Date of Award

12-2023

Document Type

Action Research Project

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Education

Department

Education, Montessori

First Advisor

Jennifer Johnson

Department/School

Education

Abstract

Montessori education has gained recognition due to its long-lasting positive effects on students. However, no studies have targeted its effectiveness on geometry education. This action research project investigated the impact and effectiveness of switching a non-sequential geometry curriculum with the Montessori method and curriculum on students' attitudes and geometrical skills. During six weeks, a population of 16 grade 6 students received weekly lessons that followed the Montessori method and curriculum while their skills were measured and compared against the British Columbia (BC) geometry curriculum. Students were interviewed before and after the intervention to track changes in their learning attitudes. Teacher observations and tracking of student work complemented the data. Results showed that the intervention had an overall positive impact, with a 13% increase in student's confidence in their geometrical skills. Likewise, 93% of students reported having an easier time understanding abstract concepts when previously demonstrated with Montessori materials. Also, 100% reported that geometric concepts became more evident in a curriculum with logically sequenced lessons, and 53% reported increased joy related to geometry learning. In sum, it took students only six weeks of following the Montessori curriculum to master 66% of the BC outcomes for geometry, on average, a percentage that makes sense considering the reduced geometrical content and gaps found in the BC Curriculum during the present work's literature review. Therefore, replacing the BC Curriculum with the Montessori method and curriculum would benefit students. Future similar research focused on larger, possibly younger, populations would further enrich the literature.

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