EXPLAIN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DISCIPLINE AND OBEDIENCE FROM THE MONTESSORI PERSPECTIVE. EXPLAIN HOW DISCIPLINE AND OBEDIENCE ARE LINKED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE WILL.
The present document will focus on the relationship between discipline and obedience according with Montessori’s philosophy. I will explain to how discipline and obedience play a vital role in the development of a child and how both these are linked or connected to the development of the will.
First, current definitions of the terms discipline and obedience will be discussed and will be compared with Montessori’s interpretation of these concepts. The influence of favourable environment in the development of the will and in discipline will be explained. Following there will be explained how the maturational develop of discipline is linked to the development of the will. Then there will be a consideration in how these aspects of development are the foundation of the development of obedience. I will then describe the there levels of obedience linking the first two relevantly to the spiritual and social embryonic stages of the absorbent mind.
Finally I will conclude my argument by summarising the main ideas of this essay.
The term DISCIPLINE is often define in the dictionary by “training to act in accordance with rules; drill; punishment inflicted by way of correction and training; behaviour in accord with rules of conduct;” This term is still very associated with punishment in your society. We say a child needs “discipline” when they are miss behaving and we think parents or teachers need to punish him. Discipline it’s imposed by external factors and maintained by fear of repercussions or punishment. I consider this type of forced discipline to be ineffective. It may appear to be effective from the outside but is not maintained in a long term. The child may act submissive to play by the rules, either be rewarded for this or to be punished for doing the opposite.
The term OBEDIENCE is define by “the quality or condition of being obedient; The act of obeying”.
DISCIPLINE presupposes a certain degree of obedience. In order to obey, the child must not only wish, but also be able to obey. When the teacher gives an order, he expects the child to obey. To obey the child must know what is accepted from her and must be able to perform according. Nowadays we expect the children to obey rules we did not explain to them and to obey rules they do not have maturating to follow.
Montessori considered “OBEDIENCE” to be the fundamental secret of everything. Obedience is considered to be developing in the child in much the same way as other aspects of his character. In the beginning it is dictated purely by the hormic impulse, then it rises to the level of consciousness and goes on developing, stage by stage until it comes under the control of the conscious will. At this stage the will and the child’s self-interest are working in conjunction. .
Discipline from within is self discipline so in a Montessori class room the discipline should not came from the teacher control or rewards or punishments, it should come from each individual child that learned how to control his own actions and made positive choices regarding personal behaviour. This self learn discipline is connected with the development of will.
The development of the will is the ability to choose to do something with conscious intension. This is developed gradually during the first phase of life and is strengthened though practice (of choices). It thought a favourable environment that will with developed and consequently obedience.
The favourable environment is a classroom is ordered and well planned. The curriculum and teaching materials are carefully selected and presented to each child. When children choose activities they are then free to work with that activity for as long as they want. There must be physical, intellectual and social freedom. Everything is child-sized and all the activities are within reach to allow free choice. This type of environment will offer the child several opportunities to practice the exercise of the will. A child that can move around, can choose from a huge number of objects the one he wants, a child that was to wait for others to finish using the activities he wants is a child that is practicing to restrain his impulses. The use of the materials also helps to develop of the will because the materials are designed with in-built error control with minimal need for adult intervention.
This structured well prepare environment provides freedom within clear limits. It gives children flexibility to make their own choices about the kind of work to engage in, and whether to do it collaboratively or individually. But freedom does not mean that children can do whatever they like. Rather, children are encouraged to think independently and act as a member of a social group. This is achieved, within clearly defined boundaries, through the freedom the children have of movement, of interaction and association, and the freedom they have to choose their own work and to learn at their own pace.
CONCLUSION
Montessori when well applied is a beautiful perfect balance of freedom and structure. The best Montessori facilitators understand that maintaining the delicate balance is one of the most challenging and rewarding aspect of a class room. It is on that foundation of freedom and structure that the child builds discipline. The child has a natural desire to develop – the horme, and needs guidance of the teacher in this process not control. Obedience is an act of will and develops gradually, showing itself “unexpectedly at the end of a long process of maturation”. The inner will develops thought the exercise of free choice, developing self discipline necessary to obedience.
A Child can not obey unless they have control of their will, obedience can not be influenced from the outside, on the contrary it develops from the inside and manifests its stage of develop in the child's behavior. Develop of the will will develop first and the obedience so obedience is dependent on the will being built up and not broken down.