How do we as Montessori educators respond? Do we just "accept that it is a rule and there is nothing we can do about it" or do we support, educate, and act to support high quality Montessori education?
This is exactly at the heart of grassroots advocacy in action. We can demonstrate accountability while preserving what Montessori has to offer for children and parents. We can compromise with integrity.
When I was first introduced to Montessori education, the most impressive aspect was the philosophy's deep and abiding respect for the child, and the dignity with which the child was treated. In every way, the children are treated like human beings, with human rights and responsibilities. This was the environment that I wanted my children to learn and grow in. This was the philosophy to which I then devoted my career. Even the simple fact that the 3 to 6 year old child was trusted-- not only to recognize the urge, but to use the restroom independently and with the dignity that is our right as adults--impressed me. I knew that in some child care environments, adults herd children into a public style restroom stalls without doors, based on the schedule determined by the adult, where children are expected to perform their toileting on command. I learned in some local public schools, children must estimate and get the number of squares of toilet paper they will need out in the hall before using the toilet, and then to emerge again to get a squirt of soap and a hand towel for washing their hands. Never, I said, in a Montessori school. That would never happen in a Montessori school. Recently our school had our annual State Department of Education inspection for our Preschool Child Care Program. Our inspector has instructed us that we must remove the doors from the Children's House bathrooms within our classrooms' footprints, and put up either a half-door or a curtain over which an adult could see a child using the restroom. Our "single seat" residential powder room-style bathrooms which are just like the bathrooms the children use independently in their own homes--except there are no locks on the doors--are no longer acceptable, despite over 20 years of passing the DOE inspections. The inspector's rationale: children are not to be left unsupervised, and once a child enters the bathroom and closes the door they are unsupervised. Our highly-qualified Montessori credentialed teachers are conscious of the child's whereabouts, the amount of time in the bathroom, and sounds which could signify trouble or distress. But according to the State, supervision means "adults must be able to see and hear the child at all times". And according to the inspector, that means watching the child use the toilet. Curtains on the bathroom door, a teacher standing there watching the child use the toilet...that is not a respectful atmosphere, and there is no dignity there. How can we show children that we trust them to make wise choices and simultaneously strip them of this opportunity to independently choose well? How can we show them that we respect them, and expect them to respect others in return, if we cannot respect this basic human dignity? This is one more way that "one sized fits all" regulations--created for care givers who aren't highly qualified, credentialed adults--are harming our Montessori learning environments. Can we really allow our philosophy to be eroded by these regulations? Or can we join together to stand for the Montessori philosophy that is so critical for our country's future generations?
If we don't stand up for the children and families we serve, we all risk losing the value of Montessori education. The time is now.
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