Writing and reading instruction in Montessori preschools remains consistent despite digital tools. In this article, the validity of Montessori’s reading and writing instruction is reviewed and discussed in relation to both previous research and societal changes influenced by technology. In conclusion, initial writing and reading instruction in Montessori preschools receives support from existing re-search, as it emphasizes sensory- motor experiences, including paper- and-pen activities. However, preschool children’s perspectives on the tools used for writing and reading instruction and the work they carry out in Montessori preschools have not yet been considered in research. Therefore, we sug-gest a need for further studies in order to better grasp the validity of her theory. Such studies could constitute an important contribution to the discussion about when and how writing by hand should be introduced within, as well as outside the Montessori community

On 6 May 2022, 70 years after Maria Montessori’s death, Stockholm University and the Department of Education and Didactics organized an international Montessori symposium. The idea was to present a breadth of research on Maria Montessori.

The symposium dealt with Maria Montessori in the interwar period, an analysis of the history of ideas. Another presentation suggested possible research models to study this large field. The symposium also presented interpretations of Montessori’s writings that point her out as a visionary and pioneer in education for a sustainable world. An additional research area addressed was the potential of neuroscience to examine the effects of teaching theory and learning in Montessori education. Finally, this report describes a study on whether Montessori-inspired education compared to traditional education stands up in areas of socio-economic disadvantage.

The Child, Society and the World: Unpublished Speeches and Writings was first published in a German translation in 1979. As the English title notes, the text is a collection based on notes transcribed by different individuals along with unedited notes from lectures to teachers or other speeches. Almost all the lectures within this text were translated from Italian to English because Maria Montessori preferred to lecture in Italian. These circumstances are important context for the reader, as it is vital to understand that the exact words and their meanings may have been altered to some extent in transcription notes and translations. Yet the text at hand is still valuable given that it allows readers to learn various aspects of Montessori’s pedagogy. Readers will come to see the directness of Montessori’s lectures between 1930 and 1951 and her descriptions of widely differing topics related to the pedagogy. For some, this means that the content of the text can seem fragmented and loosely related. This effect is partly mitigated by the work of the first volume’s editor, Günter Schulz-Benesch who worked to create a logical structure by arranging the texts into six different sections addressed below.

The aim of this article is to understand how Montessori education, according to Maria Montessori, will enable 6–12-year-olds to meet future challenges and to care for and contribute to the wellbeing of society and the planet as a whole. This article reports on a qualitative content analysis of four books written by Maria Montessori. The analysis shows how the structure in Montessori´s curriculum for these ages lays the foundation to cultivate an understanding of the interdependence of living and non-living elements in the ecosystem and the collective responsibility for human coexistence. Further, the analysis shows how children are provided with an emotional tie to the universal approach she advocates and opportunities to develop a sense of empowerment. The topicality of Montessori education is discussed in relation to different teaching traditions. We argue that Montessori education constitutes a concrete example of a teaching tradition whose democratic mission is evident.

Skolan behöver utvecklas så att den står i samklang med vår tid genom att förena vad som i debatten kallas ett ”elevcentrerat arbetssätt” och en kunskapsskola.

The theory of Montessori education has been interpreted by some researchers to be vaguely formulated. However, as shown in previous research, Maria Montessori’s didactic approach to teaching and learning mathematics is fully consistent with variation theory and the theory of embodiment. Montessori used the theoretical concept of isolation of quality, which means that the learning objects have to be kept identical except for one variable, which has to differ to be perceptible. This concept is in alignment with variation theory, which emphasizes variation as a necessary condition for learners to discern aspects of an object of learning. The other theory applied in this article is the theory of embodiment: important cognitive functions are fundamentally grounded in action that is concordant with Montessori’s view that mind and movement are parts of the same entity.

This article reports on a qualitative single-case study with a formative intention in which we investigated the significance of being acquainted with variation theory and the theory of embodiment when working with Montessori material. The study analyzes a teacher’s mathematics presentations with the Montessori material and the children’s work with this material, using Epistemological Move Analysis, which focuses on how the teacher directs children’s learning. The analysis was shared with the teacher to support her awareness of the ways teaching can be developed from a variation and embodiment theoretical perspective. Results show that the teacher’s awareness of why a specific learning object be treated in accordance with variation theory and embodiment seems to promote a more constructive and effective way to direct children’s learning.

In this article we examine the relation between variation theory and Maria Montessori’s didactic theory. Montessori believed that training and sharpening of the child’s senses are crucial for their continued learning; she therefore developed specific sensorial materials to be used in Montessori preschools for such a purpose. As noted by interpreters of Montessori education, a key principle in this material, as well as in variation theory, is the use of variation and invariance. However, in this article, lessons in two different areas than the training of the senses are analysed from a variation-theoretical perspective on learning; these lessons originate from Montessori’s own writings and from extracts from Montessori training courses. The result shows that a systematic use of variation and invariance can be seen as a more fundamental part of Montessori’s didactic theory and is not only applied in the sensorial training. The article will offer theoretical concepts useful when explaining why lessons in various areas should be presented in the way they are described.