Montessori Means
More Well-Being
Psych Study Reveals
Higher Levels of Happiness
Among Students and Alumni
By Tyler Hayden | November 16, 2023
Read all of the stories in our “Schools of Thought 2023” cover here.
Montessori is a whole-child approach to education that nurtures a student’s moral, behavioral, emotional, and intellectual development. A 2021 study published in Frontiers of Psychology found that students in high-quality, high-fidelity Montessori programs experience greater levels of well-being — happiness, health, and longevity — as children and later as adults.
Here, we learn more from Vanessa Jackson, Interim Head of School at Montessori Center School (MCS).
What specific tools or strategies does Montessori use to nurture well-being among its students? When you look at the outcomes among children who attend high-quality Montessori programs, there are demonstrable and lasting benefits to children’s cognitive, emotional, social, physical, and moral development, all of which fuel students’ well-being, both in the short term and longer term later into their adult lives.
The interesting question is how: How does Montessori foster well-being? There are several strategies at play in a Montessori classroom that the research points to, and we really emphasize all of these pieces in our program at MCS:
First, we are firmly rooted in a child-directed learning model that promotes self-determination and encourages children to take ownership of their learning. The children have the agency to self-select work, and this fosters intrinsic motivation and sustained attention, characteristics that serve them really well throughout their lives.
Second, the work that children in our program undertake is purposeful: Every activity in the curriculum has meaning, and the meaning is made clear to the children. Montessori materials and the classroom environment are designed to provide a hands-on approach to learning that is real and relevant to the child’s world.
Finally, we place a lot of focus on community and social cohesion: The multi-age classroom spans a three-year continuum that facilitates mentorship among the students and encourages leadership development. This provides stability to the child through critical years of their development. What’s more, each child will spend those three years with the same teacher, and the teacher gets to know the child’s learning style and family well over the course of these three years. There’s a growing body of research on the benefits of children staying with the same teacher for multiple years.
What kinds of stories does MCS hear from former students who have gone on to live fulfilling lives? There are countless success stories that have come out of the school over the decades! We have alumni who are economists working for the Fed, those doing peace work internationally, and many right here in the Santa Barbara area living fulfilling lives. What’s really wonderful is the growing number of MCS alumni who are now current parents at the school. Many of us who went through the program back in the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s now have the privilege of watching our own children journey through the program, which is just remarkable.
How does Montessori curriculum change or adapt with modern times as new technologies emerge, current research is announced, etc.? Families eager to learn more about the science and research underpinning Montessori’s core practices can page through Montessori: The Science Behind the Genius by Angeline Stoll Lillard. It provides a great analysis of the brain science behind the Montessori method.
At MCS, we work to stay true to the research and practices that are core to the Montessori model and that we know promote strong learning outcomes and well-being. At the same time, we’re also thoughtful and deliberate about how we evolve and incorporate new technologies and methodologies as the science on brain development and learning evolves. We like to say that we don’t do things just because they’re “Montessori”; we do them because they’re research-proven and benefit the child.
For example, in recent years, we’ve developed a computer science program in order to help center our hands-on learning approach while also exposing our elementary students to the skills and knowledge they’ll need in order to safely and expertly utilize technology and design thinking.
What sets MCS apart from other local Montessori programs? For over 60 years, MCS has been providing a program unparalleled in quality, and we’re the only school locally that offers a comprehensive program for students ages 18 months through 6th grade. Our approach at each level is time-tested: Our teachers bring great depth of experience as they guide the children through each three-year cycle.
One other differentiator is our enrichment offerings: Every child in the school benefits from our weekly specialist programs in Spanish language and culture, music, library, art, and physical education. We offer drama and computer science at the elementary level as well. Starting in the 1st grade, students enjoy overnight camp outs, and once they reach 4th grade, they embark on a five-day backpacking trip as part of our outdoor education initiative.
We also offer after-school programs and summer camps and are eager to meet the needs of working parents.
Are there any new initiatives or offerings at MCS that you’d like our readers to know about? Yes, we have several exciting new initiatives launching next fall: We’re piloting our Spanish-language- immersion program with a founding cohort of kindergarten and 1st-grade students. This is an amazing opportunity for children to achieve biliteracy in a Montessori environment rich with hands-on opportunities for child-centered learning and exploration.
We’re also introducing Mandarin Chinese language and culture courses. The research shows that bilingual students exceed the achievement levels of their monolingual peers, and we’re expanding our language offerings to reflect this.
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