Tim Seldin & Paul Epstein Ph.D. An Education for Life

Does Montessori prepare children
for the real world? I
think it does. In fact, I think
Montessori can help you be more successful
in your career, perhaps even help
you find a better career. Education isn’t
a process that only takes place in a
school classroom. Forget fluffy notions of
well-roundedness; in order to succeed in
the workplace you have to keep abreast
of current events, trends, and skills.
Unfortunately, I’ve met many adults who
have completely lost interest in learning,
who would sooner watch reality television
than read a non-fiction book about
the real world. These people are handicapped
in the marketplace.
What you learn in school isn’t nearly
as important as knowing how to learn on
Does Montessori prepare children for
the real world? Unequivocally yes!
The purpose of education is to
enable the child to lead a productive and fulfilling
life as an adult. Since Montessori takes into
account the nature of the child and how the
child learns, by providing an environment within
which children create themselves, Montessori
children are enabled with qualities of high
self-esteem, self-directedness, leadership, selfdiscipline,
self-confidence, a sense of responsibility,
the ability to learn how to learn, an
enjoyment of learning, a joy of life, the ability to
think, benevolence toward others, the capacity
to get along with others, and so on.
Montessorians know these qualities are already
within the child, and the Montessori Method
allows them to blossom. These are the very
qualities needed to lead a productive and fulfilling
life no matter what type of “real” world is
encountered.
— John H. Davis, Ph.D.
Father of Three Grown
Montessori Children
your own, outside of an academic environment.
My impression is that most people
never learn to enjoy learning. School is a
painful experience for many people, a place
of degradation and captivity rather than one
where knowledge is passionately pursued.
Montessori gave me a thirst for learning and
the confidence that I can teach myself anything
I need to know.
An example: I was nine-years-old in
1979. When I expressed an interest in getting
a computer in the classroom, I wasn’t
ridiculed. No adult patiently explained in
somber tones that computer science wasn’t
in the lesson plan or the budget. Instead,
my classroom teachers and I brainstormed
ways to raise the money, deciding on a raffle.
My father donated a television to the
school to use as a prize, and a month later
DOES MONTESSORI PREPARE CHILDREN FOR THE REAL WORLD?
lo and behold! the classroom had the
school’s first computer. I was enthralled
by the huge silver contraption with the
passion that only a nine-year-old can have,
and my teachers encouraged me in this
passion so that by the time I was tenyears-old
I was programming in BASIC.
Now a scientist for a Verizon subsidiary, I
do C++ programming every day, and I
still love it.
If I had gone to a traditional school,
I might have ended up a programmer. I
might even hold the same position I do
now. But it’s hard to imagine that a traditional
education would have allowed me to
develop the drive and enthusiasm to stay
on top of my field.
— Marc Seldin
Former Montessori Student
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