Reggio Emilia Maria Montessori and John Dewey D

Authors: Arleen Theresa DoddNufrio

Publish Date: 2011/03/17

Volume: 39, Issue: 4, Pages: 235-237

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Abstract

During the past century Loris Malaguzzi 1920–1994 a principal figure in the establishment and creation of the preschools of Reggio Emilia Italy was one of the seminal thinkers in early childhood education The influence of John Dewey one of the most important American philosophers is visible in contemporary early childhood classrooms of Reggio Emilia However as this editorial contends in the author’s experience many preservice teachers have the misconception that the two programs that originated in Italy—Maria Montessoir and Reggio Emilia—are synonymous This editorial discusses another connection namely the relationship between John Dewey’s philosophy of education and the pedagogy of Reggio Emilia preschools Preservice teachers’ understanding of Dewey’s theory and the Reggio Emilia experience makes an important contribution to the development of their personal teaching philosophy and understanding of best practices in the fieldWhen I asked a group of undergraduate early childhood majors “Who knows anything about Reggio Emilia” some of them responded “I think they’re like Maria Montessori schools” Evidently the assumption that all programs that originated in Italy are the same is not unique to this population When I participated in a universitysponsored study tour of preschools in Brescia the faculty member/guide was unfamiliar with the Reggio Emilia preschools and their theoretical foundation and many of the graduate students of early childhood education participating in this tour held the misconception that Montessori and Reggio were synonymousSince the 1990s the preschools of Reggio Emilia Italy became increasingly known in the early childhood education community yet little is known about the theoretical underpinnings of the program As this editorial will describe it is John Dewey’s philosophy that is most visible in the early childhood classrooms of Reggio EmiliaBy virtue of their shared cultural context Reggio Emilia and Montessori do share similarities1 What is less well understood is the philosophical foundation of the Reggio Emilia preschools This editorial examines John Dewey’s education philosophy and its influence on the Reggio Emilia experience and pedagogy it also shows how these connections can enhance student learning and teaching practices in preschools in the United StatesOther major philosophers and theoreticians such as Piaget and Vygotsky did not provide direct guidance about how to implement their theories in schools although Dewey related his theories to practice more clearly his school did not endure for many decades sic2 Unlike those who inspired and influenced his work Malaguzzi developed his theory and philosophy of early childhood education from direct practice in schools for infants toddlers and preschoolers over a 30 year period Lilian Katz has observed that in Reggio Emilia practice drives theory rather than the opposite and may even be ahead of development p 9One of the key principles of the Reggio Emilia schools is a deeply held belief in the positive image of the child It builds on the premise that each child has the desire to connect with others to engage in learning and to enter into a relationship with their environment John Dewey founded the Chicago Laboratory School based on the view of the child as a growing and changing being that requires active learning experiences of immediate interest and personal involvement Weiss et al 2005 Likewise Reggio Emilia educators contend that preschool education is a right not a privilege that all children have the potential to learn and in keeping with Dewey’s philosophy that children are architects of their own learning Rinaldi 2005 supports the belief that the Reggio Emilia experience is not a model but a culture or rightThe socioconstructivist model promotes an image of the child as a capable participant in learning In Reggio Emilia the image of the child is one of a confident capable person Reggio Emilia educators believe that the school is not a place of transmission of knowledge Rather it is an environment that allows the child to be a producer of culture and knowledge—the child is a knowledge maker Both the school and children are creators of culture Likewise Rinaldi 2005 believes that children are the best expression of humanity and are citizens of the present not just the future Like Emilia educators she believes that education is the process of building knowledge and abilitiesunlike other pedagogies that can be guilty of treating early infancy as a preparation for later childhood and adulthood and consequently seeing nursery education as a kind of antechamber to later stages of formal education the Reggio Approach considers early infancy to be a distinct developmental phase in which children demonstrate an extraordinary curiosity about the world p 5

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