Many factors enter into a family's school choice, if they are lucky enough to have a choice. In urban districts, a family can often choose among public neighborhood, magnet or charter schools. Some families have the luxury of choosing a school district, while others can choose among private schools.
For those with school choices, decisions are deeply personal. Each family's choice, however, has larger funding and policy implications. Public officials, particularly those charged with leading our state education system, inevitably will have greater public scrutiny of their own school choice.
In state Education Commissioner John King's Dec. 9, interview with the Times Union, he responded to questions regarding his decision to send his children to a private Montessori school. King stated that "Woodland Hills has been great for Common Core."
At a Oct. 10 public forum in Poughkeepsie, in response to a question about his decision to send his children to a private Montessori school, King stated that the private Montessori school "embraced the work of the Common Core."
King and I agree that the Montessori approach creates a successful learning environment. Indeed, there is a strong correlation between the Montessori approach and Common Core Standards. In "Common Core Standards and Montessori Curriculum Correlation," written for the Association of Illinois Montessori Schools, Stacey Edwards describes shared goals.
She lists key concepts in common including demonstration of independence, knowledge across a broad spectrum of subject matter, adaptive communication skills, and understanding of different perspectives and culture.
Edwards also notes important differences between Common Core and Montessori, most especially that Montessori is an approach to education, not a standardized curriculum. The respect of each child's learning pace is fundamental to the Montessori approach.
My three children attend a wonderful public Montessori Magnet School in the Albany City School District. It follows the philosophy of Maria Montessori, while also operating within the regulations of a public school district.
Here lies the difference between a public Montessori school and a private one. At Montessori Magnet, the State Education Department requires Annual Professional Performance Review for all classroom teachers and building principals. Public school students must complete APPR exams in subjects including music and physical education, often with the understanding that their outcomes impact assessments of teachers they love.
While all schools must complete the year-end state assessments, the public school requirement of linking teacher performance with student test achievement goes against the Montessori approach of child-directed learning.
By contrast, while a nonpublic Montessori school might "embrace" the Common Core, their students are not subjected to this mandated series of teacher performance review exams and they are not required to adopt the state Common Core curriculum. The state Education Department does not hold nonpublic school teachers accountable to a standardized learning metric.
Despite the additional testing requirements for public schools and the discord between these standardized assessments and Maria Montessori's educational philosophy, Albany Montessori Magnet School students excelled in the 2012-13 English Language Arts and Mathematics Assessments.
Our urban public Montessori Magnet School outperformed many of our region's top school districts, with our most Montessori-focused classrooms earning the highest scores. This reinforces the parallels between the Common Core and Montessori approach.
With this success in mind, the state Education Commissioner would be wise to suggest schools incorporate more of Montessori's philosophy into teaching, rather than impose more testing and assessments on our children.
Tobin serves on the board of the school's Montessori Community Council.