Maria Montessori in the Role of a Teacher

The essay analyses the figure of Maria Montessori as a teacher and the teaching that she conducted in her career. A historical perspective is adopted, with reference to some fundamental moments in Montessori’s teaching life, described with the help of her own early writings (often unpublished), and the testimonies of some of her colleagues and students. M. Montessori began her career as a teacher in 1899 at the “Higher Institute of Teaching for Women” and then she continued at the “Pedagogical School” of the University of Rome. The analysis presented in this article shows that Montessori considered it essential to combine theory and practice, to promote students’ active participation, linking what is learnt in the classroom with the outside world. From her earliest experiences as a teacher, it became fundamental for Montessori to place her teaching against the background of social and civil commitment, open it up to comparison, and to integrate her experience with work and empirical research.