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Alan Williams
(Cert Ed Course) An Investigation into
Steiner Education and Curriculum
with reference to the Steiner, or Waldorf
Education
started in Rudolf Steiner was an
Austrian, (born in 1861 died 1925),
his philosophy reflected his out look on life. He is seen by his
advocates as
being almost a guru, his interest in Science. Sociology, Psychology,
Education, Economics,
Architecture and Spiritualism coloured his philosophy to life, as well
as
education. In 1919
he was approached by the owner of a cigarette factory (Waldorf-Astra),
in Steiner decided that
the reasons
for He
decided that a new type of education system was required based on the
following
points: A) " That it must
recognize the inner development of
the child and seek to nourish it with appropriate experiences at each
stage,
through a wide - ranging curriculum. B) Foster the child's
experience of rhythm through a
balance of artistic, practical and intellectual work during the day,
and a
celebration of the seasons throughout the year. C) Allow social
learning in the classroom where
sensitivity and tolerance are recognized as truly human values. D) Treats
all subjects as inter - dependent, so that science, art and crafts
weave a
meaningful whole with the human as the focus. E) Emphasize
the human relationships of the child and the teacher in unstreamed,
mixed
classes of diverse back grounds and abilities. F) Nurture all the
faculties of the child, artistic,
practical, intellectual as complementary aspects of a spiritual whole. Whilst I agree
with the ideas behind his intentions I have misgivings about the way
they have
been interpreted by the Steiner Education system, (set up after he
died),
especially points b and f. Why should a child's sense of rhythm be so
important
to him to place it at its position in the list, ( or am I
misinterpreting
Steiner and if I am doing so how much misinterpretation is occurring in
the
Steiner schools). Point F
is Steiner speaking in his "Anthroposophy" way of seeing the world
which is the underlying philosophy to Steiner theories of education.
Anthroposophy or Spiritual Science is an amalgam of Spiritualism, Reincarnations
and Catholic beliefs. Each Steiner teacher must have studied and taken
into
their inner self Anthroposophy before they are allowed to teach. Steiner set-up the
school and also designed its
curriculum. The International
Curriculum as it's known in Steiner
Education. At the JB also
believes that Steiner said or would have said "that everything is open
to
review in Steiner Education and must be held up for inspection and that
it
should welcome change". This did not come across at the The
position of the The staff of the
school wish to be seen by their pupils as
taking the position of role models, and feel as though they should act
as uncles
and aunts towards their charges. This relationship with the children is
brought
about over the eight years that each Steiner teacher spends with the
same
class, before handing over to more specialist members. These class
tutors are
responsible for the main lesson of the day. This is carried out in the
morning
and lasts for two hours. The afternoons are devoted to handicrafts or
non-contact sports. The
Waldorf curriculum is broadly based on the inner spiritual needs of the
child
at different stages in their physical development which Steiner links
to the
child's mental development. He states that formal learning should not
take
place until the child has lost its baby teeth (7-8),. I do not feel
that there
is any problem with this part of his theory as several countries in Steiner
sees Three Stages in a child's development. I) The
first seven years - imitation 2)
Imagination 3) Rational judgement
The babe in arms is
seen to be at its must absorptive age.
From birth they have to learn to stand, walk, talk and think. Steiner
states
that the first seven years the etheric body has put forward all the
independent
activity of which it is capable, in order that it may build up a second
physical body which is genetically not linked to the child's parents.
This of course
is Steiner speaking out of ignorance having little knowledge of
genetics and
results in some confusion in interpretation among his follower's who
say that
he is linking it to physical change and not to genetic changes. Piaget
believed
that this period in a child's development is that of preoperational
thought (2
- 7 years). The child develops his ability to construct symbols, use
language
and engage in imaginative and make believe play. At this stage the
child goes
through a period of preconceptual thought, in which they have
relatively little
ability to understand the nature of classes and class membership. The
child
goes on later to a period of intuitive thought, in which they are
capable of
learning concepts and principles as problem solving. The concepts and
principles are derived through experience with concrete objects. "The five year old
child's
learning the concept of a square for example, must come into contact
with many
exemplars and nonexamplars of this concept before S/he will acquire the
concept. Furthermore once s/he has acquired
the concept s/ he is limited in their use
and manipulation of objects or the mental manipulation of once
experienced or
remembered objects”.
The Steiner syllabus
for this age range is based on
painting and drawing. To quote the syllabus "the child should be
introduced
to the plastic-sculptured forces, by means of painting or drawing”. The Steiner philosophy
is rather complex and 1 have found
it difficult to understand terms such as consonance and diconsonace
[dissonance?]which
are used as a means of defining the experience that a child develops by
the use
of colour. The children at this stage are actually carrying out work,
which is
in line with Piaget's theory They are practicing preoperative skills. Writing in the Steiner
curriculum is developed out of
drawing. Steiner argues (and I feel this is correct), that letters
evolved out of
picture writing, and uses this as the basis for the child's
introduction to
conventional writing. Steiner states that "if a chi1d is introduced to
conventional writing he will become prematurely senile"! How he can
make
this assumption I find absolutely amazing he states that in the child's
first
year the child should be able to write in a very simple script form,
what, is
dictated, I would question whether children of this age are capable of
recording the dictated words of the teacher, as these are abstract
concepts to
a 5-7 year old.. The state school system would slowly introduce the
concept of
the alphabet and the sounds and shapes of letters involved. Flash cards
are
used with pictures which relate to the principle letter and the sound
produced
by that letter, which is also related to a word such as apple. Steiner
argues
that in order to learn a letter the child must first picture the shape
of the
letter in their mind’s eye before they are asked to sound it and then
draw it.
The children
actually
walk the shape of the letter on the floor. Whether this helps them to
remember
I do not know, but I would have thought that anything which aids in the
learning process is useful, most teachers however employ several
different
methods to get across learning. The Steiner curriculum
approaches reading by introducing
the children to Roman Capitals and there should be no aim at
"completion".
By completion, I take that to mean the complete alphabet. Speech is
developed by letting the children repeat stories told to them by the
teacher.
Steinerists believe everything that is good is developed by the
teacher; and
that this must be good for the child. This certainly a cause for
concern, in
that it more or less gives carte blanche to teach the
children
anything! This puts the teacher in a very powerful position in what the
teacher
delivers in a lesson is immediately taken in by the children without
questioning and not only is used in their speech development but also
in forming
their opinions based on those of the teacher. This is
of course teacher-centered learning rather than learning which should
be based
on the child's own experience of life. The state system trained teacher
encourages the child to talk about their own experiences rather than
repeat fairy
tales. Knowledge of the
child's native land is also taught at
this stage. The rationale for this is that the child is gradually
introduced
into their environment and their position in it. This is carried out by
raising
the awareness of the child by telling the child fairy stories from
their native
land. Steiner believes that the fairy tales are a very important means
of
teaching children to develop their inner being. I would argue that it
is more important
to develop the whole child by suitable real experiences than by trying
to
develop something that is intangible which he calls the spirit. Arithmetic Once again
Anthroposophy is used to justify a strange attitude to the teaching of
mathematics, This system of teaching mathematics works from the premise
that
man looks at the whole and then sees the component parts afterwards,
which is
probably correct. Steiner then issues a statement which I find
incredible,
" the adult brain is formed by the way arithmetic is learnt
in
childhood, and whether man's later thinking will be of the kind that
synthesises or is merely atomistic, depends very much on the earliest
instruction which he receives in arithmetic". I can see no
justification
for a statement of this type, nor can I find any work which confirms
this
statement outside of the Steiner movement. It makes one wonder whether
this
another piece of knowledge passed down to him from the beings on the
astral
plane. The
methods involved in the teaching of arithmetic are those of counting
through
rhythmic movement, running, clapping and jumping. These are also used
in infant
education in the state system in this area. Other methods are also used
in
state schools to supplement this number games, finger games they also
use
simple pieces of apparatus such as counters, number balances, blocks
etc. I did
not notice this type of equipment in the classroom that we visited and
can find
no reference to the use of equipment at this level in the literature
I've read. One area of the
Steiner curriculum that I do agree with is
the starting of two foreign languages at this point in the child's
development.
The child at this time is constantly acquiring new knowledge and it
would seem
to be sensible to teach foreign languages along side the child's native
tongue.
Some schools are now starting to do this in the public area of
education at
around the age of seven. The Steiner schools in this country teach
German and
French by means of games, songs and poems and encourage simple
conversation
between pupils and teachers. Grammatical skills are not taught until
later. Another subject
specific to this type of education is Eurythmy.
Eurythmy is concerned
with every aspect of speech and
music providing n discipline in the study of both. Steinerists feel
that gives
this a far more beneficial effect in that it not only provides physical
activity
but once more is seen as a way of developing the spirit. It really is
the same
as movement and dance in the state system but is wrapped in the
mystical
concept of human development. The purpose of movement and dance as
taught in
our schools is very similar to that put forward by Steiner. Both
theories
believe that it allows the child to become aware of their bodies. The
mind takes
in rhythms and transforms the movements of the body to the rhythm e.g.
to learn
to dance. The state system also states that it makes the child develop
a sense
of spatial awareness, a statement I would have expected to find in the
Steiner
curriculum but did not. Steiner also claims a therapeutic effect for
Eurythmy,
which I don't doubt as music and movement is used as a treatment
process by the
medical profession. Music is
considered to be vital to the development of a child's "soul powers".
That is the sense of what is beautiful and what is not. This is
determined by
what the teacher chooses to play for the children. The teacher again
has
control over what is considered suitable for the child to listen to. I
would
like to know whether the children are fed a diet of essentially one
type of
music or whether all types of music are examined. Children at this stage
in their development also learn to
play a musical instrument usually a small flute of the penny whistle
type or a
violin. They are also taught to sing at the same time as they learn
their
flutes. This I feel is a good point in the Steiner curriculum learning
to play
musical instruments in the state system is done after school and after
the
parents have paid for these lessons. Musical appreciation I
consider to be an important part in
the development of an individual due to its therapeutic effect at
relieving
stress and the way in which it can move the listener emotionally. Taste
in
music is also a very personal thing and should we as adults be
inflicting
tastes in music on to our children? Handicraft
taught, at this stage is only knitting which is carried out by both
sexes.
Steiner once again gives very grand reasons for the teaching of
knitting such
as the beneficial and awakening of influences on the faculties of the
child's
mind. Psychologists today would probably argue that the children would
improve
their manipulative and fine motor skills rather than enhancing their
mental
capabilities by this exercise. A.C.
Harwood describes this stage in the child's development (4-7 in age),
as being
the time of fairy tales where the child's imagination is at its highest
. 2nd STAGE The Heart
of Childhood - Imagination Steinerists believe
that a transition occurs at around
this age. The most prominent physical change being the loss of the milk
teeth. At
this time the child's imagination develops along with a readiness for
more
formal learning. During this time the child begins to develop their
mind into
more consecutive patterns of thought. Between the ages of 6
- 9 years the Steiner curriculum
contains the same subjects as that of the first class. But
there are
additions in each subject area, with drawing and painting from which
the
children were taught how to inscribe capital letters now leading into
non-capital script writing . Dictation is once again seen as being an
important
part of the child's learning to read and write. The fairy stories give
way to
the telling of fables and animal stories. Steinerists see the telling
of these
stories and legends as bringing humility to the child. These fables
picture the
human being as striving towards "completion" the aim of every Steiner
devotee. Personally I can see that, the telling of Aesop's fables will
be of
use as part, of the development of a
child's moral education but religious education also focuses on this
area of
the curriculum . This type of lesson is also used to introduce
grammar which is
then taught in a National Curriculum form in the later years, e.g. in a
more
formal way. But at this stage the children are introduced to the
concepts of
verbs, adjectives and nouns. My daughter who is ten informs me that
they also
learnt these concepts at this age as well as paragraphs, direct speech
and
punctuation so once again Steiner schools are not, too far away from
the state
system at this age. Addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division are continued, but using
larger
numbers. Steiner believes that, the lose of the
first teeth is a vital stage in the development of the child. That at
about the
age of 7-8 this occurs, once this has happened then multiplication
tables can
be taught. One of the methods used by the teachers is once again that
of
allowing the children to move rhythmically and in beat by clapping and
jumping
in order to help them remember each set of tables. Music continues as
before. Handicraft.
The
children are now taught crochet and needle work. The third class
continues with
the above subjects but has two additional subjects, lessons in
practical life which replaces
knowledge of homeland, and gymnastics. THE
THEORY OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT AS SEEN BY PIAGET WITH REFERENCE TO
STEINER'S
THEORY. Piaget and Vygotsky in
By attempting to
understand how children learn to think
Piaget placed great emphasis on experience, Vygotsky placed his weight
behind
the argument, for language which accompanies the experience. All these
experts
agree that speech affects the child's power to think, not the ability
to
understand mathematics which is the premise of Steiner's theory of
thinking. They feel
that when young children begin to speak, their speech is linked
entirely with
actions and occurs only as the child handles or paints tangible objects
which
are actually present. Later in their development words provoke
remembered
visual experiences, and later still they have a symbolic meaning
attached to
them and are used in place of objects. Each child, from this point,
becomes
increasingly capable of planning his own actions in the future. At this
stage
the child has achieved the first liberation of thought from the
immediate
contact, and is reaching towards amore liberated thought pattern.
Steiner
believes that the child arrives at, this point through the experiences
given to
the child by their class teacher, not by the child exploring the world
for
themselves. Piaget
feels that as the child reaches the age of 7-9, a period which he
describes as
concrete operations, where the child begins to manipulate relationships
between
objects and set objects. The child can produce a mental image of a
series of
actions and begins to realize rational terms such as brighter,
smoother, taller
or fatter. They are able to refer to the relationships between two or
more
objects and not absolute qualities. The child is then able to reason
about the
whole and its parts simultaneously, grasping concepts from rules or
descriptions of the most important aspects to it. He, however still
requires
some experience with concrete examples of these important attributes.
Unlike
the child who is at pre-operational level a child at this stage of
concrete
operations will need one, or occasionally a few, examples of a concept
since he
has a greater facility for generalizing and handling the abstract.
However the
child develops, thinking in abstract. terms is still limited, in that
those
thought skills of conceptualization and hypothesis are only
potentialities, or
in some cases possibilities. Piaget and his co -
workers provided the basis which is
used to justify the activity methods and practical experiences which
have been
carried out in the primary schools of this country. Galperin (1957)
supports
this view as he considers learning to involve the stages of performing
a
physical operation, verbalizing this (initially out loud) and finally
replacing
it by a mental operation.
After
reading the statements by Piaget and those of My personal view is
that Steiner education at this stage concentrates
too heavily on the imaginative aspects of development, such as those of
art and
music, and less on conceptual elements, such as mathematics, science
and
technology, which are seen as destroying the imagination. Steiner
curriculum 9-11 years
The
curriculum at this age has to meet the fact that children are
developing a
stronger ego. Myths succeed the fairy stories Firstly those of
Icelandic and
German origin which contain examples of the development of the ego and
the
completion of heroic deeds. These are followed by the introduction of
the Greek
myths which provide a preparation for Greek history and the knowledge
and
philosophy which they gave to the world. Grammar is introduced in the
study of
these myths. The children are now
being allowed to develop their own
art work. Prior to this they have been guided or have even copied that
which
the teacher has shown them. It is at this level when the children
should be capable
of beginning to work out their own creativity. The observation of
geometrical
forms is now utilized in the form of drawing that the child carries
out. The
children should also draw and copy objects, as by now they have
experienced
inwardly the activity of the forms themselves. Although I have no
formal
training in art and very little skill in it
, I would question the theory of
artistic
development of children 5-7. People develop manipulative skills by
observation
and practice, by the training of the eye and memory. Copying may teach
the
physical skill but will do little for development of the imagination of
the
individual, which seems to be at odds with Steiner's theory of
development. Pupils at
this time are led from writing stories and descriptions to composing letters, both informal and formal. Tenses are
also introduced and are used to illustrate different parts of a verb.
The
children should able to see the relationship between prepositions and
the word
to which it belongs. The myths of the Icelandic and German sagas are
used to
provide this material for writing and reading. During this year the
children
are taught the difference between active and passive forms of the verb.
The
reporting of the written word or conversation is also considered to be
an
important. skill which the child must master as part or their
grammatical
education. Emphasis is also placed on the child being able to
differentiate
between their opinion and those of others. During the writing of
letters
punctuation is introduced. The myths of
Arithmetic German
and French Eurythmy
I I see this
is the case with regard to the physical development required to play
certain
types of sport, but not with regard to the mental development of the
child.
Piaget terms this stage as that of formal operations when the
adolescent
develops the capacity for abstract thought. Steiner sees this stage as
being
the start of rational judgment. This third stage adolescence is
critical for
the correct cultivation of critical judgment. It is at this point that
it
becomes possible for the pupil to use thinking as an objective
instrument. Two
other features are also present in the adolescent psyche : firstly a
healthy,
valuable idealism : and secondly a vulnerable sensitivity about one's
own feelings
and inner experiences which may require protection if the child is to
develop
normally. This is once again not too far away from the thinking of
Piaget et
al Steiner
education at this stage continues to build on and reinforce previous
learnt
knowledge. English
continues to concentrate on the development of business skills by the
production of business letters and composition, however these remain
similar in
style and content to those carried out in the third class. During this
time the
folklore of several different races provides the material for reading
and story
telling. The teacher at this time should also
be developing the children's " truly plastic perception
through speech of the forms of expression for desire, wonder, surprise
and so
forth". The children should then be taught to form sentences describing
their needs which are then compared in order that the child has an
insight into
the" plastic quality of language" yet, another definition I find
difficult to understand. I take it to mean the expansion of the child's
vocabulary. Roman period and the
influence of Greco -Roman culture
until the 15th century. Following on from this is the history of Languages continue
either French or German and Latin or
Greek . Eurythmy
and gymnastics continue, with apparatus such as parallel bars and rings
being
used. The rest
of the curriculum at this stage continues with music and handiwork. The important changes
to the curriculum are that Sciences
are taught as separate subjects Physics, Chemistry, but Biology is
still taught
as Nature study.
Chemistry
This approach to
science education I feel is at best
described as General Science in that it seems to be taught as a
holistic
subject within a loose framework. W.C. Hall (1972),
would agree with this approach. He
asserted that Science is “one and undivided in its principles and
methods"
and stated that "many of the concepts of science are common to all
areas”.
Another unnamed correspondent identified that the control experiment is
used
only by biologists and listed a set of concepts which he claimed could
not be
shared by the three separate disciplines, Whilst yet another
correspondent
argued that elementary biology was in a scientifically primitive state
and
should be taught as a Nature-story the method adopted in Steiner
Education . This
last comment I found illuminating Steiner may be right to teach
biology in
this way. The correspondent later goes on to say that biology cannot be
compared with physics as this uses advanced mechanisms such as
theory-building
and hypothesis testing.
History
continues up
to
the present time . Steiner
feels that when children leave school
the pupils should carry with them a picture of the history
of mankind
and the effect, of modern technology e.g. the invention of the steam
engine has
had on present day society. The Blake school still uses this as an
example, JB
feels that they should be using the growth of Communications, Transport
and
Information Technology instead. Geography
"When a pupil is set
forth into life he should take
with him a picture of man as the completion of the kingdoms of nature,
in fact
as a microcosm (
Mathematics Geometry Drawing Latin and
Greek
Music
continues as in the seventh class. Handicraft Gymnastics
with apparatus continues.
Gardening THE YOUNG
Caroline
Von Heydebrand: "The
thinking power and capacity of judgement are now fully awakened, and
the demand
for food of thought and an outlet for action in tasks which can be
accomplished
only by use of reason and logic (need to be fulfilled ). The relationship which a boy or girl forms
consciously and freely with his
surroundings demands a constant
contact with practical
life and with the achievements of modern technique. The rich and
versatile
soul-life which the boy hides even more than the girl needs to be
satisfied by
pondering over deep human problems. These problems should be introduced
and
discussed in lessons, for each one-sided judgement leads into a blind
alley. To
overcome the many difficulties and handicaps of this age, which is rich
in
riddles, wonders and surprises, but where consciousness only slowly
masters the
surging life activities, the teacher should give lessons with
imagination,
enthusiasm and artistic feeling”.
Art History Geography Nature of
man is continued. Chemistry Mathematics
The
children also study heat and mechanics( with reference as to how a
locomotive
operates), and electricity, magnetism and sound are taken into account
to show
how the telephone works. The motion of the stars is examined, and the
Doppler
effect discussed with the students. The optics of telescopes are also
considered
with reference to their use to astronomers. Latin and
Greek Eurythmy Tone
Eurythmy
Handiwork
consists of making all types of items from cushions to other domestic:
articles
which are now designed by the pupil. Painting is carried out in order
that the
children can produce posters and book covers in preparation for
learning the
skills of book -binding. Gymnastics with
Apparatus continues along the
"Turnen" lines, a set of exercises developed for the German army, and
use Indian clubs and various other large pieces of apparatus eg. rings,
vaulting horses etc. Exercise without apparatus develops from a
vertical fall
in an upright. position and then overcoming the fall by jumping,
swinging
running and walking. Skills more akin to those required for martial
arts rather
in keep fit.
Gardening Shorthand TENTH
CLASS Literature Art History Geography Natural
Science Chemistry Physics Geometry German
and French Latin and
Greek Eurythmy Handicraft Gymnastics
with apparatus continues using the "Turnen" method. Gymnastics
without apparatus is concerned with spatial awareness this point, . Woodwork Gardening Land
surveying and Technical Mechanics are introduced at this time. This
takes the
form of simple land surveying and technical mechanics looks at the
principle of
the screw. Another new subject is
First Aid a subject that I feel
every child should be taught and that it should be included in the
National
Curriculum. At the
end of year ten the pupils leave the SUMMARY The
problems of the Steiner Curriculum is firstly that the underlying
Philosophy of
Anthoposophy clouds most of the learning. This results in a very
unscientific
form of science being taught, most of which would have to be unlearnt
if
examinations at G.C.S.E. or A level are
taken, order to fit in to this philosophy.
The
curriculum has very little relevance to today's world, producing
children who
may be confident and "whole persons" but have no qualifications apart
from G.C.S.E. Mathematics, English and English Lit., on leaving this
school.
This means that if any of them wish to go on the Higher Education they
have
just two or three years to take another set of G.C.S.E.s in sciences or
arts as
well as two or three A Levels, which is a lot to ask any child at this
age.They are
also poorly equipped to enter the employment market unless they are
prepared to
take on a craft apprenticeship, if they can find one. It seems
to me that the The
stages of development put forward by Piaget are not rigid, unlike those
of
Steiner, rather they should be viewed as
identifiable phases
in a slow orderly
progression of development. Ausubel (1968) puts forward the theory that
"an individual child's state of readiness is reflective of his genetic
inheritance, incidental experience, general intellectual stimulation
and
educational background”. Research carried out by What may
be of interest is that the class teacher remains with their class for
eight
years as many of the educational constrictions attributed to the
readiness for
learning can be attributed to the child's training history. For the
teacher it
is easier and more helpful to evaluate entering behavior than it is to
attempt
to evaluate the more general, more ambiguous and less applicable
abilities that,
define developmental stages, a point that Steiner teachers should score
highly
on, due to the time that they spend with their class. The state teacher
has to
rely on reports, tests or comments from
other
teachers as to a child’s progress rather than knowing their charges
deeply.
However the fact that the teacher has so much power over their pupils
is, I
feel, rather dangerous in that in the child's formative years it, seems
that
the pupil has more respect for the teacher than it has for its parents.
The
Jesuits believe that if they are given a child at the age of seven they
will
then produce the man. Steinerist’s must also believe in this statement
in that
by proving the example of what they feel is right the Steiner trained
teacher
indoctrinates the child into the belief of Steiner regardless of what
the
parents beliefs are and this may well lead to conflict at home. The teachers
put forward the case that you do not
send your child to a Waldorf school unless you believe in Steiner. Whilst
having lunch at work I asked one of the lectures about Steiner
Education. He
admitted that he knew very little about it, but the woman who he was
having
lunch with, a lecturer from the C.F.E. in Plainsmill, said she had sent
two of
her children to the Steiner school in
It would seem that
holistic education is not about
developing free-thinking persons but about developing persons who hold
only the
narrow Steiner views of life. Bibliography R.C.
Anderson and G.W.Faust, Educational
Psychology, 1975, Dod, Mead and Co. I would
also like to acknowledge JB for his time in helping me to resolve some
of the
issues arising from the The n back to guest page |