For my final project of EDCI 515, I decided that I would do an annotated bibliography that has blended the two major learning themes for myself this year: Educational technology and Montessori learning. Since taking classes on the philosophy of Montessori learning, I have had some questions about how Maria Montessori would have responded to the use of technology in the classroom. In some ways, the digital space is not a natural material and is very overly stimulating, while in other ways, technology use mimics the real world. Thinking about my final project, whatever I end up choosing as my topic of research will include studying Montessori students. I can find a ton of research on educational technology that studies students in traditional school settings, but I am concerned that it would be an oversight not to consider that there is something to be said about how technology can be integrated into a Montessori classroom while still fitting the pedagogical ideologies.

What literature did I end up finding? Very little. I searched high and low for articles that blended Montessori learning with any form of digital literacy. I searched terms that spoke to my teaching context like “computers”, “computer science”, “coding”, “robotics”, “computational thinking”, “typing”, “iPad”, “artificial intelligence”, “STEM”, “digital literacy”, and “digital citizenship”. Of the few articles I did find, a majority of the literature was more interested in software development with Montessori in mind, or using technology that was touted as Montessori without much rationale as to why it was. This tells me that the innovative ideas in education haven’t yet reached Montessori learners in the academic realm. Almost as if Montessori is assumed to be a forever perfect system that is untouched by the changing modern world. There is a desperate need to re-contextualize the Montessori framework, so more research can be done to show how we can bring this century-old pedagogy into the digital world. It really surprised me that with the popularity of Montessori education, there hasn’t been as robust of a conversation happening around modernizing the philosophy.

The literature that was pertinent had a few major themes that linked many of them:

  • many teachers surveyed thought technology was not a Montessori material and would compromise their learning environment
  • many teachers thought students already had enough screen time at home, so low screen time at school was ideal
  • the severe time constraints that inhibited their ability to teach valuable technological skills
  • when blended with the traditional Montessori three-part lesson format, technology supported the learning
  • the use of technology greatly increased student engagement in tasks
  • parents and teachers needed to be on the same page when it came to technology use in order for students to be successful

Thinking about my own context, I have several colleagues at my school who are Montessori teachers and all of them use technology in one way or another to enhance their lessons. Some use it for offering online reading and math programming, others use it for research, presentation, and parent communication purposes. If my colleagues are ok with technology integration in their classrooms, why is there such a prevalent fear of technology in academic literature, despite being shown time and time again that it is a positive addition to the classroom?

Here are some considerations to make in order to make technology use adhere to Montessori regulations:

  • the technology is not a replacement, but an enhancement of the learning activity (very TPACK model)
  • the application of the technology mirrors its use in the real world
  • the activity is not overly stimulating
  • students should be using it to advocate for choice and extension of their learning
  • the program/specialized tool must not be available in the home

Where do I take this annotated bibliography next? I am very interested in the idea of introducing the three-part lesson into how I work with my Montessori students to see if it would help my students gain confidence when using next technology. I am also curious what my Montessori instructor thinks about all of this. Because the literature suggests that technology doesn’t just replace an already existing Montessori material, I would like to try developing more natural and tactile materials to accompany my technology lessons to mirror the overall learning objectives.

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