AOC Students Thank UN Secretary-General for Leadership Opportunity

May 6, 2012

To the Secretary-General, His Excellence Ban Ki-moon, and the President of the United Nations General Assembly, Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser,

Thank you for the amazing time we had at this year’s Montessori Model United Nations (sponsored by the Government of Armenia in collaboration with the United States Federation for Middle East Peace and the Montessori Model United Nations program). Five of our students learned about the geography, history, government, culture and current issues of Japan, and represented the country of Japan during committee sessions for UNEP, UNICEF, UNPBC, and SOCHUM during the recent 2012 Montessori Model United Nations Conference in April. We learned how to work well with other people and how to write effective resolutions. Last year, our school, Academy of the Child, also participated in MMUN committee sessions and did well, but this year we did a lot better because we had more experience and knew what to expect. While we were there we made worldwide friends, and without them we would not have been able to accomplish what we did. It was hard work to prepare for the MMUN Conference, but it was worth it because we had a wonderful time and learned so much. Thank you Mr. Ban Ki-moon and Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser for the opportunity to have this learning experience.

We learned how to work well with people and write powerful resolutions. It is great to work together with lots of people because a draft resolution is more likely to pass when that happens. A committee will also have more ideas and opinions from different people to put into draft resolutions when many delegates work together and share their ideas. Every delegation comes up with different solutions to problems, and if all of those could be put into one resolution that everybody votes on and passes, it would be great because the committee would have reached complete consensus. Resolutions that pass unanimously would mean that the committee worked well together.

While we were there we made friends, and without them we would not have been able to accomplish what we did. The friends we made were very helpful because, when there was a deadline, we could rely on them to get the resolution finished. Another reason is that we could fill in for each other as needed. For example, while we were talking to one group of students, they could help us by expressing our ideas to another group. We made many friends from all over the world who worked with us to prepare resolutions, and we exchanged addresses before the conference was over to keep in touch with Montessori students in other parts of the world.

Last year Academy of the Child attended Montessori Model United Nations 2011 and we did well, but this year we feel we did much better because we had more experience. One of the reasons that it was helpful to have had one year of previous experience was because we knew what to expect, which helped us get things accomplished in the committee rooms.We knew what to do, which helped us become major contributors on the resolutions. Since we had been to the conference twice, we found it was much easier the second time.

It was hard work to be able to participate in a Model United Nations program, but this one was worth it. We had to work for many months in order to be able to go to the conference. As we prepared for the New York trip, some of the delegates had to write four position papers because others needed help with theirs. We even did a practice U.N. session at our school. We pretended to be instruments and debated the seating positions of the instruments in the orchestra in order to learn to use formal addresses and follow rules of procedure during committee sessions. We worked very hard to be able to attend MMUN, but the work we did paid off.

Thank you Mr. Ban Ki-moon and Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser for this wonderful experience. We know that it was a once in a lifetime chance to go to the actual U.N. Headquarters in New York City, sit in the seats of the real U.N. delegates and discuss and vote on world issues there. One of our students even had a chance to speak at the U.N. in support of a resolution which was brought to a vote, and we are very thankful for that opportunity.

Understanding International Relations Through Montessori Experience

Five upper elementary students representing Japan in the 2012 Montessori Model United Nations (MMUN) Conference worked very hard during the last several weeks, not only on their normal classroom lessons and work expectations, but also composing and editing their Position Papers for the upcoming simulation. Their  documents have now been submitted to each Model UN committee for review by its dais. 

Below is the list of topics that the MMUN students learned of, discussed and wrote about.

• Protecting Street Children (UNICEF)
• The Voice of the Child and their Rights (UNICEF)
• Palestinian Refugees (UN Peacebuilding Commission)
• Current Problem in Sierra Leone (UN Peacebuilding Commission)
• Situation in Japan Following the 2011 Earthquake (UN Environment Programme)
• Improving the Quality and Access of Drinking Water (UN Environment Programme)
• Humanitarian Situation in the Gaza Strip (Gen Assembly, Social Humanitarian and Cultural Committee)
• Land Rights of Indigenous People (Gen Assembly, Social Humanitarian and Cultural Committee)

At the New York City conference in April, each committee will be comprised of students much like our own, drawn from grades 4 through 6 at more than 400 Montessori schools around the world. Their common educational background makes this mix work well -- as if the students have always known each other, even though they will meet for the first time in April and spend only three days together.

Last year, students came to the conference from Montessori schools in China, Jordan, Sweden, Puerto Rico, and many other countries around the world. Such international representation helps all of these students come to a realistic understanding about what it is like to work within an international body of people. Our students learn first-hand what it means to try to achieve peace in a world where people speak different languages and have different cultural traditions, beliefs and opinions. Compromising on their opinions as they debate students from China playing the role of U.S. diplomats and from Sweden representing Mexico, for example, really broadens their perspectives on international relations.

Often representing Member States with cultures that are very different from their own, the children acquire a sense of what it is like to work together in a collaborative effort to achieve peace in the world. While each individual committee's work simulates the UN experience, it also models our Montessori classroom in that mixed ages of students work together while a few Montessori teachers manage the sessions and help maintain a respectful, non-competitive approach as they do in their classrooms. Together, the students propose solutions to the issues raised and draft resolutions with the hope that their ideas might achieve consensus on final voting day in NYC at UN Headquarters.

The collaboration among AOCs MMUN students during this preparatory period has been remarkable. Without teacher interference in the process, those students who finished their papers first helped those who were required to publish a second paper for their particular committees. The students offered each other every type of assistance, from research and guidance on the topics to typing and editing, until all of the final submissions were polished and ready to go. I am very impressed with this hard-working group and their fine work! More importantly, it is clear that they feel a sense of accomplishment -- and not just because they finished two weeks before the deadline.

Once their spring drama performance is in the past, the students will be able to return to the next phase of preparation for the MMUN Conference -- speech writing and practice debating.

A Holiday Gesture of Kindness

Saying "we care about you" during the holiday season may seem commonplace, but when our elementary students recently presented a gift to a former teacher, it was filled with deep, heart felt meaning.

Their kind gesture was in the form of cookies...very special ones that every one of the 19 students in our class had helped to make, and a treat which they initially couldn't wait to feast upon themselves. It's a tradition in our class to carve fresh pumpkin and several weeks later use it for holiday baking. Scraping the flesh of the squash, spooning out the cooked vegetable, and then mashing it are all tasks that are organized by the children and performed in small groups. The final few students follow a favorite recipe as they cook up a huge batch of pumpkin oatmeal cookies overflowing with chocolate chips. By the time the project was completed this year, nineteen mouths were watering, eagerly awaiting their hard-earned treat.

But, just as the cookies were coming out of the oven, one short lesson about the Middle Ages and St. Augustine's work in Britain brought about a discussion of monastic life and a twist in our plans. It seemed a good time to share information about a similar current day lifestyle of sacrifice and a former teacher's decision to enter a contemplative monastery almost a year ago. Ms. Hurley, now known as Sister Hurley, is living a new lifestyle of prayer and hard physical labor with NO talking. This concept was difficult for the students to digest.

The children were stunned for a moment, but after questions, discussion and collaboration, they turned their surprise into a response filled with love. They asked if they could package up their pumpkin cookies and send them to Sister Hurley by overnight mail so that she and the other nuns at the convent might share them on their holiday table.

And so it was done...a caring gesture to begin the holiday season of giving and tender thoughts for a dear teacher and friend of AOC who remains in our hearts.

A High School Senior’s Tribute to Montessori

             On my first day of seventh grade, I was bewildered by the idea of sitting at a desk. Every classroom was filled with desks, carefully placed in straight, orderly rows. How strange middle school seemed, after spending ten years in a close-knit Montessori environment. The idea of a desk was fascinating and yet, disturbing – I now had my own, assigned space, but how was I expected to work with my classmates if we were separated? The desks seemed like they would hinder learning, rather than facilitate it. A strong contrast from Montessori school, this concept of desks triggered my concern with conventional education.

            At three years old, wearing an over-sized apron, I had used a yellow basin of water to determine which objects would sink or float. By seven, on my stomach with feet in the air, I had exhausted encyclopedias and organized note-cards for a research paper. I had wondered, discovered, and achieved in every physical position all over my classroom. Never had I been asked to listen to a lecture for forty-five minutes, or memorize dates, grammar rules, or names of countries for a test. Instead, I had learned the countries, capitals, and flags of the world before age eight by labeling maps with my friends.

            I have always been eager to explore and understand as much as possible about the world. I wanted to know everything, and that was that. Thoroughly researching and analyzing has always been my passion, never a chore. It was a shock to witness classmates in middle and high school complaining about homework. Advocates for the Montessori curriculum understand that it is natural for a child to enjoy learning. However, I soon realized that in conventional schools, teachers believe students need incentives to learn, like gold stars or good grades. My unconventional experience convinced me that traditional schools emphasize convergent thinking, leaving little room for creativity, exploration, and discovery.

            I have no doubt that the boy who fell asleep during physics class, and the girl who copied a few answers on the history homework were once excited by the prospect of learning. Montessori theory demonstrates that it is possible to learn effectively and still maintain an interest in the world.  Though I have often heard my classmates insist that they will never understand this or that concept, I believe that everyone possesses the ability and motivation to reach an answer. I owe my inextinguishable curiosity and views about education to my Montessori experience.

            Throughout my college search, I have sought a school that will encourage me to ask questions about so-called norms. Why do most schools suppose that children learn best when sitting at a desk? Can learning and freedom of movement not go hand in hand? While I have adapted well to conventional education and deeply respect my teachers, I often recall my Montessori education with longing. We learned by asking questions. We absorbed information by examining and analyzing. We understood that experience is not acquired behind a desk.