María Montessori (1870-1952) is considered one of the great women and educators of our time. From a didactic perspective, she is seen as a precursor of one of the most innovative educational movements, known today as the Montessori method.
Her goal was to promote comprehensive education to shape a new humanity, more collaborative, peaceful, and oriented towards common goals. She challenged the stereotypes of her time and took an interest in mathematics and medicine. In fact, she was the first woman to graduate as a doctor in Italy. In this context, her interest in the education of children with intellectual disabilities emerged.
In 1901, she was appointed director of a psychiatric clinic associated with the University of Rome dedicated to the care of children with mental retardation. There, she implemented the idea of a scientific approach to education, based on observation and experimentation. In two years, she managed to have eight children from the Institute pass the official aptitude test in reading and writing for children of the same age without intellectual disability.
Her interest in deepening her work in education led María Montessori to study Philosophy, Psychology, Education, and Anthropology.
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