Date of Award

12-2019

Document Type

Action Research Project

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Education

Department

Education, Montessori

First Advisor

Alisha Brandon

Second Advisor

Olivia Christensen

Department/School

Montessori Early Childhood

Abstract

This study sought the effects of educating parents on Dr. Maria Montessori's first plane of development in a mixed-age kindergarten classroom in Southern California, USA. Students withdrawing before completing the Montessori kindergarten year formed the basis for tailoring an action research project that informs parents about the importance of Montessori's first plane of development through the lens of Parent Development Theory. The researcher first explored past action research on relevant Montessori parent education studies. Next, twenty-five parents from a mixed-age Montessori kindergarten class participated in a six-week study. The research concluded that parents' understanding and valuing of the Montessori kindergarten year or final year in their students' early childhood education increased based on pre-and-post parent surveys and hands-on parent education experiences. The increase in parent knowledge resulted in the participants utilizing tailored information to make informed decisions about their student's kindergarten year on whether or not to keep their students enrolled for the full three-year period of the Montessori program. The researcher developed a more streamlined, focused, and comprehensive parent education plan than before the study began.

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