36). In contrast, traditional education methods implement a more "teacher-directed " approach. That is, they place more emphasis on the teacher to control the "children's exploration of learning. " Thus, the teacher acts like a dictator of the students learning abilities. (Tzuo, The Tension Between Teacher Control And Children's Freedom In A Child-Centered Classroom: Resolving The Practical Dilemma Through A Closer Look At The Related Theories).
Most kids attend schools where teachers are trained in traditional education methods. This learning environment "fosters self-centered competition for personal, rather than group, enhancement, and delivers curricula unrelated to self-knowledge or the joy of learning and sharing knowledge. "(p. 218) The student has no say in what they study because if they do not do what is asked of them they will receive a bad grade or even fail the class. They become motivated by the reward of the grade rather than the reward of the knowledge. These types of motivators work to a certain extent, but they just "make the child dependent on adult approval. " (p. 221)They are driven by "external expectations " and look at school/learning as something they must suffer through" (Democracy And Montessori Education). .
Montessori believed that each child is "intrinsically motivated " to learn and that they have the power to teach themselves, and through this find the process of learning enjoyable" (Tzuo). According to William Crain's article published by the Psychology Press; in order for this to happen, teachers have to be observers in the background while children use specially designed materials developed by Montessori herself from which they learn. However, the children are not placed in a classroom and automatically expected to know how to use these materials properly. The teacher, though an observer, is also there to guide the child through their development. Teachers demonstrate how to use materials to the children, and the child teaches himself through the "repetition of properly replicated steps on how to use that specific material" (p.
