Steiner school: pros and cons of this educational method
In the Steiner school, training is centered on the intelligence, feelings and will of children: this has allowed it to become an educational method widely appreciated as a valid alternative to traditional school. In this article we want to better present the pedagogy conceived by Rudolf Steiner, Austrian mathematician, philosopher and scholar of the 1900s. Before continuing with the reading, watch the video we leave you below to learn how to stimulate creativity in children.
Pedagogy at the basis of the Steiner school
Steiner's pedagogy is based on anthroposophical thinking, focused on harmony and the development of the person in body, soul and spirit (tripartite). Steiner was convinced to give children closed and limited concepts and definitions, he did not allow them to grow, which is why he believed in a plasticity of concepts that constantly change their shape, adapting and growing together with the child.
The Steiner schools, also called Waldorf schools, date back to the early years of the twentieth century, a period of great changes and revolutions also in the pedagogical field. At that time, the traditional teaching method was questioned for the first time, based on notions and evaluated with grades, in favor of new and innovative ways of teaching.
After a first important diffusion of the Waldorf schools, these are suppressed in the National Socialist period, because a decree of the Ministry of Culture and Public Education it prohibited the establishment of new first classes.
The Stainerian school then experienced a new period of development that has brought it to the present day, where it is widespread all over the world and covers the education of children from pre-kindergarten up to the age of 18.
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Steiner school: why is it also called the Waldorf school?
To understand why the Steiner school is also called the Waldorf school, we must take a dip in the past. The first was founded in Stuttgart at the behest of Emil Molt, director of the cigarette factory Waldorf Astoria, who wanted to create an educational institution for the children of factory workers.
The pedagogical movement based on Rudolf Steiner, therefore, owes its name to the cigarette factory. In this first school, Steiner himself was called to assume the post of teacher trainer, as well as rector of the institute.
Differences between the Steiner school and the traditional school
Here are the main differences between Rudolf Steiner's Waldorf school and the traditional school:
- Traditional teaching aims to bring out the cognitive and intellectual abilities of students.
- Steiner's teaching, on the other hand, aims at integrating the physical and spiritual components of the child, and does not consider concepts and notions fundamental and obligatory.
The educational path of the Steiner school consists of three cycles:
- the first: from birth to seven years
- the second: from seven to fourteen years old
- the third: from fourteen to twenty-one years old
First educational cycle
During the first cycle, the child must be surrounded by a good world, full of imagination and stimuli from the external environment. Play is of fundamental importance in this phase of life: an indispensable means of knowledge for interacting with the outside world, learning the manual skills and activities of adults.
Second educational cycle
Children aged 7 to 14 are considered to be in the second period of life, characterized in particular by body evolution. Hence, the Steiner school aims at the knowledge of the aesthetic sense and the discovery of the world of feelings. By attending school, sociality is strengthened, the development of symbolic and creative learning, autonomous and conceptual thinking and the search for beauty.
Third educational cycle
During the third and final cycle up to the age of 21, the boy is now considered a man. In this case the school aims to stimulate logical thinking, abstract reasoning, the search for truth, spirit, imagination and intellect, as well as the search for one's future in the world.
Lessons in a Steiner school
Lessons are conducted in a Steiner school following the natural succession of the seasons, in harmony with nature: in the warmer months such as spring or summer, ample space is given to outdoor activities. In the winter months, however, there is carefully studied the organization of the environments intended for learning, preferring natural and healthy materials so that there is never a lack of contact with nature, and the best sensory perception through beauty.
In addition to the lessons, a lot of space is left for the development of social life: theatrical performances, concerts performed by class orchestras, essays, parties and plays, are just some examples of social events in which one takes part.
One of the peculiarities of the Steiner schools is the total absence of grades and failures during the years of study: in their place a report card is given with a profile of the student, citing his study method and character, with also some practical advice for the future path to be taken both in terms of study and career.
Steiner school: the epoch and other subjects
"Epoca" is the name given to the main teaching in a Steiner school: it is a set of subjects such as Italian, mathematics, art, history, science, geography, drawing of shapes, and lasts about 2 hours a day.
To this are added other subjects which are:
- two foreign languages
- music
- eurythmy
- art and craft lessons
- gymnastics
- manual work
- I sing
- From the sixth grade onwards, other disciplines called craft activities take over: carpentry, physics and chemistry, gardening.
- In the upper classes you can find teaching on weaving, surveying, ceramics, binding, technical mechanics, computer science.
- Acting and theater, on the other hand, are offered for all educational cycles.
The training and role of teachers in Waldorf schools
To teach in a Steiner school, in addition to the achievement of the traditional degree required for the subject of teaching, educators must also achieve a specific preparation in Steiner pedagogy. This course, designed for teachers, lasts three years and includes a long period of internship to be carried out at a Waldorf school.
During their careers, teachers are required to follow training courses: all this has the goal of being able to "sow" in children what will reappear when they become adults.
To become educators in a Steiner school one must have a vocation: the common point of arrival for all must not be that of forming a perfect child, but rather of continually adapting the teaching subject to the internal and external development of the pupil.
During the first 8 years in a Waldorf school, there is only one teacher as a teacher of all subjects. This figure guides the child from an early age.
Moving on to high school, on the other hand, the teachers differ according to the subject in order to strengthen and develop an autonomous capacity for judgment.
Precisely with regard to the figure of the teacher or educator, Steiner was convinced that a profound relationship should be established between him and his students, only in this way would the educational objective be achieved.
Steiner and Montessori: two educational methods compared
For many parents, the Steiner school is similar to schools that follow the Montessori method. But what are the points in common?
- there are no grades to judge students
- there is the freedom of learning that follows the development of the students
- to become a teacher in both schools, you need to follow specific training courses and keep yourself constantly updated.
How much does a Steiner school cost?
To join a Waldorf school, it is necessary to request and organize a meeting between the school and the family, before proceeding with the enrollment. This interview is aimed at verifying the possibility of the family to pay the full tuition or, if necessary, appeal for a possible reduction.
All parents of students enrolled in the Steiner school must participate both economically and physically (with supplementary activities) in their child's school fees.
To give an example: in Italy, in Milan, the Waldorf school costs an average of 400 euros per month for the first seven years of training, to reach about 3 thousand a year in recent years.
Other typical characteristics of the Steiner schools
- All Waldorf schools are secular and apolitical, any sacred representations that may be in the classes, do not want to be an indoctrination, but universally address the human race, respecting the religious, social and cultural formation of all.
- Children with learning difficulties in the intellectual, social, emotional and motor spheres are placed in the classes together with all the other children. The Steiner school, in fact, is absolutely inclusive and prepared to welcome children and young people with disabilities.
Negative aspects of the Steinerian method
The main criticisms that are leveled at the Steiner-Waldorf schools are centered on the training method. Here's what they are.
- Ineffective pedagogical method, based only on anthroposophy.
- Limited or almost absent use of technologies which for many parents represents an enirme step backwards.
- Teaching children to read and write very late creates a gap from traditional schools that encourage early development of the child.
- Since the Steiner school is not a traditional school, it is not obliged to present vaccination certifications: in any case, our advice is to vaccinate the child so that both he and the others run no risk. Recently, some Steiner schools have been fined in this sense, therefore they have introduced the obligation of vaccination.
