Baseline Data: Two National Surveys of Public Montessori Schools
Two national surveys have been conducted which establish baseline information on Montessori education in public schools. The first was developed through the North American Montessori Teachers' Association (NAMTA) with data collection and analysis completed in 1989 at Cleveland State University (Cleveland, Ohio). The second was developed and conducted in 1991 by Patricia Michelsen and Lea Cummings based in Rockford, Illinois. The NAMTA survey had responses from forty-five districts operating seventy-five public schools. The Michelsen-Cummings survey had responses from sixty-three public schools. Both provide important insights into the recent practice of Montessori education in public schools.
Highlights: NAMTA Survey
Montessori schools are located in urban, suburban, and rural public school systems. At the time of the survey, Montessori education was being provided to approximately 14,000 students in the responding forty-five districts.
Almost all of the districts begin with Montessori-style preschools, with a third of those beginning with three-year-olds.
Three-fourths of the districts used multi-grade groupings for their Montessori classes.
Four districts have Montessori junior high schools. All four use multi-grade groupings.
Two-thirds of the districts require by contract that teachers have AMI (Internationale) or AMS (American) Montessori certification.
Admission procedures by district:
First come, first served 17 = 38%
Lottery 13 = 29%
Selective screening 11 = 24%
Other 4 = 9%
Highlights: Michelsen-Cummings Survey
Parental demand, desegregation initiatives, and Montessori teachers all play a significant role in the inclusion of Montessori-style schools in public systems, but in two-thirds of the schools, administrators from the school system were seen as providing the real impetus.
Transportation with no cost is provided to students at 38 of the schools.
Montessori teachers in the responding schools have a wide variety of training backgrounds and experience.
Schools use a wide range of standardized tests administered at various grade levels. Unfortunately, there is no one instrument or reporting method which predominates to facilitate collection of achievement data on a national level. The two most commonly used are the California Achievement Test (14 schools) and the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (14 schools). Student assessment also covers a broad range from traditional report cards to Montessori-based progress checks.
For three- and/or four-year-olds in preschool (primary) programs, tuition, ranging from $750 to $2000, is charged in only 11 of the 46 schools which have preschool programs. Use of a sliding scale for tuition is also reported.
Both the NAMTA survey and the Michelsen-Cummings survey provide solid summative data on the extent of Montessori programs in public schools. The Montessori Public School Consortium has permission from the authors of these studies to distribute the full survey results to interested parties. Requests for the surveys, along with $5.00 for shipping and handling, should be sent to: Montessori Public School Consortium, 11424 Bellflower Road NE, Cleveland, OH 44106. ¥
