A study on the effect of Montessori Education on self-regulation skills in preschoolers

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to examine the effects of Montessori Education on children’s self-regulation skills in the preschool period. The study had a 2 × 2 mixed design, wherein the dependent variable was self-regulation levels of 3, 4, 5-year-old children (experimental group: 62, control group: 53) and the independent variable was education based on the Montessori Method whose influence on children’s self-regulation skills was examined. The study employed the Demographic Information Form, the Preschool Self-Regulation Assessment (PSRA). The study results yielded a significant difference in posttest mean scores for Self-Regulation and Attention/Impulse Control between experimental and control group children, while there was no significant difference in Positive Emotion. There was a significant difference for Self-Regulation and Attention/Impulse Control between the pretest and posttest mean scores of experimental group children, whereas the analyses indicated no significant difference between pretest and posttest mean scores of control group children for Self-Regulation, Attention/Impulse Control and Positive Emotion.

KEYWORDS:

• Montessori
• self-regulation
• preschool education

Acknowledgements

We thank the children who participated in this research, and their teachers.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This study was conducted with the support of Ankara University, coordinatorship of Scientific Research Projects within the scope of Project No: 16A0241001.

Notes on contributors

Aybüke Yurteri Tiryaki

Aybüke Yurteri Tiryaki is an assistant professor of child development. She earned her PhD in Child Development. Her research interests include alternative educational approaches, Montessori approach, infant and toddler development, sensory development, and early intervention.

Ezgi Findik

Ezgi Findik is a research assistant of child development and PhD student in Child Development department. Her research interests include Montessori education, parent-based education, and self-regulation.

Saliha Çetin Sultanoğlu

Saliha Çetin Sultanoğlu is a PhD student in Child Development department. Her research interests include child development, special needs education, autism, auditory integration, sensory integration disorder, early years education. She worked as a child development specialist in different public and private organizations both in the UK and Turkey.

Esra Beker

Esra Beker is a child development specialist. She completed a master’s degree in the field of Child Development and Education and Interdisciplinary Family Counselling. She also completed the Olusum Drama Institute and worked with various age groups as a Drama Teacher. She also worked as a Montessori instructor at Ankara University Practice Nursery. She has been working as a nursery manager in the same institution since 2016.

Müdriye Yildiz Biçakçi

Müdriye Yildiz Biçakçi is a professor of Child Development. She earned her PhD in Child Development. She has submitted scientific papers in many international and national congresses and, she organized the scientific congress, has many articles published in international and national journals and wrote many books and books chapters in the field of child development. Her research interests include autism, developmental assessment, early intervention programs, early childhood programs and premature babies.

Neriman Aral

Neriman Aral is a professor of Child Development. She earned her PhD in Child Development. She has worked in a centre for the children with Cerebral Palsy. She has been continuing her academic studies in the field of child development in different positions for nearly 30 years. She took part in the projects supported by European Union, TUBITAK and University resources. She has submitted papers in many international and national congresses and organized the scientific congress and she has many articles published in international and national journals and she wrote many books and books chapters on the field. Her research interests include early years education, early intervention, parent education, inclusion, science education, creativity and play development, special needs education, autism, sensory integration disorder, early years education.

Ece Özdoğan Özbal

Ece Özdoğan Özbal is an assistant professor of Elementary Education. She has been working at the Faculty of Educational Sciences, Department of Elementary Education in Ankara University since 2009. Her research interests include teacher training, educational policies, and the effects of educational practices.