On This Day, 6 May 1952
On This Day, 6 May 1952
Today we remember the day that Maria Montessori died: 6 May 1952. The seeds she had sown have grown into a vibrant legacy, so touchingly worded by her son Mario only a few weeks after her death.
The great consolation to me has been the (…) unanimous feeling of responsibility all her pupils have expressed in the wish to further her work. …. For now, all the scattered energies of those who followed her are united in the determination to develop and spread the science she created. To fight for the soul of the child has been Maria Montessori’s lifework, and that is what she left us. She left us a glorious vision and the means to realise it.
Now more than seventy years on, we can clearly see the fruits of that vision, an ever-expanding movement of a dedicated community across the globe.The picture chosen for this post comes from AMI’s archives and was one of the last ones taken of Maria Montessori.
The photo was taken at a meeting in Frankfurt with Professor Dr Paul Scheid, the chair of the Deutsche Montessori Gesellschaft (DMG). Dr Scheid was chair until 1987. This photograph relates to talks on the re-establishment of the Deutsche Montessori Gesellschaft (DMG) after the second World War.
Extract from report:
Die Neugründung der DMG 1952
Der Standhaftigkeit und tiefen Überzeugung vieler PädagogInnen in Deutschland ist es zu verdanken, dass die Absicht der Nationalsozialisten, die Montessori Pädagogik in Deutschland auszulöschen, misslang. Schon kurz nach dem Krieg im Jahr 1952 startete Professor Dr. Paul Scheid in Frankfurt die Neugründung der Deutschen Montessori Gesellschaft.
Maria Montessori war Anfang der 50er Jahre einmal gefragt worden, in welchen Ländern sie bevorzugt den Aufbau der Montessori Pädagogik nach dem zweiten Weltkrieg unterstützen wolle. Ihre Antwort war für viele verblüffend, denn sie benannte Deutschland und Österreich: Wenn es das Ziel sei, den Aufbau einer neuen, friedlichen Gesellschaft in Europa nach dem Krieg zu erreichen, dann müsse man in den beiden Ländern anfangen, von denen das Unglück des Weltkrieges ausgegangen sei. Folgerichtig beteiligte sich ihr Sohn, Mario Montessori, im Gründungsvorstand der DMG und bereitete mit Professor Paul Scheid für das Jahr 1954 den ersten nationalen Ausbildungskurs in Frankfurt inhaltlich vor.
Die Gründung der DMG erfolgte 1952, kurz vor dem Tod Maria Montessoris. Die Ernennung als Ehrenpräsidentin der DMG nahm sie zwar noch zur Kenntnis, eine Teilnahme an der Gründungsversammlung war ihr jedoch aus Krankheitsgründen bereits nicht mehr möglich.
Extract translated into English:
The Reestablishment of DMG in 1952
It is thanks to the steadfastness and deep conviction of many educators in Germany that the National Socialists' intention to erase Montessori pedagogy in Germany failed. Shortly after the war in 1952, Professor Dr Paul Scheid founded the German Montessori Society in Frankfurt.
Maria Montessori was once asked in the early 1950s in which countries she would prefer to support the development of Montessori education after the Second World War. Her answer surprised many because she named Germany and Austria: If the goal is to build a new, peaceful society in Europe after the war, then you have to start in the two countries that suffered the misfortune of the world war went out. Consequently, her son, Mario Montessori, took part in the founding board of DMG and, together with Professor Paul Scheid, prepared the content of the first national training course in Frankfurt in 1954.
DMG was founded in 1952, shortly before the death of Maria Montessori. Although she took note of the appointment as Honorary President of DMG, she was no longer able to attend the founding meeting due to illness.
