The Montessori Educational and Training Approach in Relation to Age-Related Frailty and Alzheimer’s Disease: Reflections Between Pupils at a Montessori Primary School and Residents at a Retirement Home

This paper explores theoretical studies and the state of the art of the Montessori approach applied to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, with a particular focus on intergenerational projects between nursing homes and schools to promote autonomy, dignity and biopsychosocial well-being. This is in connection with the meaning making of the surrounding environment: the societal framework as well as the organisational context in relation to the individual’s capacity. The paper is case-based, showing the interplay between the individual, organisational and societal level of understanding as important to learning. The paper is inspired by challenge-based learning (CBL), which underlines intentions to present students with aspects of problems connected to ageing societies. The case has enriched the Montessori approach to education. The paper concludes that the Montessori approach applied to age-related frailty, in an intergenerational framework, is not only a technical response to Alzheimer’s disease, but also a proposal for cultural reform. It teaches us that care is not a unilateral act of support, but a reciprocal interaction in which the giver and receiver are interchangeable.