the no true scotsman fallacy goes like this: no true scotsman would to X, but then you find one that does X.

but the situation here is more like: no true scotsman doesn't have scottisch ancestors or at least live in scotland.

i don't have scottish ancestors, and i have never even been there, so i can't ever be a true scotsman, as much as i'd like to be one.

it doesn't have to be a 100% success rate but being pretty far behind in math is a serious failure that makes me question the qualification of the teacher.

it can't be a failure of the montessori method because the very design and goal of the method is to not let that happen. or at least the chance is very small. and then it is still a failure of the teacher and not the method.

and since anyone can claim to do montessori without any certification, my bet is on that being the case.

it would be like a car without wheels. no true car is missing wheels. it could not fulfill its purpose.

>it can't be a failure of the montessori method because the very design and goal of the method is to not let that happen. or at least the chance is very small. and then it is still a failure of the teacher and not the method.

High intensity interval training (HIIT) is an exercise method that involves very short (think under 5 minutes) intetvals of max effort exercise followed by breaks. This methodology validates very well in scientific literature, both conceptually and in exercise studies that show impressive fitness gains.

It also, by many accounts from researchers and participants, sucks super hard to do correctly. You need to be putting in truly grueling amounts of effort during the intervals to see the advertised benefits. Most people, even when they try to do this, aren't doing it correctly.

I think you could say two things about someone that's not seeing results from HIIT:

1. HIIT is super effective; if you're not getting good results, it's because you're doing it incorrectly. 2. HIIT is not actually a reasonable exercise regimen for most people; this means it's not a great exercise regimen.

Statement 1 is logically true. Statement 2 can be more or less true depending on the theory (walking 20 minutes a day is a lot more reasonable than requiring total exhaustion, whereas a theoretical routine that requires Tasering yourself is less reasonable and makes Statement 2 much more true).

What I've described as my experience in Montessori is definitely Statement 2. I'm sure the method has ways to combat my problems, and if I had gone to a "better" Montessori school it's entirely possible they would have dealt with them. But from what I've seen, these specific problems crop up enough that I think they're a fair criticism.