My wife has joined Montessori course two months back in Bangalore. I have therefore immersed in understanding and learning these Montessori concepts from practical angle, as against the theoretical understanding i had about this method. I have been amazed at observing the simplicity with which the basic learning principles are put into action in Montessori method. However, in the same breath, i have been surprised how we in corporate ignore these fundamental principles of learning.
For instance, Montessori believes that a child comes to the school with already learnt baggage. Therefore, during the initial period of classes, what is called as M1 ( year 1 of learning), Montessori spends time on enabling the child to engage in 'Exercises of Practical life'. These exercises are the daily tasks of a child such as sitting down on a mat, using towels, picking spoon, lifting a glass. Teachers are trained in performing these tasks so that they can help the child perform them in an appropriate manner.
The purpose of engaging in these practical tasks in the first year of Montessori is four-fold. One, it enables child to spend time with the teacher and develop mutual trust and confidence to engage in next set of complex activities. Two, it helps child develop the basic motor coordination skills that are necessary for the next activities such as writing. Three, it helps inculcate the basic foundation of self-imposed discipline through use of peer pressure. Four, it helps the child use the new skills in his environment at home and therefore gain the self confidence of doing a task efficiently. This feedback loop of real-life is necessary not only to strengthen the learnt skills but also gain the confidence to increase the pace of learning cycle.
Contrast this with the training programs that typically happen in a corporate life. You will find at least three big mistakes in training employees. One, an employee is assumed to come with a clean slate, not a baggage. This does not allow the trainer to build on what is available with the employee. Two, because the trainer overlooks these daily activities, the employee finds it difficult to apply the training lessons in his existing tasks. Training remains a class room activity. Because the new lessons are not applied in his real life, the employee is not able to use the feedback loop to strengthen the new skills nor develop the necessary confidence in building the new skills. Opportunity of fueling the new learning is missed. This is the third mistake.
In Systems thinking, there is one metaphor to explain this phenomenon: Slow is fast. Corporate trainers do not engage in this initial period of learning, because it is supposed to be waste of time. Everyone is exhorted to focus on a given task immediately. But this haste to achieve focus actually slows the pace of 'learning' and sometimes 'stops' the learning. In other words, Montessori method follows the principle of 'Slow is fast', while Corporate follows the principle of 'Fast is slow'. Isn't that interesting?
For instance, Montessori believes that a child comes to the school with already learnt baggage. Therefore, during the initial period of classes, what is called as M1 ( year 1 of learning), Montessori spends time on enabling the child to engage in 'Exercises of Practical life'. These exercises are the daily tasks of a child such as sitting down on a mat, using towels, picking spoon, lifting a glass. Teachers are trained in performing these tasks so that they can help the child perform them in an appropriate manner.
The purpose of engaging in these practical tasks in the first year of Montessori is four-fold. One, it enables child to spend time with the teacher and develop mutual trust and confidence to engage in next set of complex activities. Two, it helps child develop the basic motor coordination skills that are necessary for the next activities such as writing. Three, it helps inculcate the basic foundation of self-imposed discipline through use of peer pressure. Four, it helps the child use the new skills in his environment at home and therefore gain the self confidence of doing a task efficiently. This feedback loop of real-life is necessary not only to strengthen the learnt skills but also gain the confidence to increase the pace of learning cycle.
Contrast this with the training programs that typically happen in a corporate life. You will find at least three big mistakes in training employees. One, an employee is assumed to come with a clean slate, not a baggage. This does not allow the trainer to build on what is available with the employee. Two, because the trainer overlooks these daily activities, the employee finds it difficult to apply the training lessons in his existing tasks. Training remains a class room activity. Because the new lessons are not applied in his real life, the employee is not able to use the feedback loop to strengthen the new skills nor develop the necessary confidence in building the new skills. Opportunity of fueling the new learning is missed. This is the third mistake.
In Systems thinking, there is one metaphor to explain this phenomenon: Slow is fast. Corporate trainers do not engage in this initial period of learning, because it is supposed to be waste of time. Everyone is exhorted to focus on a given task immediately. But this haste to achieve focus actually slows the pace of 'learning' and sometimes 'stops' the learning. In other words, Montessori method follows the principle of 'Slow is fast', while Corporate follows the principle of 'Fast is slow'. Isn't that interesting?
