Here are a few words from Joen Bettmann's graduates from Cleveland, Ohio and Atlanta, Georgia. Frequent comments from graduates reflect the personal attention and playful yet intimate atmosphere in her training courses.
"My training helped form my adult life. I gained a new perspective
on my self and the world in which we live. Joen's patient, stimulating,
caring instruction and example have been a huge influence on my ways in
the world.
I felt very prepared for working with children in the classroom, but also
empowered as an individual. That year of training was invaluable to me,
certainly as a teacher and now as a parent, but further, as a person."
—Jennifer Shields, a graduate of the first OMTI academic-year course taught for many years in the Washing, DC area. She is now in the Training of Trainers program.
"I have no doubt that Joen Bettmann’s influence has affected
the lives of many children, both directly and indirectly. Her kindness, compassion
and love of humanity are gifts to all under her tutelage. As a student
of
Joen’s I felt lucky to be able to share these gifts. Her commitment
to the Montessori principles and pedagogy were passed on to her students
with great joy, humour, wit and wisdom."
—Catherine Moore was a Montessori directress for many years at The Maria
Montessori School, Toronto.
"Looking back in retrospect, nothing can ‘prepare’ you
for your first year teaching in a Montessori classroom. Each person must
grow and
develop, just like the children, into the person and teacher they ultimately
become. The training left me with an in-depth understanding of Montessori
theory and philosophy, and the importance of respect and trust in the
natural ability of all children. The base of my understanding of child development
is always the driving force for me to improve myself, and therefore improve
my ability to help children. Thanks Joen."
—Joe DiCarlo went to a Montessori school as a child. After OMTI training
and a number of years as a Primary teacher, Joe took the AMI elementary
training, and now teaches in the Milwaukee Public Montessori Schools.
He is married
to another OMTI graduate!
"I missed my family a whole lot but my classmates were always
there and they always supported me. I remember watching movies with them,
going
for coffee
at that great coffee place near the training center and just meeting
them and becoming really good friends! I'm so happy that I'm still in
touch with
some of them through air and e-mail.
"It was a rich experience because I was able to meet and learn about people
from different parts of the States and even the world. I had classmates
who were also from the Philippines, and from Brazil and Korea as well. We were
able to share so many things about our countries and our culture but
mostly
we were able to share ourselves.
"Joining the training then made me realize that I could do so many things
that I've never thought I could do before. Things like being independent
and interdependent. I also realized that I could draw [due to the assigned]
illustrations for my albums."
—Anna Tupas is from the Philippines, where she now realizes her dream
of owning her own Montessori school.
"When I first took Montessori training with Joen, I had no idea
what a lifelong pursuit and devotion it would become. At the time, my own
children
were 5
and 2, and my training helped me to appreciate the unfolding of their
development in a unique and insightful way. As they grew, so did my own work
in Montessori,
and I eventually took the AMI elementary training, worked in a 9-12 class,
started a middle school program, and am now involved in a Montessori
Farm School for adolescents. The training I began with Joen inspired me,
challenged
me, and gave me hope that real reform in education is possible. This
is beautiful, powerful work. Thoughtful, devoted, remarkable people are drawn
to it. And
it supports the growth of children in a way that no other pedagogy I
have seen comes close to."
—Laurie Ewert-Krocker, a Montessori parent, works with 12- to 15-year-olds.
She and her colleagues have been asked to speak nationally, while
working regionally with adolescents, as they participate in the Erdkinder/Montessori farm school in Ohio.
“As a Montessori child, I can’t help but remember the joy that came from learning. It was fun. Learning was always fun; it was exciting and I could never wait for that next lesson that I was going to be given or that next experience that I was going to have. I read encyclopedias when I was little because I wanted to know everything that was in there and I think that joy for learning, it stays with you. I feel like Montessori actually creates in a child that desire to learn more, constantly, and it never really goes away. To be able to return as an adult and allow other children to have that same experience, I feel every child should have that experience. But I know that at least as a guide I can provide that to whatever children are given to me.”
—Kamilah Scales, former Montessori child, currently teaches in a Primary environment in Atlanta.
“I saw a totally different philosophy from my education classes in college, and I wanted to be a part of that. And now that I’ve taken the training, I love it even more and think that it’s a way to change the world, and I’m glad to be a part of it.
The children in the Montessori classroom were happy, they were healthy, they loved learning. They weren’t hindered from making their own progress and unfortunately, in traditional schools, there were just a lot of rules and a lot of children sitting at desks all day who would get in trouble for moving and for speaking, and they didn’t have the spark and the love of learning that I saw in the Montessori children.
And what brought me to this course was the Master’s degree. I had planned to go to Baltimore but when I saw on their website that it came here, that’s what brought me here.”
—Christine Thompson transitioned from traditional education to Montessori education. She now works in an Atlanta-area Montessori school.
“I’ve found the friendships that I’ve made here and the experience of working with such a diverse group of people to be incredibly enriching on a personal level because every person that is drawn to this course has an inner passion. Also the administrators on the course and Joen the trainer and Connie our course assistant live with the deeply felt passion that can sometimes get lost in our culture. And so, we’ve been lucky to be surrounded by 27 people filled with that fire and I think that it’s spread between us and now as we graduate and move on, and start the sharing of this work with others, we’ll take it with us.”
—Natalie London, from Austin, Texas, is a former Montessori child. After training, Natalie returned to Texas to teach in a Montessori school.
“I chose Montessori because I worked as an assistant in a Montessori class and I was always struck by the poise and integrity of all of the Montessori guides that I was able to work with. And I came to this course hoping not only that I would learn the practical side of things and how to teach and work with children, or guide children, but also to bring about a change in myself and hopefully embody that integrity and that poise that I saw in my co-workers. It’s also very different being a male in this course but I would encourage any man who has the strength to do it, to do it.”
—Peter Ferrari first found Montessori as a child. He returned to the same All-Day environment where he formerly served as an assistant.
“I chose to study Montessori as a second career choice. I had already received my undergrad in geography and had a pretty good career path with that with map-making but I knew that my place was really with children in some capacity. But I’d always struggled with conventional education. I first heard about Montessori in India about 10 years ago. When I finally decided that was the path for me, it didn’t take long to discover that AMI was really the best route to go on as far as just what’s involved with album writing, and material making, and just really in-depth learning about this whole process.”
—Laurie Orso is currently teaching in California in a Montessori school.
“I used to be an engineer and I worked at NASA. And I was really feeling unfulfilled by my job and one day I met somebody who introduced me to the concept of Montessori and I was totally amazed. And the very next day I called Joen, and I said, ‘tell me more about this and how can I sign up?’ So, after talking to Joen I saw that I really wanted to come to the Montessori Institute of Atlanta because she has a combination of quiet wisdom, or gentle wisdom, along with a real passion for what she’s doing. So I wanted to have that embodied in my training and also be able to embody that myself. So that’s why I chose to come to Atlanta versus any of the other training centers in the United States.”
—Jennifer Cerny teaches Primary children in South Carolina.
The
Montessori
Institute