest Triumph of Our Educational Method Should Always Be To Bring About The Spontaneous Progress of the Child"

This quote, attributed to Dr. Montessori, speaks directly to the state of education today, both nationally and locally.  We are at a point where, locally our districts are being driven by national, regional and state standards; test scores and district budgets determine the success of a school.  The progress of the children is measured, evaluated and determined by test performance.    

 Alfred Binet first used a standardized test to identify learning-impaired Parisian children in the early 1900s, as a way of dealing with the task of educating everyone, not just the wealthy.  In the 1970's and again in the 1980's testing was re-examined.  Now, some states are in the process of adapting state tests to reflect the Common Core Standards.  

American Psychological Association President-elect Diane F. Halpern, PhD, of Claremont McKenna College acknowledges "We will always need some way of making intelligent decisions about people," says Halpern. "We're not all the same; we have different skills and abilities. What's wrong is thinking of intelligence as a fixed, innate ability, instead of something that develops in a context."

What if every learning environment was child centered, sequentially ordered, and meticulously maintained?  What if every teacher was extensively trained in child development, observation, and cognitive development?  What if every teacher knew how to recognize when a child's quest for knowledge was satisfied and it was time to introduce something new?  What if there were no text books, work books, or worksheets, and the children in classrooms were always actively engaged in learning and allowed to work at their own pace?  What if each teacher had the ability to individualize each lesson given so that it fit each child's needs for instruction?  What if there was no such thing as a "Social Emotional Curriculum" because this was actually a part of the daily environment always?  What if every classroom was ecologically responsible, and a respect for nature was cultivated within each child?  What if establishing peace became the goal of education, instead of teaching to the test?  What if the classroom was full of age peers, older examples and younger children who needed a role model to look up to?  What if there were concrete materials to express abstract ideas, and sensory education and movement were incorporated in all lessons?

What if, 100 years ago we looked to Dr. Maria Montessori instead of Alfred Binet?