National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector (NCMPS) is a knowledge-centered organization. Our work revolves around the development and dissemination of information that can advance excellent Montessori education in the public sector. Through the creation of a tightly linked and supportive network of schools and a set of comprehensive technical support services, the Center aims to serve as both a convener of a vibrant community of practice and a provider of effective support and solutions for practitioners.

NCMPS is governed by a theory action that places knowledge at the center of the enterprise. A continuous cycle of generating, using, evaluating, and refining knowledge drives our work. The figure above provides an example of how that cycle works to strengthen and expand Montessori education in the public sector.

Research and Dissemination

NCMPS aims both to support and direct high quality research related to Montessori education. We collect data and pose questions that can be answered by professional scholars and used by practitioners, leaders, and policymakers across the education sector. We are currently engaged in a comprehensive data collection project designed to (1) identify Montessori programs currently active in the public sector and (2) examine the varieties of practice, organization, funding, and influence of public Montessori programs. The Census Project, which is being conducted in two phases, constitutes the first effort of NCMPS to collect and maintain datasets that can be used by researchers.

In addition to facilitating the collection and distribution of useful data, NCMPS’s research agenda highlights topics that can serve as leverage points for advancing Montessori education in public as well as independent settings. Our current interest areas are:

1. Student Outcomes

   What are the benefits of student-centered, developmentally grounded, exploratory learning environments? A small, but growing body of research has begun to document the impact of Montessori education, both through investigations of student performance on standard measures of achievement and through closer study of cognitive and social outcomes such as executive function, collaborative peer engagement, confidence, and attitudes toward school. NCMPS is actively engaged in compiling data related to student performance on a wide range of measures and invites queries related to holistic, ongoing, and diverse documentation of student activity in Montessori learning environments.
   NCMPS invites queries

2. Teacher Quality/Quality Teaching

   Excellent Montessori teachers embody a skill set that is, increasingly, recognized as exemplary in the world of instructional quality. The capacities to observe carefully, differentiate instruction based on need and interest, provide opportunities to engage in hands-on learning, and to evaluate using both highly detailed individual knowledge and holistic interpretation of student progress are elusive for many in mainstream teaching. Montessori pedagogy, however, is grounded in a century-old tradition of highly detailed practice and is well documented in teachers’ albums, in Montessori’s writings and lectures, and in the collective experience of trainers. NCMPS invites queries related to the development of Montessori pedagogical expertise, the enactment of that expertise in diverse classroom settings, and the impact of high quality teaching on student learning.
   NCMPS invites queries

3. Early Childhood Education

   Dr. Montessori was among the earliest educational reformers to identify the first plane of development (birth-6) as critical to establishing core social, emotional, physical and intellectual capacities. Today, Montessori’s emphasis on the early years is increasingly validated by contemporary science, including the latest findings in brain development, language acquisition, and preventive intervention. NCMPS invites queries related to the impact of Montessori early childhood environments, policies designed to increase access to early childhood education, and the social impact of early learning opportunities.
   NCMPS invites queries

4. Community Impact

   Excellent Montessori education can help ameliorate the social and educational effects of poverty by attending not just to children, but also to the entire family. Public Montessori programs serve diverse populations, many in our most impoverished areas (Hartford, CT, Washington, DC, Chicago’s west side, the South Bronx, Milwaukee, WI), and unlike many other reform models seeking to close the achievement gap, attract families from a wide range of social, cultural and economic strata. How those schools meet the needs of diverse learners, partner with families, exemplify grace, courtesy, compassion, respect, and community engagement can provide lessons for the broader worlds of human services, education, and policy.
   NCMPS invites queries

Convening and Networking

NCMPS is an information hub and a network of practitioners committed to advancing Montessori education in the public sector. We maintain a library of resources gathered from the public Montessori community, which is frequently updated. We use the following tools to enable practitioners, parents, and others interested in learning more about Montessori in the public sector to share ideas, questions, and concerns:

• On-line Community: In the coming weeks NCMPS will develop a community center for those interested and involved in public Montessori programs. Our community center will have an online forum for discussions of questions and concerns for practitioners; a repository of documents frequently needed and used by Montessori schools in the public sector; and an open roundtable where ideas that work can be shared with one another.
• Regular Updates: NCMPS scans national news outlets for the latest information existing public Montessori programs, new schools, federal and state policy developments effecting Montessori in the public sector, and other news affecting the public Montessori community. Click here to tell us about your program.
• Annual Symposium: Planning for the first NCMPS symposium, scheduled for fall, 2013, is currently underway. Click here to share your suggestions and ideas.

Advocacy

NCMPS works through our networks to advocate for a range of issues affecting Montessori in the public sector.

Check back soon for updates.

Technical Assistance

NCMPS staff responds to queries related to starting public Montessori programs, locating consultants for specific projects, or addressing a concern in a school already in operation.

Check back soon for updates.