Dr. Montessori was a multi- faceted personality. She received a medical degree but that was not all – her interest and passion for understanding the development of the human being led her to also study anthropology and pedagogy. She was an ardent supporter of women’s rights and in her various capacities participated in diverse conferences internationally. She was thrice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
To safeguard her work, which was being used in a diluted watered down form in many parts of the world, The AMI was set up. The Association Montessori Interntionale is headquartered in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1929 by Dr.Montessori and her son Mario Montessori – it works to ensure that the philosophy is passed on in its pure form rather than as just another teacher teaching method. The work of AMI has also been to ensure that the Training Courses affiliated with it maintain rigorously high standards. Currently there are AMI affiliated training centers throughout the world. AMI has over 40 Teacher Training Centres in North America, Asia, Europe, and Australia as well as planned Training Centres in Africa and South America.
The AMI Diploma offered bears the signature of Dr. Maria Montessori and is internationally recognized. Since the standards are so high, the students who pass out from our institutes are armed with an in depth understanding of the psychology of the child. Practical training forms a large part of the curriculum. Hence our students are well received and are able to apply Dr.Montessori’s cutting edge insights with ease in their work with children. They are sought after all over the world.
The courses are examined on an annual basis to ensure that the quality of instruction and the philosophy are upheld. The Scientific Pedagogical Committee (AMI) gathers information regarding children from all corners of the world. Since Dr.Montessori’s idea of education was to aid the developing life of the human being at every stage, the work of the SPG is to disseminate the philosophy to as wide a base of people as possible.
The advance in the field of neuroscience is today validating what Dr. Montessori’s genius intuited 100 years ago. AMI diploma holders are respected for their in-depth knowledge regarding human development and Montessori education.
Beyond its work with teacher training, the AMI is a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) represented at the United Nations (since 1985) and a NGO in operational relations with UNESCO (since 1962). They have also undertaken the Educateurs sans Frontières program which is modeled after Doctors without Borders. They host international Congresses and Conferences as well as carry out Research Projects to further Dr. Montessori’s work. ‘Communications’ is the journal of the Association Montessori Internationale. This publication includes articles by Dr Montessori as well as scholarly papers on Montessori and related topics. Currently, two issues are published each year. AMI also produces a newsletter ‘The AMI Bulletin’ which is published three times a year and features Montessori news and articles from around the world. ‘Communications’ and the ‘Bulletin’ are sent to all members of AMI.
