e t i e s k c ü R r e d Pedagogical Section f u

a at the n o i s r e V e h c s t u e D Journal

Midsummer 2019, No. 66 Imprint

The Journal of the Pedagogical Section

Publisher: Pädagogische Sektion am Goetheanum Postfach, CH-4143 1 Tel.: 0041 61 706 43 15 Tel.: 0041 61 706 43 73 Fax: 0041 61 706 44 74 E-Mail: [email protected] Homepage: www.paedagogik-goetheanum.ch Editors: Florian Osswald, Dorothee Prange, Claus-Peter Röh Correction: Angela Wesser Cover picture: Publications Waldorf 100, Photograph in the Goetheanum Park, François Bonhôte

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Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 Index

Index

3 Foreword Dorothee Prange

4 A Birthday Present Aban Bana

5 The Waldorf School and Its People – Review of a Book (the English translation is in progress) Christof Wiechert

8 The Meetings of the International Forum of the Waldorf Movement from a Personal Perspective Robert Thomas

13 A Post-Card from Edinburgh Trevor Mepham

15 ‘Let's work on our Weaknesses’ Robert Thomas

16 Discourse Concerning Healthy Childhood Screens & Digital Devices – Navigating the Waves of Worked out by the Technology for a Healthy Childhood International Forum

Charta der Internationalen Konferenz der Waldorfpädagogischen Bewegung (Haager Kreis) zur Worked out by the Erziehung in der digitalen Welt – (until now only in German) International Forum

18 Agenda

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 1

Foreword

Foreword

Dear Colleagues,

The Waldorf 100 Year with all its events and This theme leads on to the concept of a celebrations is in full swing! media curriculum for Waldorf and Schools worldwide. Are we keeping 1100 participants attended the world educa- up with changes in society? In November a tors’ conference in Dornach. Challenging so- group of people will be researching this ques- cial questions were the focus, even lectures tion at the Goetheanum. Please send us your given in more than one language developed country’s or your school’s media curriculum – into social tasks. The (class) teacher confer- even if it’s in its infancy. This will be a great ence in Bangkok had quite a different char- help for us. acter. It took place in great heat at the Pany- otai School. There were 300 participants who Please send us any documents on this!!!!!! worked deeply with principles and how to transform them to fit today’s challenges. And finally the International Forum contin- ued to consider shared concerns in Edin- Are we actually waking up to the tasks facing burgh. There are articles on: us in order to carry and support Waldorf Ped- agogy over the next few decades? –The work by the International Forum – a personal view by a participant The International Forum for Steiner/Waldorf –The work in the British movement and Education (Hague Circle) is made up of col- its challenges leagues from all around the world. This group –A review of the most recent meeting shares members’ impressions and experiences and works on questions arising from across We would also like to draw your attention to the globe. This work has led to a statement several new books published on the occasion and a working paper: of the 100th anniversary of Waldorf Schools, often following an extensive preparation pe- 1. Charter by the International Forum for riod. Many of them are listed on the cover of Steiner/ (Hague Circle) this edition. There is a book review in this on education in a digital world (written journal of in Prague) 2. Discourse on Healthy Childhood (Practi- Nana Göbel’s ‘History of Waldorf Education’ cal advice arising from the charter for use in three volumes. in the schools) Different perspectives on the use of digital technology at home and We hope many of you will be keen to read at school these books!

!!!!!! – We would welcome these documents The Pedagogical Section to be translated into your language and shared and discussed with parents and the wider public !!!!!!!!

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 3 A Birthday Present

‘THE WALDORF IMPULSE’ – A Birthday Present

Aban Bana, Mumbai, India

It was in the year nineteen-nineteen, When the end of the First World War had been. There came to Dr Rudolf Steiner a friend, Who wanted a school in order to send The children of the workers of his factory, And thus began the Waldorf story.

Emil Molt was the factory head, With compassion and foresight his staff he led. Rudolf Steiner fulfilled Emil Molt’s dream, Giving lectures to the new Waldorf teachers’ team.

An education based upon his spiritual insight, Of the three-fold aspect of strength, warmth and light. A curriculum that meets the needs of the child, That they may grow to be truthful, brave and kind (mild).

On the wings of , east to China, As also to the west, to Argen-taina, (to rhyme with China). With India and many other countries in between, Remember, now we’re in twenty-nineteen!

So! Waldorf Education is here to stay. For future generations Waldorf lights the way, That they may grow up without conflict and strife. There is hope for children from all walks of life!

4 Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 The Waldorf School and Its People – Review of a Book

The Waldorf School and Its People (translation of the book is in progress)

Christof Wiechert Translated by Dorit Winter

Review movement since the Second World War. Vol- Before me lies a beautifully crafted slipcase, ume I comprises more than 450 pages; Vol- containing three volumes of the history of umes II and III are more than 800 pages each. Waldorf schools worldwide. Commemorating All three volumes are exceptionally well-il- the 100th anniversary of Waldorf Education, lustrated. timely in 2019, it has been compiled by Nana Göbel and published by Verlag Freies Geis- Content and Style tesleben. In her foreword, Nana Göbel states that in view of the extent of this project and the The worldwide school movement has thus been density of facts, readers will encounter a dif- presented with a gift of inestimable value. ficult style. She claims that her research led to something like a reference book. This does Form not correspond with my reading experience; When a pebble is cast into a pond, concentric the content flows convincingly, captivat- circles radiate from the point of entry to the ingly, and thus truly enthralling. Actually, shore. everything is related as though it were a larger-than-life novel by Tolstoy. In other That is how the first part is formed: The words, facts are not presented merely for founding of the school in Stuttgart in 1919 is their own sake, they always give meaning to central, followed by the appearance of subse- the context. The style is objectively factual, quent foundings which emanate from this without the author’s interpretation, which first Waldorf school. The “shore” is the limiting allows the facts to speak for themselves. obstruction of the Second World War. Never- (With, however, small exceptions here and theless, by then 42 schools had been founded. there. In describing how the National Social- ists slowly strangled the Hamburg school, she The second volume depicts the development comments, “Even such actions were carried after World War II, now limited to Europe. out with German thoroughness.”) (Vol. 1, p. Schools are portrayed within their countries. 247) Thus, 39 countries are included, their depic- tions reaching into the present time. Regarding the given contents, it has to be said that how a single human being was able to re- The third volume views non-European schools: search, remember and archive such a vast North America, South America, Australia and quantity of dates, names, facts and connec- New Zealand, Africa, Asia, and China. tions borders on the impossible. And this worldwide! In her foreword she modestly says This volume ends with a chapter on the in- that her work was made possible by the ternational collaboration within the school ‘Friends of the Art of Education’. That is just

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 5 The Waldorf School and Its People – Review of a Book one part of the story. The other is her love for ceed in the future? These three books consti- the project itself, and her exceptional ability to tute a mighty aid toward such success, for they grasp and keep track of things, facts, names, show us how preceding generations did it. events and incidents. She simply indicates situ- ations which might be illuminated critically, What Did These Colleagues Do? allowing the reader to judge them as he No matter which volume you open, the sto- chooses. Everything she portrays comes alive in ries are all gripping. Human destinies and the the light of her love for the Waldorf school destiny of the art of education intermingle: movement and she has succeeded in her in- tention: she gave the world wide Waldorf • Who knew that in Portugal Waldorf movement a memory, which anyone can read. methods would have been introduced in all elementary schools in 1980, but for … and its People tragic accidents within the government As is well known, brilliance is simple. And two days after the decision was made? what is simple and brilliant here is the title: (Vol. 2, p. 439) Thousands of people, teachers, founders of schools, and those who inspired this move- • Who knew that the first kindergarten ment become visible (again). They are liber- teacher in Italy, Mrs. Pederiva, was the ated from anonymity and recognized as daughter of Mrs. Auguste Arenson and those working for the art of education. Their Carl Unger? (She died in 2016.) names appear, they appear in shorter or longer scenes depicting their actions and in- •Who knows that the Waldorf School in volvement. It is as if the school movement Colmar is called Matthias Grünewald has awakened: all its deeds, wherever in the School, and that one of the school’s co- world they took place, are now connected to founders was Else Zimmer, one of the ori- people and live through one consciousness. ginal Uhlandshöhe pupils? (Vol. 2, p. 348) This consciousness has enabled it to revive in every consciousness through reading. The • Who knew that in 2008 Tobias Richter, Waldorf movement can come to life, arise in- along with Professor Basic, organized wardly, and the one hundred years become courses at the University of Zagreb which visible at the hand of the given destinies. even then led to an MA in Waldorf peda- gogy? (Vol. 2, p. 620) Looked at karmically, one might say that through these portrayals, the community • Who knew how astonishingly modern Ar- which determined to bring a truly human menia’s newly passed educational law al- means of education to earth becomes visible, ready was, as early as September 11, and this through three generations. 1918, in the sense of the three-fold social order? (Vol. 2, p. 699) This gift for us is incomparable in breadth and meaning. It is a gift for the Waldorf col- • Who knew that as early as 1926 there leagues now standing at the brink of the sec- was a Waldorf School in Budapest? This ond hundred years. story alone reads like a novella.

And each of us knows that we stand not just at • And how often is our historical con- a brink, but also at a threshold: Will we suc- sciousness so horrifyingly “lame,” forget-

6 Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 The Waldorf School and Its People – Review of a Book

ting as it does how mightily and fre- Auguste (Arenson) Unger has already ap- quently the anthroposophical movement peared in Volume I as she helps Caroline von and the school movement were attacked, Heydebrand feed children weakened by for example, the massive attack by the World War I (Volume I, page 175). Secret Service and Ministries in France in 1999 to sustain and solidify the 1982 In the significant chapter on the international charges of sectarianism? It reads like a cooperation after the Second World War, in crime thriller. (Vol. 2. p. 363) Volume III, the personage of reappears again, this time in relation to the • And let us not lose awareness of how the founding of the Freunde der Erziehungskunst English school movement failed, after Rudolf Steiners (1976) – but we already en- many procedures and attempts to be- countered him in 1921 (!) where, in Volume I, come economically viable? The country in we find the description of the autonomous, which Steiner so enjoyed speaking about self-administered teacher training, the so- pedagogy, and where, during his visits on called, “Jena-Zwätzener Pedagogical Working the islands, so much hope was generated. Group.” And we review names: Brian Masters, , , Ron Jarman, Such cross references show once again, that Martyn Rawson, Christopher Clouder, John it was not only time which ran its course, but Burnett, Shirley Noakes, and the astonish- that extensive human impact came to earth ing character, Charles Kovacs, whose main from pre-birth intentions in order to realize lesson research is still in print …. (Vol. 2. pp this achievement of a truly human education 181-209) for our time.

The further back we go in time, the less It is a fact that Nana Göbel has given the bourgeois and more will-based the col- worldwide Waldorf movement its memory. leagues become; they seemed uninterested May many, also the “new” 4th generation of in economic niceties. What counted was the Waldorf teachers, heed it and take it to heart. development of this pedagogy and in Ger- man lands, its reconstruction. This is a trilogy which should not fail to be present in every faculty library; indeed, in Of course, these books use a linear chronol- the library of every Waldorf teacher or Wal- ogy, the course of time necessitates that. All dorf educator. the more satisfying then, when cross refer- ences become visible and the reader can ex- perience something like a historical Gestalt.

So, for example, in Volume I we have exten- sive descriptions of how Steiner was able to speak in Great Britain; which people invested in a new form of education (Prof. ); and about the universities which invited Steiner. In Volume II, then, we already have the basis of a description of England. (Volume I, p. 78) Thus the aforementioned

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 7 The Meetings of the International Forum of the Waldorf Movement from a Personal Perspective

The Meetings of the International Forum of the Waldorf Movement from a Personal Perspective

Robert Thomas Translated by John Weedon

It was in May 1991 that I was able to partic- A Picture of the World Arises ipate in a meeting of the International Today this Forum has become more inter- Forum in The Hague for the first time. I was national: more than 30 countries are repre- enabled to be there in The Hague through sented. It is no longer a matter of a Euro- the recommendations of W. Spalinger, centric perspective, but rather of a qualita- (Zürich), the departing Swiss colleague, Ot- tive broadening of our viewpoint. The fried Dörfler, (Basel), and Jörgen Smit, the Forum contributes towards a clearer per- leader of the Section at the time. The meet- ception and understanding of the present ings alternated then between The Hague world situation from the viewpoints of var- (May) and Stuttgart (November) each year; ious cultures. In my opinion this is a salu- looking back on it, for me the meeting was tary learning process for us Western Euro- something exclusive, perhaps even elitist, peans. We are called upon to review and but, above all, also something enriching, liv- critically scrutinize conceptions and habits ing and spiritual. Well-known personalities no longer relevant to our times (curricu- of the school movement gathered there, lum, pedagogical characteristics of another every one of whom were experienced, lead- era, dogmas, inessential criteria, foreign ing educators from Germany, the Nether- language standards). It stands out clearly lands, Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Fin- that living conditions of teaching in land, Austria and France. They were influen- schools in Asia, in the Middle East, in Africa tial and heavily involved in the building up and South America are completely differ- of the Waldorf movement after the Second ent from the way we imagine them as Eu- World War. These people radiated interest in ropeans. Schools and kindergartens find the world, competence as teachers and a themselves practically everywhere more or strong sense of responsibility. They were less in a debate, in which it is a matter of clearly bearers of the impulse of anthroposo- educational policy issues, economic sur- phy and of the fields of educational work vival, qualifications and putting school life within it. The last witnesses of this period for and health care on a scientific basis, but me are Jörgen Smit, Stefan Leber, Ernst- also a matter of the area of conflict be- Michael Cranich, Heinz Zimmermann, Wim tween central government regulation and Veltmann, Guus van Dam and Walter the forming of identity. Through the actual Liebendörfer. What this generation has con- human encounters and the sustained ex- tributed to the understanding of the world change of ideas among working teachers school movement is hard to evaluate, but no uniform picture of the Waldorf move- through them a quality standard was set that ment emerges, but rather an individualised, even today counts as a point of reference for differentiated view of reality. Thus, we get the continuity of this sense of responsibility a lively impression of our international ed- that is being striven for. ucational movement.

8 Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 The Meetings of the International Forum of the Waldorf Movement from a Personal Perspective

Perceiving the Phenomena of our Times A Place of Initiative When Dutch colleagues report on the teach- The Hague Circle was always a source of ini- ing challenges of Waldorf education (inde- tiatives: in 1983 Jörgen Smit with The Hague pendent schools) in the corset of countless Circle held the first world teachers’ and edu- state regulations (testing, administration by cators’ conference. To date, regular confer- outsiders, etc.), when the lawmakers want to ences have been taking place, attended each end the long-standing exceptional position time by more than 1,000 Waldorf teachers of these independent schools, all colleagues’ and educators. In April 2016 this conference ears prick up, as this trend is perceived not as took place for the tenth time. Each time the a Dutch (or European) one-off phenomenon, content is prepared by the Education Section but as a potentially imminent problem for all at the Goetheanum and the International concerned. The story of this re-structuring is Forum (IK or IF) years in advance. These in- a lesson for everyone involved. The danger of ternational events of the Waldorf movement the suffocation of our breathing spaces are meeting places and have a real potential through standardisation (ratings, politics and for further professional development. economics) is a reality which is lurking everywhere in many and various guises. In crisis situations too the IF (International These kinds of contemporary phenomena Forum) has been involved time and again in speak a clear message: regulation, subjection order, for instance, to lend more weight to the to external laws, convention, social and edu- interests of the Waldorf schools vis-à-vis re- cational work subjected to scientific analysis strictive national authorities. In certain situa- and mistrust towards the efforts of individ- tions, the outsider view is invaluable. The inter- ual initiative. In the Ukraine the Waldorf national composition of the IF meetings offers school needs to be organised and subordi- the opportunity for encountering various nated differently from the school in Switzer- viewpoints and kinds of experience: a real ves- land, for example. The conversation of teach- sel for educational competence and intuitions. ers and educators about these developing processes creates clarity of mind; at the same In 2011 this body decided to be registered as time, it allows a better evaluation and as- an association according to Swiss law, which sessment of one’s own situation. When we meant that a ‘legal entity’, embodying the are rowing against the stream, the main- world-wide school movement, has been cre- stream, it is important to know the currents ated. This organ of perception thereby strives at work so as to be able to anticipate and to take on more responsibility in the process react more effectively. This is not simply a of increasing internationalisation. What the matter of an uphill struggle; within it lies the “Bund” (Association in Germany) of Waldorf possibility of developing capacities that Schools has been achieving for decades (and would otherwise not have come about. is still achieving) for the world-wide school Through this work the identity of the au- movement is impressive, but today we re- tonomous schools is strengthened; it allows quire a more broad-based, supporting, re- us to understand the task of Waldorf educa- sponsible body, in keeping with our times. tion – unfolding the individuality of the The IF is on the point of taking on this task. human being on the levels of body, soul and spirit – more profoundly and more con- Through the bi-annual encounters of the sciously as one of the highest forms of good members, valuable, personal conversations in society. that are very stimulating in a small framework,

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 9 The Meetings of the International Forum of the Waldorf Movement from a Personal Perspective arise. In Switzerland, for instance, various re- is still suffering from the effects of ports on the world-wide school movement Apartheid. During the 1960s Waldorf schools for the parents and staff have appeared, en- were forward-looking places; they fought abling a connection to be made to education against the political stream, as much as was across the world. possible. Today they are still carrying out pi- oneer work in the townships of Johannes- Improving our Attentiveness burg and Cape Town for children from four When, over the years, people from about 30 different types of social backgrounds: black countries and cultural traditions meet twice a people (80% of the population, white people year in order to gain a wider picture, a new (9%), coloured and Asian people; moreover, kind of connection with one’s colleagues arises there are several million refugees, above all, that has an impact that goes beyond countries from Zimbabwe, living illegally in South and continents. Putting yourself into totally Africa. Key tasks are health care and educa- foreign situations is demanding and requires a tion. Children are striving to gain the basic special kind of attentiveness and care; clichés skills of civilisation (writing, reading, arith- and prejudices need to be overcome time and metic and acquiring knowledge), but they again. The danger of having an authority to are also striving for spiritual dimensions and point the way is relativized by the many and assistance in finding a direction. Since the varied viewpoints and the endeavour to distin- end of Apartheid, South Africa has had guish essentials from side issues. Nowadays eleven official languages: English, Afrikaans, this faculty is very much called for. Impartiality isiZulu, Siswati, South-Ndebele, Sesotho, Se- is essential, if we want to understand the pedi, Xitsonga, Setswana, Tshivenda, and world. Identity is not something fixed, defini- isiXhosa. Thus, after Bolivia and India this tive; identity is much rather a process. The ex- country comes third in having the most offi- ample of the small independent Waldorf cial languages in the world. Accordingly, school of Montreal in Canada (founded in there are eleven different official names for 1980) shows how committed teachers and the country, which is a challenge for a school parents struggle with the identity of their and the education of children and adoles- school. Decades ago, this school was a French- cents that we, in Europe, cannot conceive of speaking establishment in Quebec, which par- as yet; nonetheless, a challenge that we will ticularly spoke to the strong French minority in perhaps have to get to grips with in Europe the surrounding Anglo-Saxon area; today the through the great stream of refugees at Anglo-Saxon element has become stronger present. and the French minority has become weaker. The school needs to take account of that. It Meeting adolescents of a twelfth class in needs to include this change culturally and lin- () turned out to be a special ex- guistically in its work, since English-speaking perience for me. These young people have parents are looking for this kind of education reached the end of their school time and in Montreal. Social skills of teaching and set- very soon will have to do their dangerous ting a direction are required, if the school military service. How they assess this, analyse wants to carry on fulfilling its task. it coolly, view it lucidly and accept it shows the great maturity of these 18-year olds as Complexity and Challenges human beings; in all this the spiritual dimen- In South Africa, for example, the situation of sion of their sense of responsibility, whether Waldorf schools is challenging. This country Arabic, Jewish or Christian, is impressive.

10 Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 The Meetings of the International Forum of the Waldorf Movement from a Personal Perspective

Does the strongly artistic tendency of the feel themselves to be Waldorf schools. In Waldorf schools in Harduf possibly have any- these cases, it has to be clarified whether this thing to do with it? There are numerous feeling corresponds to reality. To enable this, other examples that show how this social the IF characteristics of a Waldorf school, pedagogical impulse radiates out into the among other things, were thoroughly de- world. In recent years digitalisation has taken bated and agreed upon in order to create re- over the sphere of education world-wide; liable orientation. behind this lies a business model and a spe- cific intention in educational policy. This The Question of Protection newly-created societal context demands an The necessity of protection has grown in the appropriately differentiated pedagogical re- age of anonymity, of the internet and of the sponse; this is why the Prague Manifesto of levelling of discourse to the lowest common 2018 was published as the position of the In- denominator. The Association of Indepen- ternational Forum; various initiatives have dent Waldorf Schools (Bund der Freien Wal- been working for years on a curriculum that dorfschulen) is the owner of the proprietary takes digitalisation into account. names “Waldorf” and “Rudolf Steiner” his- torically and legally. For countries without a Waldorf 100 as a world-wide, over-arching national association a procedure has been event demonstrates the surplus forces of the developed by the Association and the Inter- movement through numerous individual national Forum in order to provide a guar- events; what has touched me most is the antee of recognition; thereby pseudo-Wal- Bienen-Lehrplan (Bee-Curriculum) (Kinder- dorf schools or copycats with commercial garten to Class 12). ambitions have been excluded. Nowadays it is no longer in keeping with our times to Extending Conscious Awareness leave the sole responsibility up to the Asso- The IF has gained a great deal from the con- ciation of Independent Waldorf Schools; for tributions of the “Friends of the Art of Edu- this reason, the possibility of sub-licensing cation”. Through close contact, the ‘Friends’ was created: countries which have a na- know the situations of numerous Waldorf in- tional association may apply to take on the stitutions, schools and kindergartens, which legal responsibility. A procedure makes clear they support financially and with advice. The what the necessary pre-requirements are. co-ordination of the various insights gained has a stimulating effect on the work, The Question of Responsibility whereby a key role is given to the leadership If we look at the development over the years, of the Education Section; it leads the meet- the question arises today as to how the inter- ings and sets the priorities. It frequently be- national work can be structured for it to be comes aware of the challenges itself on the alive, de-centralised and federal. How do we spot in various countries and seeks connec- want to serve this development? Where should tions and possibilities for defusing situations clear protective boundaries be? How are the and strengthening impulses. “breathing spaces” being defended? How do we penetrate the impulse? How do we accom- Through the regular updating of the world- pany the further steps in a lucid way between wide list of schools, it is evident how the imposing a structure and arbitrary decision- school movement is developing throughout making? How are spirituality and education the world. There are establishments which connected in secular and religious societies? To

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 11 The Meetings of the International Forum of the Waldorf Movement from a Personal Perspective what extent are adaptation and identity con- quality is comprehensible and realisable. Is sistent with one another? the International Forum not an appropriate platform to strive for this and carry it out? Of According to Jean Gebser’s view, in our time course, time and again, in the International what is occurring is “the breakthrough of a Forum it is a matter of organisation, concrete new stage of consciousness: integral con- projects, agreements and commitments; sciousness”. Through the social-pedagogical nonetheless, just the connection between the impulse of Rudolf Steiner this consciousness concrete and the global is the essential task.

12 Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 A post-card from Edinburgh, May 2019

A post-card from Edinburgh, May 2019

Trevor Mepham

Half a million people live in Edinburgh. It’s a We were, of course, not in England, but city which probably began life as a hill-fort where were we? In 2019 do even the citizens over a thousand years ago. A town developed know? next to the hill-fort and was proclaimed by royal charter in the early 12th century. By the We came to a place where many people middle of the 14th century, Edinburgh was gather from all over the world; a nation being described as the capital of a place within an island-nation, within a patchwork called Scotland. of kingdoms and realms, some of which were, some are and others that might be. Was Ernst Schumacher visiting Edinburgh when he chose the title for his book, Small Is What did we hear? It is tempting, I know, Beautiful? Probably not, but it is! Nestling dear reader, to imagine bag-pipes and an airy between the churning North Sea, rolling highland reel welcoming us to the land of hills, a sleeping volcano and forested slopes, the Gaels. Yet, the opening treat was both a Edinburgh interrupts nature in a very gentle surprise and a delight: an Impromptu by manner. Schubert performed effortlessly and bril- liantly by a Grade 12 student in wellingtons. Thirty of us came to Bonny Scotland from What else did we hear about? Africa, North and South America, Russia, China, the Holy Land and all corners of Eu- • Steiner’s visits to these islands and the rope. This meeting of the International wide-ranging talks he gave on education Forum overcame any temptation to follow a and spiritual science. He made his first simple or false binary, meaning it was a visit in the spring of 1913 and his final gathering that was both sombre and joyful; visit was in the late summer of 1924. troubling and invigorating. While in Penmaenmawr, in the moun- tains of north Wales, he is reported to The weather was, for Scotland in May, just have said that he felt “at home”. right. 14 degrees centigrade, soft rain, the sky laden with grey and white clouds with • The 80 years of life and activity of the occasional, promising splashes of blue sky Edinburgh Steiner School, which opened and pale sunlight. in 1939, as schools in Germany were being shut down as an extended wave of The four-day gathering opened with a Dutch terror swept across Europe. Before this, nursery rhyme: from 1922, Steiner had been in discussion White swans, black swans, with a small group of women about their Will you sail to England with me? aim to begin educational activity in Kings England is closed because the key has broken. Langley. Three years later, in 1925, the Is there no key-maker in the land, first Steiner school in the UK opened in Who can fix the key? London.

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 13 A post-card from Edinburgh, May 2019

•The current state of low ebb in the Steiner eration away. Today, walls are being built Waldorf movement in the UK, where around the world and fear and instability outer pressures and challenges vie with are at large. With the turn of the century, internal differences and tribulations con- the call for freedom quietened somewhat cerned with organisational fluency and and a new call for equality can now be leadership. These times are particularly heard. Some of the instruments in the difficult for schools in England, where a equality ‘tool-kit’ need to be watched combination of austerity, tightening reg- and handled with care. The prominence ulation and a series of poor judgements in the global economic, civic and social arising out of a wave of school inspection agenda of standards has led to a culture visits have produced low morale and a of standardisation, which can tilt effort- state of crisis. Fragmentation is, arguably, lessly into a culture of uniformity. If this a dynamic in the country at large, as well phenomenon, trend and danger are not as within the Steiner Waldorf movement. understood clearly and appropriate re- The key question facing SWSF is whether sponses made, the doors to the forces of consent for an organisation that can lead authoritarianism swing open. and govern can be re-newed, or whether we have reached a place where the sign- The meeting ended by looking ahead to the posts to the future come in the form of a next World Teachers’ Conference in 2022. In series of positive, individual initiatives. In seeking for a theme or leitmotif, the fast-de- every challenge, opportunity springs up veloping conditions of modern life, medical- and like the pearl in the oyster, opportu- technical possibilities of change and funda- nity is something new which can lie hid- mental questions of purpose and ethics ring den, or un-noticed. To be able to grasp out loud and clear. Is the time approaching opportunities that are thrown up by set- when it will not sound strange to ask such backs and disruption, we need hope, things as: “What is the point of a human alertness and courage. being having a body?” or, “How can we ac- cess the wisdom of the body consciously?” • The celebrations for 100 years of Waldorf and, “What are the actual relationships be- education are gathering pace and are full tween the brain, the heart and the limbs and of verve and energy. Upbeat reports and how do we support and serve the whole feedback were received from a string of human being?” conferences held recently in Nairobi, Bangkok, Taiwan and Switzerland. The next meeting of the International Forum takes place in Berlin, in September. We will • Through much of the second half of the gather together to listen again for “the 20th century there was a wide-spread call heart’s cosmic pulse”; to share our times and for people to be free; a climate of liberal our places and to refresh our commitment to universalism is one way to describe it. The the children of the world – their health, se- Berlin Wall crumbled in 1989; now a gen- curity and their learning.

14 Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 ‘Let’s work on our Weaknesses’ Edinburgh, 30 May – 2 June 2019

'Let's work on our Weaknesses' Edinburgh, 30 May – 2 June 2019

Robert Thomas for the International Forum Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator

The International Forum of Waldorf/Steiner immediately; here we are actually quite free. Schools took note of the dramatic situation Honesty and courage are essential here. The of Steiner schools in Great Britain with great will to make changes, to question traditions, concern and seriousness: school closures, so- to promote independent initiatives and to cial tensions, excessive demands, disorienta- lead social processes efficiently, will shape tion, powerlessness. The numerous reports the existence of our movement in the com- and differentiated analyses of the problems ing years in such a way that either the source at the various levels (school, fellowship, po- of spiritual science will enable us to make litical situation) expressed the difficult con- this radical "conversion" or the weaknesses ditions: political pressure on the schools will suffocate us; an energetic effort at this from outside combined with clearly percepti- source is inevitable, if children and young ble inner weaknesses. Instead of acting people, who will change the world of tomor- proactively and fighting against the inertia row, are to find an art of education on earth; of habits, the educational movement has it is about the salvation of the soul-spiritual come to a standstill in many places. in humans.

It is obvious that schools with very few re- What our colleagues have taught us is, on the sources and completely on their own are at one hand, the merciless recognition of our the mercy of political and administrative own weakness (diagnosis + appropriate pressure. Unfortunately, it has become a fact measures) and on the other hand, to combine that several schools have been closed and social processes (within the college, with par- others may follow. ents …) with clear and professional guidance. This has become vital in the 21st century in But what is happening in Great Britain today self-governing institutions and guarantees is latently present in all countries of the the creation of pedagogical freedom. world. With few exceptions since the 1990s – for very specific ideological reasons – the In the age of the consciousness soul the task states are increasingly exercising strict con- is to find a new form of trust; no longer the trols on the school system and administering mind is decisive, but rather a conscious, serv- education with instruments of the economy ing competence which is carried by warmth (the economization of education). and empathy.

But the relevant question for us is: What can May the present situation in the land of we learn from this specific situation in Britain? Shakespeare awaken us all to personally face the urgent challenges of our time. In order to These internal weaknesses are present every- do this, each of us cannot remain the leop- where, but it is the area in which we can act ard, which cannot change its spots.

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 15 Discourse Concerning Healthy Childhood

Discourse Concerning Healthy Childhood Screens & Digital Devices – Navigating the Waves of Technology for a Healthy Childhood

Written and worked out by the International Forum

Digital technologies are a part of modern In the case of digital devices – computers, life and deserve an appropriate place in ed- tablets, smart phones, and the like – the skills ucation – both for teaching and for learn- they are intended to support are the cogni- ing. Children develop their capacities to tive functions of conscious human experi- experience the world in successive, devel- ence. These devices in effect simulate these opmental stages – tactile, sensual, emo- functions. That means human capacities can tional, social, and cognitive. Accordingly, be enhanced and benefit by using these de- answers to the questions, “When?“ and vices. But the rule still applies: first develop “How?“ to learn about and use digital the skill and only then use the appropriate forms of media are crucial to the unfolding tool to enhance that skill. of a healthy childhood. Neither the naive use of digital technologies, nor a defensive In this light, the fundamental question re- rejection of them can lead to skilful and garding the use of digital technology in ed- appropriate applications. What is needed is ucation must be: How do we develop the a holistic approach that leads the way from full palette of human experience so that concrete, primary experiences of the world digital technology can enhance rather than (sensory, motoric, and rhythmic activity) supplant it? In an attempt to contribute to through a familiarity with a range of di- the discourse around this question, the In- verse sensually media (picture-books, ternational Forum (Hague Circle) has printed text, handwriting, theatre, etc.) to drafted the following 10 principles towards an understanding of digital technologies as a “Healthy Childhood in an Age of Digital tools for learning. Technology”:

Waldorf Education recognizes that these 1. Children learn best from direct contact tools are intended to enhance particular with people. human skills, but that it takes time to first develop these human skills. The more ad- 2. Children learn differently at different vanced a skill, the more one can take ad- stages of their development. vantage of a device designed to enhance that skill. To the degree one is fluent in 3. Children need to move if they are to mathematical operations, for instance, a learn. The younger the child, the greater calculating device can be of immense help. the need to be active and practically en- The mischief begins when the calculator is gaged. introduced before the mathematical skill is developed, for now the calculator will 4. The development of gross motor skills threaten to replace a skill rather than sup- precedes and enhances the development port it. of fine motor skills.

16 Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 Discourse Concerning Healthy Childhood

5. Children should complete, in large meas- sibility. Human powers of objective per- ure, the physical development of their ception, discernment and thinking – perceptual or sense organs before these which constitute the basis for freedom are applied to digital devices. and responsibility – need time and space to mature. 6. Unscripted, child-initiated play is the most productive work of childhood, en- 8. Children need first to develop life skills abling children to develop their imagina- since they form the basis for acquiring tions by exploring and experiencing the digital, screen-based skills. world around them. 9. Education must be guided by pedagogi- 7. As young learners begin to gain access to cal values, rather than by economic or digital, screen-based technologies, it is political interests. vital that adults ensure children and young people are safe in the online 10. Learning is more about developing human world and that children learn to use capacities than about accumulating and these technologies with care and respon- retaining information.

Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 17 Agenda

Agenda

2019

September 19 Closing Ceremonies Waldorf 100 in the Tem- podrom, Berlin

October 26 – 29 Interdisciplinary advanced training in educa- tion and medicine for teachers, support teachers and school physicians with the fol- lowing theme ‘Supporting Learning as the Interaction of Soul and Physical forces’

November 15 – 17 3rd School of Spiritual Science Conference of the Pedagogical Section ‘The Will as Trans- formative Pedagogical Power’

18 Pedagogical Section, Journal No. 66 For Notices For Notices