Program Models
Hilda Gomez
Stephen F. Austin State University
Throughout the United States, there are various early childhood education program models being used. To name a few of them, there is the Creative Curriculum, Reggio Emilia, High/Scope, Montessori, and the Project Approach. The following program models will be discussed: Reggio Emilia, Montessori, and High/Scope.
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia was founded by Loris Malaguzzi in 1945. The first Reggio school was built by working parents in Reggio Emilia, Italy. The school was built so that young children would have a place to go while their parents worked. Reggio Emilia's central image is that of the child. According to the Grand Rapids Child Discovery Center (GRCDC) …show more content…
Maria Montessori in 1907 in Rome, Italy. Dr. Montessori opened the first Casa dei Bambini in 1907 for the poor children in Rome. The Montessori program uses the child-centered approach to education. In the proper environment, children are able to develop in various areas. Children are anxious to learn and the Montessori program allows them to take part in their education by allowing them to explore new things with the guidance of the teacher. The Montessori teacher guides the children in their classroom to be in touch with the environment they are in and also allows them to be creative. Children in the Montessori program aren’t necessarily separated by age, rather grouping different age groups to give the opportunity to learn from each other. Children in the Montessori program are able to learn by a real world hands-on approach. There are three stages in which the environment and materials change in order to facilitate learning. The benefits to the Montessori program is that developmental skills are developed, child-centered hands-on learning, children are able to learn social skills through play, and children are able to be creative. According to Rogers Park Montessori School (n.d.), "the philosophy is simple, to follow the child, which assumes that every child is a unique individual who is naturally driven to grow, develop, and learn. The educational goals include instilling in children a love of learning, the …show more content…
David Weikart in 1970 in Ypsilanti, Michigan. High/Scope is a constructivist approach. According to the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation (n.d.), "the High/Scope educational approach (Hohmann & Weikart, 2002) rests on the fundamental premise that children are active learners, who learn best from pursuing their own interests while being actively supported and challenged by adults." (p. 1). High/Scope is based on the intellectual development theory by Jean Piaget. There are three principles that High/Scope is based on; participation of children, daily planning, developmentally appropriate goals and materials. There are five elements to High/Scope; active learning, classroom arrangement, schedule, assessment, and curriculum. The High/Scope curriculum is all about actively engaged learning. Children are to have a hands-on approach with everything they come into contact with. The central idea of High/Scope is the interests of the children. High/Scope uses scaffolding. Scaffolding is linked to Lev Vygotsky although he didn't use the term. Jerome Bruner developed the term scaffolding. According to Epstein (2015), High/Scope uses the term scaffolding to describe the process whereby adults support and gently extend children's thinking and reasoning." The teacher must be sure that each child is ready to advance to the next level of learning and if they aren't, the teacher must guide them to the next
Hilda Gomez
Stephen F. Austin State University
Throughout the United States, there are various early childhood education program models being used. To name a few of them, there is the Creative Curriculum, Reggio Emilia, High/Scope, Montessori, and the Project Approach. The following program models will be discussed: Reggio Emilia, Montessori, and High/Scope.
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia was founded by Loris Malaguzzi in 1945. The first Reggio school was built by working parents in Reggio Emilia, Italy. The school was built so that young children would have a place to go while their parents worked. Reggio Emilia's central image is that of the child. According to the Grand Rapids Child Discovery Center (GRCDC) …show more content…
Maria Montessori in 1907 in Rome, Italy. Dr. Montessori opened the first Casa dei Bambini in 1907 for the poor children in Rome. The Montessori program uses the child-centered approach to education. In the proper environment, children are able to develop in various areas. Children are anxious to learn and the Montessori program allows them to take part in their education by allowing them to explore new things with the guidance of the teacher. The Montessori teacher guides the children in their classroom to be in touch with the environment they are in and also allows them to be creative. Children in the Montessori program aren’t necessarily separated by age, rather grouping different age groups to give the opportunity to learn from each other. Children in the Montessori program are able to learn by a real world hands-on approach. There are three stages in which the environment and materials change in order to facilitate learning. The benefits to the Montessori program is that developmental skills are developed, child-centered hands-on learning, children are able to learn social skills through play, and children are able to be creative. According to Rogers Park Montessori School (n.d.), "the philosophy is simple, to follow the child, which assumes that every child is a unique individual who is naturally driven to grow, develop, and learn. The educational goals include instilling in children a love of learning, the …show more content…
David Weikart in 1970 in Ypsilanti, Michigan. High/Scope is a constructivist approach. According to the High/Scope Educational Research Foundation (n.d.), "the High/Scope educational approach (Hohmann & Weikart, 2002) rests on the fundamental premise that children are active learners, who learn best from pursuing their own interests while being actively supported and challenged by adults." (p. 1). High/Scope is based on the intellectual development theory by Jean Piaget. There are three principles that High/Scope is based on; participation of children, daily planning, developmentally appropriate goals and materials. There are five elements to High/Scope; active learning, classroom arrangement, schedule, assessment, and curriculum. The High/Scope curriculum is all about actively engaged learning. Children are to have a hands-on approach with everything they come into contact with. The central idea of High/Scope is the interests of the children. High/Scope uses scaffolding. Scaffolding is linked to Lev Vygotsky although he didn't use the term. Jerome Bruner developed the term scaffolding. According to Epstein (2015), High/Scope uses the term scaffolding to describe the process whereby adults support and gently extend children's thinking and reasoning." The teacher must be sure that each child is ready to advance to the next level of learning and if they aren't, the teacher must guide them to the next