dr. ronald e. mcnair acknowledgements - University of St. Thomas

Kesha Berg
Public Policy Enhancing Early Childhood Education
education. To improve this aspect, Dickhausen encourages
the higher education community to continue to collaborate
so various programs are on the same page. Another way to
improve education for low-income students discussed by
Dickhausen involved providing the best opportunities for
children to learn based on their life experiences and
situations. Dickhausen identified the ability of staff to
provide research-sound support for their students while
maintaining personal relationships to be crucial.
A reflection on the interviews.
Throughout the interviews, common themes between
the two approaches emerged which provided guidance in
creating recommendations. First, both O’Shaughnessy and
Dickhausen addressed elements of the guiding principles
of their respective approaches that overlapped. Both
approaches are aimed at addressing the needs of children
individually. The establishment of the Montessori
environment as a place to foster independence and promote
freedom of the child gives attention to each child as an
individual, just as the Community Action Head Start
program emphasizes attention to each child’s interests and
development. The Head Start program also prides itself on
getting to know children and families individually. Both
O’Shaughnessy and Dickhausen discussed how their
approaches are concerned with child development beyond
education. Both methods are aimed at aiding the child in
all aspects of his or her life, Montessori’s through providing
practical life skills and fostering independence and Head
Start’s through providing additional services. Both
O’Shaughnessy and Dickhausen identified devoting
attention to children’s individual needs as a means of
improving early childhood education. O’Shaughnessy
discussed allowing children to have freedom to choose their
work based on their own interests. Similarly, Dickhausen
emphasized the importance of engaging each child in his
or her learning through relating learning to his or her life
experience and interests.
In discussing recent struggles within the field of early
childhood education, both O’Shaughnessy and Dickhausen
mentioned the increase in effects seen due to growing levels
of poverty. The high levels of stress put on children living
in poverty often present themselves through behavior
problems. Additionally, poverty affects children’s leaning
in other ways. For example, learning is impacted when
nutritional needs are not being met. Providing resources
for children and addressing problems that arise from
situations of poverty is something that requires attention
in all classrooms.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE INCORPORATION OF
MONTESSORI PRINCIPLES WITHIN HEAD START
While access to quality early childhood education is
important for all children, it is absolutely critical for
children from low-income backgrounds. Early childhood
education provides opportunities for every child’s growth
into a successful member of society. Access to quality,
holistic early childhood education is necessary to prepare
all children for life as a self-fulfilled, educated,
economically productive, and civically engaged adult.
Integrating Montessori methods within Head Start
provides a philosophically consistent, pedagogically sound,
and financially feasible approach to enhancing educational
opportunities and experiences for low-income children.
The following four recommendations are directed
toward enhancing the quality of early childhood education
for low-income children. All recommendations are aimed
at assisting children from low-income families to develop
self-reliance, self-confidence, personal responsibility, and
the ability to care for others.
Recommendation 1: Self-directed work.
Allowing children to make choices about what they
would like to do is critical in fostering intrinsic motivation
and independence. I recommend Head Start programs
incorporate the concept of self-directed work within their
curriculum. Providing children with choices about which
activities or materials they engage with allows them to
pursue their own interests. A child learns best when
exploring his or her interests. Montessori stressed the
importance of allowing children to work independently for
three hours each day. At least a portion of each school day
should be devoted to uninterrupted, self-directed work.
This provides time for children to fully engage in and
complete each activity they begin.
Recommendation 2: The prepared environment.
The environment of a classroom has a significant impact
on the possibilities for learning. For that reason, devoting
specific attention to the careful preparation of each learning
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