Did You Know?

Did you know?

A Montessori environment develops innovative leaders says the Harvard Business Review

A recent interview in Harvard Business Review speaks very clearly to the importance of Montessori environments in developing innovative leaders. Professors Jeff Dyer of Brigham Young University and Hal Gregersen of Insead recently concluded a “six-year study surveying 3,000 creative executives and conducting an additional 500 individual interviews.” It was found that “A number of the innovative entrepreneurs also went to Montessori schools, where they learned to follow their curiosity.”

To read the interview click here

 

Successful people who were Montessori educated

  • Larry Page and Sergey Brin, founders of Google.com, credit their Montessori education for much of their success
  • Will Wright, creator of the best selling PC game in history, “The Sims”, also credits his success to his Montessori education.
  • Jeff Bezos, financial analyst, founder of Amazon.com
  • Anne Frank, famous diarist from WorldWar II
  • Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, editor, former first lady (John F. Kennedy)
  • Julia Child, famous chef, star of many TV cooking shows and author of numerous cookbooks
  • Jean Piaget, noted Swiss psychologist, made his first observations of children in a Montessori school. He was also head of the Swiss Montessori Society for many years.
  • Alexander Graham Bell, noted inventor, and his wife Mabel founded the Montessori Education Association in 1913. They also provided financial support directly to Dr.Montessori and helped establish the first Montessori class in Canada (Cape Breton) and the United States.
  • Thomas Edison, noted scientist and inventor helped found a Montessori school
  • President Wilson’s daughter trained as a Montessori teacher. There was a Montessori classroom in the basement of the White House during Wilson’s presidency.
  • Erik Erikson, noted anthropologist and author, had a Montessori teaching certificate

 

Google founders praise Montessori education

On the Barbara Walters ABC-TV Special “The 10 Most Fascinating People Of 2004” Larry Page and Sergey Brin, founders of the popular Internet search engine Google.com, credited their years as Montessori students as a major factor behind their success. When Barbara Walters asked if the fact that their parents were college professors was a factor behind their success, they said no, that it was their going to a Montessori school where they learned to be self-directed and self-starters. They said that Montessori education allowed them to learn to think for themselves and gave them freedom to pursue their own interests.

To read the interview click here