HARTFORD, CT- Friday marked the beginning of a two-day conference hosted by One Nation Indivisible, an organization dedicated to form and sustain integrated schools and communities across the nation. The conference–“Where Integration Meets Innovation” was designed to bring together activists, educators, parents and students who have shown interest in transforming communities through the building of diverse public schools. The two day conference (November 8-9th, 2013), held across the city of Hartford encompassed a series of events that ranged from tours of schools, panel discussions, and a series of workshops that were designed to teach attendees about successful curriculums, policies and strategies that empowered public schools across the United States.
Starting off the tour at 9A.M. Principal of Montessori Magnet at Moylan School, Ms. Carolyn Hayrda led the group into the Moylan School courtyard, which Montessori Magnet shares grounds with. Hayrda explained that Montessori Magnet Schools are not usually found within public schools, but an extension built onto the original structure of the public school in 1997 allowed the Montessori Magnet school to have their own wing in the school. According to Hayrda, there are about 760 students enrolled at Moylan. About 157 of those students, are enrolled at Montessori Magnet at Moylan in their Pre-Kindergarden through third grade.
The tour followed with a video explaining the Montessori Method, a form of teaching developed by Italian Physician and educator Maria Montessori mixes students that are from 2-3 to 6 years of age and allows students to explore independence through choice and interrupted blocks of work time. The video described the “discovery” model as an educational approach that allows students to work with materials and learn about their own learning styles by exploring the materials provided by them and giving children freedom to move around in the classrooms as they wish. Many of the guests wondered how students transitioning from a Montessori approach of teaching to a regular approach of teaching and Hayrda explained that the Montessori approach allows students to become self-disciplined, allowing them them to adjust in any educational setting.
The tour was concluded with the opportunity for guests to sit in Montessori classrooms. Hayrda explained that the classrooms had children of different ages and teachers- that were referred to as guides. The adults in the room were referred to as guides because they act as active guiding adults in the children’s developmental psychology. Once the tour was concluded, most of the people attending recall sitting in the classroom and seeing children learn and take from their older peers as they moved around freely in the classrooms. The guides merely acted as guardians in the setting. In these Montessori classrooms, the students were expected to understand their role in the classroom. Many of these children were independent and mature beyond their years. Three year olds prepared their own lunches, while four year olds were seen cleaning up and washing dishes after lunch.
The tour of Montessori Magnet at Moylan proved to be successful in teaching those lacking knowledge about Montessori education and bringing all of the things that were taught into fruition and reality. It was interesting to sit in, take part in the Montessori method, and actually see the effects of allowing children to participate in society as independent beings.