If education is always to be conceived along the same antiquated lines of a mere transmission of knowledge, there is little to be hoped from it in the bettering of mans future. For what is the use of transmitting knowledge if the individuals total development lags behind? – Maria Montessori
The greatest sign of success for a teacher… is to be able to say, The children are now working as if I did not exist. – Maria Montessori
The first idea that the child must acquire, in order to be actively disciplined, is that of the difference between good and evil; and the task of the educator lies in seeing that the child does not confound good with immobility and evil with activity. – Maria Montessori
The teacher must derive not only the capacity, but the desire, to observe natural phenomena. The teacher must understand and feel her position of observer: the activity must lie in the phenomenon. – Maria Montessori