Maria Montessori and Ellen White. a Comparative Study

Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2014 in the subject Pedagogy - Common Didactics, Educational Objectives, Methods, grade: 1, Humboldt State University (School of Education), language: English, abstract: This thesis compares the educational methods and writings of Ellen Gould White and Maria Montessori. It shows that there are a number of significant similarities in between both methods. The large number of resemblances suggests that Maria Montessori copied from Ellen White’s works or at least read them. I could not find any evidence that she did although it is possible that she read some of Ellen White’s writings, since her son married an American wife and Maria Montessori also visited the USA at least two times. Yet this remains a possibility which I was not able to prove. I suggest that since both authors were interested in the very best education and development up to the highest standards possible for each and every child and both women were deeply religious and believed in the importance of religious education, teaching each child thankfulness to his creator and finding his or her purpose of life on this earth that it is this similar attitude towards children, God and life that lead both independently to the same results. I compared the methods and -theories- of both educators with what modern science is teaching and found that neither Maria Montessori nor Ellen White can be contradicted in any way by what modern educational and psychological science research say.