Montessori in Action Podcast

Our episode this month is a conversation with Diedra Carlson about her recent presentation at the Montessori Research Collective Symposium where she shared a portion of her research Act III: Black Montessori Teachers, Collective Memory-Work, and Educational Sovereignty. This work is from her larger recent dissertation: The Evidence of Things Not Seen: Critical Fabulation, Raciolinguistic Resistance, and Liberation as Sensorial in Black Women’s Educational Lives. 

For the full dissertation: Carlson, D. (2026). The Evidence of Things Not Seen: Critical Fabulation, Raciolinguistic Resistance, and Liberation as Sensorial in Black Women’s Educational Lives.

This fall, French researcher, Sarah Le Diagon, joined us to talk about the results of a 5-year longitudinal randomized controlled trial looking at the impact of Montessori education for 3-6 year olds and what had stayed with them by fifth grade. Join us to hear the delayed benefit of early Montessori education.

Research: Long-Term Mathematical Outcomes in Montessori Education

We launch this new school year with a conversation around a new book: From Pyramids to Pink Towers: Montessori Education and the African Connection. This book was co-written by Jeff Menzise and Maati Wafford. Together they explore the connections between Maria Montessori's educational approach and African systems of knowledge, regrounding us in our unique method and offering support for our spiritual transformation.  Purchase the book at https://www.mindonthematter.com/shop?

 

This next episode of Montessori in Action is focusing on Montessori children who have grown up and now have their own Montessori children. Genevieve D’Cruz and Teresa Chan have a conversation about their experience in Montessori classrooms and how it has impacted them as people and influenced them as parents.

Our first episode for Season Seven is a conversation with Jayadev Calamur. Jayadev reached out to me about a book he is writing and wanted to engage in a discussion about the role of Montessori education globally in responding to the times in which we live. He’s currently working on a book  exploring where our ideas about how children develop came from and what happens when those ideas meet systems that can't or won't fund them properly.

 

Website: https://calamurj.substack.com/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jayadev-calamur-strategic-communication/ 

We are closing out the sixth season with our annual Summer Reads episode where we introduce books for you to check out over your summer. This summer, we have three suggestions.

The first book is Implementing the Montessori Method: Learner-Centered Education From Birth Through Adolescence, co-written by Trisha Thompson-Wilingham and Susan Zoll. It offers readers a look into Montessori classrooms across the ages.

The other two books are the result of transcription done by Jana Morgan Herman. Jana took the handwritten notes of Lakshmi Kripalani taken in the 1946 India course with Dr. Montessori in Karachi and transcribed them into two books: Book One: Practical Life and Book Two: Sensorial. Discover what Dr. Montessori shared in those lectures eighty years ago and enjoy your summer! 

Our conversation for May is with Isabella Cai, the founder and CEO of Y Montessori, where she leads the Montessori Data Lens program to spark meaningful conversations and empower the community to leverage data in advancing the Montessori movement. Isabella shares the origin story of the Montessori Data Lens program as well as various projects they have done thus far. 

Omkari Williams is the author of Micro Activism: How You Can Make a Difference in the World (Without a Bullhorn) and she joins us for our next episode of Montessori in Action Podcast, to talk about a new course she is running with Montessorian, Kelly Johnson. Together, they are offering a new Trillium course Micro Activism Meets Montessori. Our conversation covers everything from the 6-Principle Manifesto to how to implement these ideas in a Montessori elementary classroom.

This episode of Montessori in Action is a conversation with Sue Atkins, the new President of AMI UK and longtime early childhood educator. She shared some reflections on inclusive practices to benefit children on the autism spectrum, their families and educators.

It’s time to hear more about the latest research released this past fall! Dr. Angeline Lillard joins Montessori in Action Podcast to unpack A national randomized controlled trial of the impact of public Montessori preschool at the end of kindergarten. As the lead researcher, Dr. Lillard shares details of the study and insights on the outcomes.