Angeline Stoll Lillard

Montessori is the oldest and most widespread alternative educational system available today. In the United States alone, Montessori is implemented in thousands of schools, including over 600 public ones. Its main claim is that the pedagogy is closely aligned with developmental science and that given the appropriate environment, infants and children develop themselves. Yet studies of the outcomes of this form of education have thus far been scattered, with no intensive qualitative review to inform parents, teachers, administrators, researchers, and school districts of what we know about Montessori's outcomes. The Montessori Difference examines and synthesizes the existing body of research on the outcomes of Montessori education to consider the efficacy of a Montessori education. It introduces the main tenets of Montessori education; reviews academic outcomes in literacy, math, and social-emotional outcomes like executive function and wellbeing; and offers a primer on how to interpret research, including meta-analyses, the pros and cons of different research designs to study school outcomes, and effect sizes. In doing so, it dispels some of the myths of Montessori and considers the challenges and opportunities inherent in the broader implementation of Montessori schooling. Pointing out both weaknesses and strengths in the existing literature, Angeline Stoll Lillard weaves together evidence from the highest quality studies to conclude when and how the research suggests this century-old way of educating makes a difference in the outcomes of children.

SECOND EDITION. Based on the author's 50 years of Montessori work in 30 countries: teaching, consulting with schools and governments, speaking, and as an oral examiner for Montessori teacher training courses. Mindfulness is an ancient practice in the East, a great need for health and happiness in the West, and an everyday practice in authentic Montessori schools, in the homes of Montessori savvy parents, and under the tutelage of exceptional teachers of all kinds. The author tells her own story of 50+ years of meditation and working in the Montessori field, and gives detailed suggestions for both parents and teachers to aid the development of this skill in themselves and in the children they live with. A chapter "Mindfulness Practices in Education: Montessori's Approach" by Dr. Angeline Lillard, is included in this book.

One hundred and ten years ago, Maria Montessori, the first female physician in Italy, devised a very different method of educating children, based on her observations of how they naturally learn. In Montessori, Angeline Stoll Lillard shows that science has finally caught up with Maria Montessori. Lillard presents the research behind nine insights that are foundations of Montessori education, describing how each of these insights is applied in the Montessori classroom. In reading this book, parents and teachers alike will develop a clear understanding of what happens in a Montessori classroom and, more important, why it happens and why it works. Lillard explains the scientific basis for Montessori's system and the distinctions between practices in traditional, "Montessomething," and authentic Montessori education. Furthermore, in this new edition, she presents recent studies showing evidence that this alternative to traditional schooling does indeed make a difference. Montessori is indispensable reading for anyone interested in teaching, training, or considering Montessori schooling, in developmental psychology, or in understanding about human learning and education overall.

One hundred and ten years ago, Maria Montessori, the first female physician in Italy, devised a very different method of educating children, based on her observations of how they naturally learn. In Montessori, Angeline Stoll Lillard shows that science has finally caught up with Maria Montessori. Lillard presents the research behind nine insights that are foundations of Montessori education, describing how each of these insights is applied in the Montessori classroom. In reading this book, parents and teachers alike will develop a clear understanding of what happens in a Montessori classroom and, more importantly, why it happens and why it works. Lillard explains the scientific basis for Montessori's system and the distinctions between practices in traditional, "Montessomething," and authentic Montessori education. Furthermore, in this new edition, she presents recent studies showing evidence that this alternative to traditional schooling does indeed make a difference. Montessori is indispensable reading for anyone interested in teaching, training, or considering Montessori schooling, in developmental psychology, or in understanding about human learning and education overall.