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WALDORF / STEINER
NEWS ARCHIVE
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March, 2019
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This site supplements Waldorf Watch.
To go to Waldorf Watch itself, please click here:
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The news items below are presented in reverse chronological order — newest first, oldest last.
Please excuse a certain amount of repetition in the contents of this archive. Items that now appear close together on the screen may have originally been separated by intervals of several days.
Many of the items in this archive generalize about Waldorf schools, describing them as Rudolf Steiner and leading Waldorf representatives have said they should be and as evidence shows they often are today. Not all Waldorf schools, Waldorf charter schools, and Waldorf-inspired schools conform to this model precisely. To evaluate an individual school, you should carefully examine its stated purposes, its practices (which may or may not be consistent with its stated purposes), and the composition of its faculty.
— Roger Rawlings
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March 30, 2019
FOURTH LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST
WALDORF WHISTLE-BLOWER
From the website of the Secular Circle for the Prevention of Sectarianism [France]:
Grégoire PERRA is now the target
of three lawsuits initiated by groups
in the Anthroposophical movement
We previously announced that Grégoire Perra is being sued, in Strasbourg, by an organization of Anthroposophical doctors [1].
Since then, he has also been sued by a teacher who organizes school trips from a school in the Waldorf Schools Federation [2]. And now the same Steiner Schools Federation has also filed a complaint. This brings to three the number of proceedings that the defendant will have to face.
This ordeal will undoubtedly be long and exhausting, but we refrain, as usual, from taking a public position in ongoing proceedings, so we make no predictions about their outcome.
[3/30/2019 http://actu-sectarisme.blogspot.com/2019/03/gregoire-perra-maintenant-trois.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+CercleLaquePourLaPrventionDuSectarisme+(cercle+laïque+pour+la+prévention+du+sectarisme)&m=1 This notice was originally posted, in French, on March 28. Translated by R.R., relying heavily on www.DeepL.com/Translator.]
Waldorf Watch Response:
Anthroposophists stand in danger of making Grégoire Perra a major historical figure.
Perra is a former Waldorf student who went on to become a Waldorf teacher. He rose to prominence in French Anthroposophical circles. [3] Later, he became disillusioned with Anthroposophy in general and Waldorf education in particular. He has subsequently published numerous articles exposing both Anthroposophy and Waldorf. [4] He became a truth-teller, a whistle-blower — which means that, from an Anthroposophical perspective, he became a traitor.
In 2013, the Federation of Waldorf Schools sued Perra, claiming that his anti-Waldorf writings are defamatory. This became the first of the lawsuits Anthroposophists would lodge against Perra.
Perra won that first trial in decisive fashion. [5]
Now, in 2019, French Anthroposophists have filed three new lawsuits against Perra, bringing to four the total of their legal assaults on him.
One consequence of this barrage is that what might have seemed a small matter (debates between a sole French intellectual and an occult sect most people have never heard of) threatens to become a major scandal. And that strange occult sect, along with its educational arm called Waldorf, now effectively invite more of the exposure and criticism they find so intolerable.
By launching a three-part attack on Perra — three lawsuits at once — Anthroposophists have created a highly dramatic situation in which Perra becomes an enlarged figure, besieged and battered but unbowed. The resulting image of Anthroposophy — the movement that is besieging and battering an individual who has only tried to tell the truth — will almost surely be tarnished, no matter how the three new lawsuits end.
And how will they end? What will the courts rule?
We can’t know, yet. But the ending of the original lawsuit against Perra, back in 2013, may give us a clue. The court in that case ruled that the Federation of Waldorf Schools was improperly attempting to muzzle a critic; it was denying the right of a French citizen to express his views. This was an assault on a basic liberty, freedom of speech.
Here is how Perra has described the startling climax of that trial:
The debate is now closed. Counsel for the plaintiffs has completed his argument. I feel deep shame for the plaintiffs, for the strategy of insults and personal demonization they used to try to condemn me. So this is what they are. This is what they are capable of. How after this will they be able to look themselves calmly in a mirror, or fail to see what is reflected there? And how can they now avoid being compared with those whom they least want to be compared with, since they use the same tactics? As for the lawyers who have implemented these tactics, they know they have nothing to fear, because legal immunity gives them the right to say anything, to mouth totally unjustified insults and indignities during a trial without being held accountable to the law. Their courage and the gravity of their words are proportional to the risk they take, which is to say none. Normally, it would now be the turn of my lawyer to speak. In trials for alleged defamation, it is extremely rare for the Advocate General [5] to take the floor. He may be considered the chief prosecutor of the Republic. He represents the French State. This day, he delivers a bombshell: He rises to speak on behalf of French Justice.
Statement of the Advocate General:
"The accusation in this case is based on a reading of the article by Grégoire Perra that isolates certain words or passages out of context. We cannot do this! The Court must base its judgment on a thorough reading of the text in dispute … [T]he statements of Mr. Perra in his article are clearly identifiable as his personal opinions expressing a point of view that is necessarily subjective. They do not contain any trace of personal animosity. The article was signed, the author did not try to hide. The prosecution contends that UNADFI [6] should also publish positive testimonials about these schools if satisfied former students come forward to express them: But this is a denial of the fundamental right of any journal to express an opinion! In addition, the publication of a rightful reply, which the Federation had the opportunity to seek, was not denied.
"No doubt the Steiner-Waldorf schools, in having their complaint dismissed, can start to learn about the right to express contrary opinions!" [7]
The court subsequently ruled against the Federation of Waldorf Schools; the suit was dismissed. M. Perra was innocent.
Let us hope French justice will validate itself once again in the three new lawsuits.
Perra, who is not a wealthy man, now faces the daunting task of raising sufficient funds to defend himself in three simultaneous lawsuits. He has created a crowdfunding page seeking donations. Anyone who cares to support him can do so at https://www.okpal.com/soutenir-le-lanceur-d-alerte-gregoire-perra/#/. Perra estimates he needs to raise 11,000 euros. To date, he has received total donations of a bit under 8,300 euros.
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] See “Third Lawsuit Filed Against Waldorf Whistle-Blower”, March 13, 2019.
[2] This is the umbrella organization for Waldorf schools in France. [See, e.g., https://steiner-waldorf.org/federation/.]
[3] See “My Life Among the Anthroposophists”.
[4] See Perra’s website, La Vérité sur les écoles Steiner-Waldorf {The Truth About Waldorf-Steiner Schools} — https://veritesteiner.wordpress.com.
[5] In the French legal system, the Advocate General is, in effect, the chief prosecutor — he is comparable to the Attorney General in the United States. The Advocate General oversees efforts to convict the guilty, but his higher duty is to protect the sanctity of French justice.
[6] I.e., the journal in which Perra published the article in dispute. [See "He Went to Waldorf".]
[7] See “My Life Among the Anthroposophists - Part 3".
— R.R.
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.March 29, 2019
WALDORF, BEES, THE EARTH —
AND SATURN & VENUS, ETC.
From PR Newswire [Chicago, USA]:
The GreenBee Wildlife Web Initiative
Celebrating Earth Day, Pollinators and 100 Years of Waldorf Education
News Provided by Waldorf Education [1]
Pollinators need help and Waldorf schools and communities are taking action. Honey bees, wasps, butterflies, moths and more ... these are a few of the pollinators needed throughout the agricultural and natural world. As part of the Waldorf education centennial celebration [2] and an ongoing mission to create a more sustainable future, schools across the globe are taking action.
Over the course of 2019 and 2020, an estimated 50,000 students in over 160 Waldorf schools across North America will be creating an ecologically green "continental parks system" by planting pollinator gardens [3] and tending bees in backyards, playgrounds, schoolyards and public spaces…
The GreenBee Wildlife Web initiative is a collaboration between the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America [4] and the Alliance for Public Waldorf Education [5]....
[3/29/2019 https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-greenbee-wildlife-web-initiative-300820796.html]
Waldorf Watch Response:
One of the most attractive aspects of Waldorf education is its devotion to green values: teaching kids to promote and protect the Earth’s natural environment. This is commendable.
Unfortunately, the Waldorf approach to nature — as to most things — is riddled with occult mysticism. The founder of Waldorf education, Rudolf Steiner, was a self-professed occultist and clairvoyant. [6] His teachings about the natural world bear the imprint of his otherworldly orientation. [7] This is particularly true of his teachings about bees. [8]
Here are a few samples:
◊ “A little bee sucking on a blossom spreads about itself a small etheric aura, and this is when [elemental] beings appear…beings called sylphs….” [9]
◊ "This is the bee. When you study the whole hive, you have something totally different from the single bee. The whole beehive has a spiritual life that in some ways corresponds to life on Saturn on a lower stage, and that will be reached on Venus on a higher level.” [10]
◊ “One cannot…experience what is taking place on the Sun or Venus if one is unable to transfer one's consciousness into the life and functioning of a colony of bees. The bee has not gone through the whole course of evolution as we have.” [11]
◊ “The group soul of a beehive is a very high level being … It is of such a high development that you might almost say it is cosmically precocious. It has attained a level of evolutionary development that human beings will later reach in the Venus cycle, which follows the completion of the present Earth cycle ... The group soul of corals, however, is on a still higher plane….” [12]
The green values embraced in Waldorf schools are commendable. The occultism inflecting the Waldorf worldview, Anthroposophy [11], is something else.
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] This “news” item is a public relations (PR) release sent out by the Waldorf movement.
[2] The first Waldorf school was opened in Germany in 1919.
[3] I.e., gardens full of plants that are especially attractive to pollinating insects.
[4] See https://www.waldorfeducation.org.
[5] See http://www.allianceforpublicwaldorfeducation.org.
[6] See “Occultism” and “Clairvoyance”.
[7] See “Neutered Nature” and, e.g., “Gnomes”.
[8] See “bees” in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia (BW/SE).
[9] Rudolf Steiner, BEES (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 175. Elemental beings or nature spirits are invisible beings that dwell within the four elements of nature, Steiner said. Gnomes dwell in the earth, sylphs in the air, undines in water, and fire spirits or “salamanders” in fire. Sylphs are more commonly called fairies — they are usually pictured as tiny winged human-like figures. (Among Steiner's followers, the term "fairy" is also applied, sometimes, to all four types of elemental beings.) For a look at Steiner’s teachings about auras, see “Auras”.
[10] Rudolf Steiner, OCCULT SIGNS AND SYMBOLS (Anthroposophic Press, 1972), lecture 2, GA 101. Steiner taught that human evolution began on Old Saturn and will continue on Future Venus. [See “Old Saturn” and “Future Venus” in the BW/SE.]
[11] Rudolf Steiner, FOUNDATIONS OF ESOTERICISM (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1982), lecture 4, GA 93a. Because the bee has not “gone through the whole course of evolution,” it retains a primal consciousness, Steiner indicated.
[12] Rudolf Steiner, BEES, p. 176. A group soul is a soul shared by all the members of a species, race, or other group, Steiner taught. Bees are individually unevolved, Steiner said, but their group soul is highly evolved. The “Venus cycle” will be our lives on Future Venus. We currently exist in the “Earth cycle.”
[13] See "Anthroposophy" in the BW/SE.
— R.R.
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.March 28, 2019
TECHNOLOGY
AND ASTROLOGY
◊ NEWS BRIEFS ◊
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This weekend will see the second of three webinars dealing with the fraught relationship between Anthroposophists and modern technology.
From Rudolf Steiner.org:
Approaching Technology as an Anthroposophist
with Andrew Linnell [Webinars Mar 17, Mar 31, Apr 14 2019]
A series of three webinars on the mysteries of technology as seen in the light of spiritual science [1].
The Center for Anthroposophical Endeavors [2] invites you to participate in a three-part webinar series Approaching Technology as an Anthroposophist with Andrew Linnell co-founder of MysTech [3].
In these webinars, you will learn:
What were Rudolf Steiner’s indications regarding Technology? [4]
How do we understand our physical development and the approaching end of our physical bodies? [5]
What is the Necessity in our future with technology and how do we grow into this in Freedom? [6]
How do we confront the adversarial powers [7] without fear and with equanimity?
[3/28/2019 https://www.rudolfsteiner.org/activities/event/article/approaching-technology-as-an-anthroposophist-with-andrew-linnell-webinars-mar-17-mar-31-apr-14-2/]
Waldorf Watch Response:
Some of Steiner’s teachings about technology are revealed in statements such as these:
◊ “[W]ithout new spiritual impulses [i.e., Anthroposophy], technology would not only dominate outer life, but would overpower and numb us ... [M]en would turn into something like living automata [i.e., robots].” — Rudol Steiner, THE END OF THE MILLENNIUM AND BEYOND: From the Work of Rudolf Steiner (Temple Lodge Publishing, 1993), p. 9.
◊ "[E]lectric atoms are little demons of Evil ... If we contemplate electricity today, we contemplate the images of a past moral reality that have turned into something evil." — Rudolf Steiner, "Concerning Electricity" (General Anthroposophical Society, 1940), GA 220.
◊ “In [the] world of the dead [i.e., the spirit realm]…there are no aeroplanes, no motor cars … [Angels do not build such things. But there are other spiritual] beings who are able by virtue of their Ahrimanic cosmic forces [i.e., their submission to the arch-demon Ahriman] to understand modern techniques such as the construction of a motor car.” — Rudolf Steiner, TRUE AND FALSE PATHS IN SPIRITUAL INVESTIGATION (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1969), lecture 8, GA 243.
◊ “When we build steam-engines, we provide the opportunity for the incarnation of demons ... In the steam-engine, Ahrimanic demons are actually brought to the point of physical embodiment.” — Rudolf Steiner, “The Relation of Man to the Hierarchies” (ANTHROPOSOPHICAL MOVEMENT, Vol. V, Nos. 14-15, 1928). [8]
How much to fear technology, and how or whether to use the products of technology, are matters of debate among Steiner's followers. Waldorf schools often have "media policies" regulating the exposure of Waldorf students to modern technological devices such as televisions and computers. [9]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] I.e., Anthroposophy. [See "Anthroposophy" and "spiritual science" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
[2] See https://cfae.us.
[3] See https://mystech.co.
[4] See, e.g., “Spiders, Dragons and Foxes”.
[5] Steiner taught that we currently live in an epoch of extreme physical incarnation, but in the future we will evolve to higher (less physical and even nonphysical) states. [See, e.g., “Matters of Form”.]
[6] Anthroposophical concerns about "Necessity" are bound up in Steiner's teachings about karma. [See "Karma".] For the Anthroposophical conception of freedom, see “Freedom”.
[7] See, e.g., “Evil Ones”.
[8] Some Anthroposophists say the same is true for technology more advanced and modern than steam engines.
"[W]hat has been said here about the steam engine applies in a much greater degree to the technology of our time ... [T]elevision, for example. The result is that the demon magic spoken of by Rudolf Steiner is spreading more and more intensively on all sides ... It is very necessary that anyone who aspires towards the spiritual should realise clearly how the most varied opportunities for a virtual incarnation of elemental beings and demons are constantly on the increase." — Georg Unger, “On ‘Mechanical Occultism’” (Mitteilungen aus der Anthroposophischen Arbeit in Deutschland nos. 68–69, 1964).
[9] See "media policies" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.
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Here are astrological indications for today, March 28, 2019, as given in an Anthroposophical text. Not all Anthroposophists accept these interpretations of celestial objects and their influences, but many do.
"Mar 28: Last Quarter Moon 12° Sagittarius. The Moon shone from this degree as Jesus [1] taught parables to the field workers east of Megiddo [2] … The creative action of restoring our verticality [3] at the New Moon has given way for new inspirations that can turn us toward the Sun mysteries [4] … The Full Moon asked for transformation, in that we are to surrender the serpent’s kind of power [5] for the true and selfless Power of Michaelic courage [6] … This is the way of truth (Sagittarius)." — COSMOLOGY REBORN - Star Wisdom, Vol. 1, With Monthly Ephemerides and Commentary for 2019, edited by Joel Park (Lindisfarne, Anthroposophic Press, 2018), p. 153.
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] Steiner taught that there were two Jesuses who merged to become the human vessel into which the Sun God incarnated. [See “Was He Christian?”]
[2] Megiddo was an ancient city in northern Israel. It is also known as Armageddon.
[3] Steiner taught that our upright posture marks our spiritual superiority to cast-off evolutionary fragments of ourselves, the animals. [See "Neutered Nature" and "Evolution, Anyone?".]
[4] I.e., occult doctrines concerning the Sun God and his realm. Steiner taught that the god usually identified as Christ is, in fact, the Sun God. [See "Sun God".]
[5] In the Biblical books of Genesis and Revelations, the serpent symbolizes Satan (who, Steiner often taught, is Ahriman). In Anthroposophy, the serpent represents a stage of human evolution when humanity was at its most sinful.
[6] Michael is a warrior god, the Sun Archangel who fights on behalf of the Sun God. [See “Michael”.]
— R.R.
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.March 26, 2019
FIRE DESTROYS
STEINER CLASSROOM UNIT
From RTÉ [Dublin, Ireland]:
Fire destroys prefab unit
at Galway Steiner School
By Pat McGrath
An investigation is underway after a prefabricated unit at the Steiner School in Galway [1] was destroyed by fire this morning.
The prefab was one of a number being used by the school…
It is understood children and their teacher left the premises this morning for a nature walk and that the fire took hold shortly afterwards.
…[A] faulty storage heater may have caused the blaze.
Nobody was injured in the incident.…
[3/26/2019 https://www.rte.ie/news/connacht/2019/0326/1038700-galway-fire/] [2]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] This is the Galway Steiner National School. "We are Irish National School using the Steiner method to deliver the Irish national curriculum. We opened in September 2015 and we will grow by one class per year. From September 2019 we cater for children up to and including Third Class." — https://galwaysteinerschool.com.
[2] "RTÉ (Raidió Teilifís Éireann) is Ireland's national public-service media organisation. A leader in Irish media, RTÉ provides comprehensive, cost-effective, free-to-air multi-media services to the public in Ireland and interested audiences internationally." — https://www.rte.ie/about/en/how-rte-is-run/2014/0310/601244-about-rte/.
— R.R.
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.March 23, 2019
◊ READINGS ◊
MYSTICISM AND CLAIRVOYANCE —
FUNDAMENTAL AT WALDORF
In 2017, a group of prominent Waldorf teachers — the Pedagogical Section Council of North America [1] — released a book through Waldorf Publications, the publishing division of the Research Institute for Waldorf Education [2]. The book is THE SEVEN CORE PRINCIPLES OF WALDORF EDUCATION (Waldorf Publications, 2017).
Here are the seven key Waldorf principles posited by the Council [3]:
1. Waldorf educators should be guided by the description of human nature provided by Rudolf Steiner. [4] Reduced to it chief components, this description indicates that humans are beings of spirit, soul, and body. [5]
2. Children develop through a series of seven-year long periods [6]; during each period, a child comes to express the archetype for that period.
3. The Waldorf curriculum supports each stage of childhood development. Until age 7, children want to imitate; from 7 to 14, children want to follow guidance; from 14 to 21, children are idealistic and develop a capacity for independent judgment.
4. Waldorf teachers should be free from outside interference as they work to meet the needs of their students. [7]
5. Waldorf teachers should generally follow established Waldorf methodologies, which are different for different student age groups. [8]
6. Forming deep and lasting bonds between teachers and students is essential. [9]
7. Waldorf teachers should develop their inner spiritual lives, which includes striving to develop "spiritual perception". [10]
Of these principles, by far the most telling is the seventh, which deals with the need for Waldorf teachers to develop (or try to develop) clairvoyance. Here is how this principle is stated near the front of the book:
"Core Principal 7 Spiritual Orientation
"In order to cultivate the imaginations, inspirations, and intuitions [11] needed for their work, Rudolf Steiner gave [Waldorf] teachers an abundance of guidance for developing an inner, meditative life [12]. This guidance includes individual professional meditations [13] and an imagination [14] of the circle of teachers forming an organ of spiritual perception [15]. Faculty and individual study, artistic activity, and research form additional facets of ongoing professional development [16]." — Pedagogical Section Council of North America, THE SEVEN CORE PRINCIPLES OF WALDORF EDUCATION, p. 12.
Here are two statements elaborating on this seventh principle:
◊ "Rudolf Steiner indicated at least three levels of knowing above the intellectual [17]: Imaginative, Inspirational, and Intuitive [18]. In books, lectures, and seminars, he ever and again tried to teach others how to become knowers of the invisible [19]. He even told the teachers that it was a requisite aspect of their task that 'in the field of education, we come to an actual experience of the spiritual' [20] … I would argue that the entire edifice of Waldorf education rests on the assumption of the teacher as a spiritual practitioner [21], and that without this assumption becoming a reality there is an active absence at the center of the endeavor [22]." — Waldorf teacher Elan Leibner, THE SEVEN CORE PRINCIPLES OF WALDORF EDUCATION, pp. 111-112.
◊ "[M]y thoughts turn to what is called the College Imagination [23] … The picture of adults’ forming a chalice [24] out of the power of their individual meditative striving, of the cup woven out of a selfless sharing of each one’s strengths and heightened awareness [25] that can allow a different quality of insight, is potent. I see the question of spiritual orientation as an essential element in the strengthening of the 'vessel activity' [26] that can generate the imaginations, inspirations, and intuitions needed for the work [27] … I experience the seventh principle addressing spiritual orientation as a remarkable invitation to become more authentically ourselves as individuals as we engage in becoming contemporary researchers [28] of the path to incarnation of the human spirit [29]." — Waldorf teacher Frances Vig, , THE SEVEN CORE PRINCIPLES OF WALDORF EDUCATION, pp. 116-118.
The work of Waldorf faculties, as described in THE SEVEN CORE PRINCIPLES OF WALDORF EDUCATION, is inextricable from the mystical practices of Anthroposophy. Parents considering Waldorf schools for their children should understand this clearly. Unless you want mystical Waldorf “priests” to take charge of your kids, you should find a different sort of school.
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] The Council is an arm of the Anthroposophical Society, which has its center at the Anthroposophical headquarters building, the Goetheanum, in Switzerland. [See http://pedagogicalsectioncouncil.org/about/what-pedagogical-section-council/.]
[2] The Institute seeks to find evidence supporting and enhancing the Waldorf educational approach. [See http://www.waldorfresearchinstitute.org/aboutus.html.]
[3] The formulations are my paraphrases, not quotations from the book. We will proceed to consider some extended quotations.
[4] See "What We're Made Of" and "Our Parts".
[5] Anthroposophy distinguishes between spirit and soul. [See the entries for these terms in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
[6] See "Most Significant".
[7] Students' parents, outside educational authorities, and even Waldorf colleagues should not abridge the freedom of the individual teacher. [See, e.g., "Faculty Meetings" and "Threefolding".]
[8] See, e.g., "The Waldorf Curriculum" and "Methods".
[9] This may be facilitated by the Waldorf practice of having teachers stay with their students for multiple years, for instance taking a class from first grade through fifth grade. The emotional bonds established may, however, sometimes create problems. [See, e.g., "Mistreating Kids Lovingly".]
[10] This form of perception is, essentially, clairvoyance. [See "The Waldorf Teacher's Consciousness".]
[11] Waldorf education stresses the development of imagination, inspiration, and intuition — and the products of these capacities — among Waldorf students and also among Waldorf teachers. In Anthroposophical belief, imagination, inspiration, and intuition are precursors to — or stages of — clairvoyance. [See the entries for these terms in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
[12] Although its spokespeople almost always deny it, Waldorf education is essentially religious. [See "Schools as Churches".] Waldorf teachers are expected to have, or develop, a "spiritual orientation" that includes "an inner, meditative life." Steiner said that Waldorf teachers should function, effectively, as priests. "[A] teacher’s calling becomes a priestly calling, since an educator becomes a steward who accomplishes the will of the gods in a human being." — Rudolf Steiner, HUMAN VALUES IN EDUCATION - Foundations of Waldorf Education XX (Anthroposophic Press, 2004), p. 9. The religion of Waldorf teacher-priests is Anthroposophy. [See "Is Anthroposophy a Religion?"]
[13] See "Power Words", "Breathing Spirit", and "Teacher Training".
[14] As used in Anthroposophical discourse, "an imagination" is a true mental picture created through clairvoyance or through a precursor to clairvoyance. [See "imaginations" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
[15] "Spiritual perception" is clairvoyance. Steiner taught his followers to believe they can develop non-physical "organs of clairvoyance," the use of which will enable them to perceive the spirit realm clearly and accurately. "[J]ust as natural forces build the eyes and ears of the physical body out of living substance, so will the organs of clairvoyance be built out of...feelings and thoughts...." — Rudolf Steiner, KNOWLEDGE OF THE HIGHER WORLDS - How Is It Achieved? (Anthroposophic Press, 2004, reprinted 2009), pp. 47-48. [See, e.g., "The Waldorf Teacher's Consciousness".] Steiner indicated that Waldorf teachers may develop organs of clairvoyance as individuals and also as a group (as a "circle of teachers").
[16] Much of this work centers on the teachings and guidance provided by Rudolf Steiner. Thus, for instance, Waldorf teachers study Rudolf Steiner’s works individually and also in group gatherings, and the “research” undertaken often means delving further into Steiner’s works. Likewise, artistic activities and other practices undertaken by Waldorf teachers are largely enactments of Steiner’s guidance. [See, e.g., “Teacher Training”, “Foundations”, and “Anthroposophical Art”.]
[17] Steiner generally disparaged intellect [see “Steiner’s Specific”], and Waldorf education is largely anti-intellectual [see “Waldorf Wisdom”]. Steiner said intellect has some value here on the physical plane of existence, but it is a lower form of knowledge than clairvoyance and its stages or precursors.
[18] See, e.g., the book THE STAGES OF HIGHER KNOWLEDGE - Imagination, Inspiration, Intuition (SteinerBooks, 2009), consisting of lectures by Steiner. (Intuition is the highest of the three stages, imagination the lowest.)
[19] I.e., he claimed to show his followers how to “know” the spirit realm and its truths. He claimed to have the ability to “know” things that lie beyond the reach of our ordinary senses and brains.
[20] See Rudolf Steiner. BALANCE IN TEACHING (SteinerBooks, 2007), p. 82.
[21] As we saw earlier, Waldorf teachers should be, in effect, priests. The “entire edifice” of Waldorf schooling rests on this principle. It is far more important for Waldorf teachers to be a spiritual believers than for them to have extensive knowledge of the subjects they teach. [See, e.g., the section on teacher training in “Square One”.]
[22] The requirement, at its base, is that Waldorf teachers should be Anthroposophists. Steiner made this clear. “As Waldorf teachers, we must be true anthroposophists in the deepest sense of the word….” — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 118. True spiritual life can be present in a Waldorf school, Steiner said, only because the teachers are Anthroposophists. “As far as our school is concerned, the actual spiritual life can be present only because its staff consists of anthroposophists.” — Rudolf Steiner, EDUCATION FOR ADOLESCENTS (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 60.
[23] See the “imagination of the circle of teachers” discussed previously.
[24] I.e., the “organ of clairvoyance” formed by the circle of teachers may be visualized as a chalice. (This is the “imagination” the teachers create through their “meditative striving.”)
[25] I.e., higher knowledge, as posited by Steiner.
[26] I.e., the activity of creating the “chalice,” the organ of clairvoyance.
[27] Using the organ of clairvoyance, the teachers can produce the spiritual insights they need for their work — they produce the required “imaginations, inspirations, and intuitions.”
[28] I.e., practicing Anthroposophists. Rudolf Steiner referred to Anthroposophy as a “spiritual science.” He said Anthroposophists are “researchers” if they develop clairvoyance and use it to study the spirit realm. [See “spiritual science" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
[29] Waldorf education seeks to help children to incarnate properly upon the Earth. [See “Incarnation”.] In a larger sense, it seeks to enable the “human spirit” in its most exalted sense to incarnate.
— R.R.
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.March 21, 2019
CLOSING A STEINER SCHOOL
— AN UPDATE
From DerbyshireLive, formerly The Derby Telegraph [county of Derbyshire, UK]:
Coronation Street star's old school
in administration after it could not
pay staff or suppliers
By Zena Hawley
An 85-year-old Derbyshire school has gone into administration [1] just weeks after being told it was "inadequate" in all areas [2] following an Ofsted inspection [3], which was ordered by the Department for Education [4].
Administrators are working to try to keep Michael House School [5]…open until the end of the summer term to allow pupils to complete their GCSEs [6].
[Michael House School] is a Steiner Waldorf School [7] ... Among [the school’s] former pupils is Coronation Street actor William Roache [8]…
Financial problems for the school were highlighted in a letter from the chair of trustees Ian Duffy, which was sent to parents [of the school’s current students]…
In the letter Mr Duffy explained that the school was facing two crises. One was as a result of the poor Ofsted report … The other was the financial situation where the monthly income was not meeting the school's expenditure [i.e., costs]…
Mr Duffy wrote: "This cannot continue … With a heavy heart, trustees and the College of teachers [9] have come to the conclusion that we should aim for a managed closure of the school…" [10]
In a further note to parents Mr Duffy said that the school needed to "borrow up to £150,000 in order to guarantee the orderly closure of the school…"
The Ofsted inspection of Michael House School followed a series of other high profile inspections of Steiner schools [11], where they were also found to be "inadequate", raising doubts about safeguarding in Steiner schools…
The Ofsted report on Michael House School highlighted safeguarding as "ineffective". The inspectors said that not all teachers "take timely or effective action to keep pupils safe" and "not all recruitment checks are undertaken" [12].
They said that some of the same concerns were also evident at the school's previous standard inspection...
They also criticised senior leaders and trustees of the school for not making sure that all areas of the school, including the kindergarten, are safe...
The report is also critical of the school's quality of teaching, learning and assessment and that "too many pupils make insufficient progress across a range of subjects"…
At the time of the inspection, a DfE spokesman said: "Where any independent school fails to meet the independent school standards, we will take robust action.
"We will continue our work with Ofsted to act quickly to ensure no pupil experiences a substandard education."
[3/21/2019 https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/derby-news/coronation-street-stars-old-school-2669784.]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] I.e., the school is effectively bankrupt. Its assets have been taken over by an officially appointed administrator.
[2] I.e., it received a failing grade in all of its operations, including teaching and management. "Inadequate" is the lowest grade issued by UK education inspectors.
[3] Ofsted — the Office for Standards in Education — is the UK government’s chief school inspectorate.
[4] The Department for Education (DfE) is the UK government’s ministry in charge of “child protection, education, apprenticeships and wider skills in England.” Its predecessor agency was The Department for Children, Schools and Families.
[5] Michael House School, in the town of Shipley, Derbyshire, should not be confused with the UK's oldest Steiner school, Michael Hall, which is located in Sussex. Both Michael House School (founded in 1934) and Michael Hall (founded in 1925) are named for the Archangel Michael, with whom Steiner teachers believe they have a special bond. [See “Michael”.]
[6] I.e., the General Certificate of Secondary Education, indicating a student’s educational attainment at the secondary school level.
[7] The designations "Waldorf school," "Steiner school," and "Steiner Waldorf school" are essentially synonymous — all apply to schools that seek to implement Rudolf Steiner's educational principles and directives.
[8] Coronation Street is a long-running British TV soap opera.
[9] I.e., the central leadership committee within the school.
[10] For previous coverage of the situation at Michael House School, see “Another Steiner School Will Close Its Doors”, March 6, 2019.
[11] See, e.g., “The Steiner School Crisis”.
[12] I.e., new teachers were not adequately vetted before being hired.
— R.R.
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March 18, 2019
FROM CHARLIE:
STRANGE SECTS RISING
The spread of Waldorf schools can be linked to the recent proliferation of “new age” sects of various kinds. Such sects have been gaining toeholds in many lands. Here are excerpts from an article dealing with the phenomenon in France:
CHARLIE INVESTIGATES:
FAST-GROWING START-UP SECTS [1]
Lack of interest from politicians, financial shortages, the abandonment of rationality — these are causing concern among associations that fight the spread of deviant sects. But surfing on the proliferation of quack medicines, conspiracy theories, and the most aberrant beliefs, small sects are multiplying everywhere in France. And the victims' testimonies are flooding in...
…"CHRIST CAME DOWN FROM THE SUN..."
[I]n Marseille … [a recent] seminar organized by a study group welcomes Grégoire Perra [2]. He is a former student of the Steiner schools that embody an esoteric and mystical doctrine called Anthroposophy. This is a mixture of various elements drawn from Hinduism, Christianity, and Buddhism, combined with philosophical and epistemological conceptions straight out of Rudolf Steiner's brain. Grégoire relates examples from his time in Anthroposophy: "From young girls who are forbidden to take the [birth-control] pill in order not to cut them off from the cosmic cycle, to patients treated by the light filtered through red stained glass windows [3]. I even met former Steiner enthusiasts who told me that their doctors [4] had refused to treat their moles, because the moles reflected karmic errors committed in past lives [5].
"In France, the Steiner approach and Anthroposophy are not generally seen as an aberrant sect. This is strange when you consider that, although it presents itself as arising from a humanist philosophy, Anthroposophy spreads totally far-fetched ideas. These range from the idea that Atlantis is not a myth [6] to the doctrines that Christ came down from the Sun [7] or that the Buddha reincarnated on Mars [8]. Anthroposophy would almost be laughable, except for such instances as when a woman suffering from breast cancer and cared for by Steiner's followers died for lack of adequate care [9]…."
[3/18/2019 https://veritesteiner.wordpress.com/2019/03/17/charlie-enquete-les-sectes-des-start-up-en-pleine-expansion-centre-contre-les-manipulations-mentales/ Perra posted this article on his blog on March 17. Originating at the magazine Charlie Hebdo, the article is currently available at the site of the Centre Contre les Manipulations Mentales {Center Against Mental Manipulation}: https://www.ccmm.asso.fr/charlie-enquete-les-sectes-des-start-up-en-pleine-expansion/. Translation by R.R. relying heavily on www.DeepL.com/Translator.]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] Charlie Hebdo is a French satirical magazine. The article excerpted here appeared in the December 19, 2018 issue of the magazine.
[2] Perra was a student at Waldorf schools, then he became a Waldorf teacher who was active in Anthroposophical circles. Eventually, he broke away and is now a leading critic of Anthroposophy and Waldorf education. For his account of his history, see “My Life Among the Anthroposophists”. Perra is currently being sued for defamation by a group of Anthroposophical doctors and a Waldorf teacher. [See “Anthroposophical Doctors Bring Suit Against a Critic”, January 8, 2019, and “Third Lawsuit Filed Against Waldorf Whistle-Blower”, March 13, 2019.]
At one time, Perra was an intern on the staff of Charlie Hebdo. [See "Charlie Hebdo".]
[3] For a discussion of Anthroposophical medical care, see “Steiner’s Quackery”.
[4] I.e., Anthroposophical medical doctors.
[5] Karma and reincarnation are central Anthroposophical tenets. [See “Karma” and “Reincarnation”.]
[6] See “Atlantis”.
[7] In Anthroposophy, Christ is the descended Sun God. [See “Sun God”.]
[8] See “Mars”.
[9] Anthroposophy teaches that it is often best to allow a disease to run its course — the patient must undergo this illness due to her/his karma. When Anthroposophical therapies are given, these are often “natural” medicaments such as preparations of mistletoe used to treat cancer. [See, e.g., the entry for “mistletoe” in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
— R.R.
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.March 17, 2019
ANTHROPOSOPHY, RELIGION,
TECHNOLOGY, AND ALCHEMY
Keeping tabs on events held by Rudolf Steiner’s followers provides insight into the worldview underlying Waldorf education. Here, for example, are three upcoming events at the Rudolf Steiner House in London, UK:
March 21, 2019
Anthroposophy and Religious Renewal?
What relevance can religion have for us in the 21st century? Are ‘spiritual’ and ‘religious’ antithetical terms? Rudolf Steiner was approached by a group of young theology students, disillusioned with what their cultural institutions had to offer them. They recognised that anthroposophy, rightly understood, could inaugurate a perpetually self-renewing culture [1]. They were intrigued to hear from Steiner that religion “in its living practice” could help augment this renewing capacity. This led to the founding of The Christian Community, a movement for religious renewal [2]….
[3/17/2019 http://www.rsh.anth.org.uk/whats-on/spirit-in-action/anthroposophy-and-religious-renewal/]
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March 22, 2019
Technology and our Relationship to the Spiritual World
Technology is a valuable part of our lives, offering significant advantages for human development. We chat to each other from opposite sides of the globe, have vast access to information and overcome the natural time cycles by creating artificial light, heat and energy. This can alienate us from nature and the spiritual world. [3] How can we rightly re-connect whilst also making use of our technology rightly?....
[3/17/2019 http://www.rsh.anth.org.uk/whats-on/friday-seminars-lectures/technology-and-our-relationship-to-the-spiritual-world/]
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March 23, 2019
The Alchemy of Change
This talk looks at our current beautiful shift into Holistic Consciousness, as we begin to embrace our sense of unity with all life … This Shift in Consciousness opens the way for receiving deep wisdom from the plants, the trees, the birds, animals and insects, and the rocks of our land [4], and taps into our sense of deep time and deep belonging. We are also able to peacefully enter into the Imaginal Realms and journey into our own inner world of deep wisdom, spirit guides and archetypes [5]. Each thought we have, everything we say, feel and do has resonance and is part of the whole and we are the creative alchemy of change and manifestation [6].…
[3/17/2019 http://www.rsh.anth.org.uk/whats-on/special-events/the-alchemy-of-change/]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] Anthroposophy is a religion, but an odd one. Among its tenets is the assertion that Anthroposophy is actually a science — the objective study of the spirit realm through the use of trained clairvoyance. [See the entries for "Anthroposophy", "spiritual science", and "clairvoyance" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
[2] The Christian Community is an overtly religious offshoot of Anthroposophy. [See “Christian Community”.] Whether the Community is truly Christian is debatable. The Christ recognized in Anthroposophy and in the Christian Community is the Sun God, the same deity known by such names as Ahura Mazda, Hu, and Baldr. [See “Sun God”.]
[3] Anthroposophists have a strained, fearful relationship with modern technology. They sometimes use technology such as the Internet to spread their message and recruit new converts. But they fear the demons that they believe can be released by “artificial light, heat and energy” — or electricity and electrical devices such as computers and televisions. [See “technology” in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
[4] Steiner taught that the Earth is alive, and indeed all natural things (such as minerals) are alive. On the other hand, he taught that physical reality (where nature resides) is a place of snares and illusions (maya). [See “Neutered Nature”.]
[5] Anthroposophy is polytheistic. According to Steiner, many gods and spirits (such as Archetypes) aid humanity as we strive to evolve through higher and higher levels of spirituality. [See “Polytheism” and “Knowing the Worlds”.]
[6] In Anthroposophical belief, alchemy is occult transmutation, a mystical process proceeding from — and leading to — spiritual knowledge.
"Alchemy has always been known in its higher manifestations as a way to contact the deeper levels of reality, described as the superhuman ‘spirits; or guiding archangels of the universe ... [A]lchemy is finally seen in Rudolf Steiner’s presentation as a step towards the cosmic understanding we will need for our future role [in cosmic evolution].” — Andrew J. Welburn, introduction to Steiner's ALCHEMY (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2001), pp. 9-10. [See “Alchemy”.]
— R.R.
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.March 13, 2019
THIRD LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST
WALDORF WHISTLE-BLOWER
For some people, Grégoire Perra is a hero. For others, he is a demon in human form.
Perra was educated in French Waldorf schools, and he later became both a Waldorf teacher and an Anthroposophical insider.
Later yet, however, he broke from Anthroposophy, and he has been spilling Anthroposophical beans ever since. His online writings have revealed Anthropsophical secrets while also presenting thoughtful criticisms of Waldorf education and other Anthroposophical enterprises.
Several years ago, the Federation of Waldorf Schools in France sued Perra for what the Federation claimed were libelous writings. Perra won. The Federation’s suit was dismissed. [1]
Recently, a group of Anthroposophical doctors lodged a similar complaint against Perra, suing him for his criticisms of Anthroposophical medicine. [2] That lawsuit is still pending. But now, in the meantime, a Waldorf teacher has filed yet another suit — the third — against Perra.
If the two new lawsuits do not prove beyond reasonable doubt that Perra is a demon, then he will surely emerge as a greater hero than ever.
Here are excepts from a message Perra posted recently at one of his blogs:
Judicial harassment against Grégoire Perra
New call for donations
Dear friends, dear readers of my blogs,
I regret to inform you that a new complaint has just been filed against me. This second complaint in two months comes from a person belonging to Steiner-Waldorf schools and Anthroposophy. She is indeed a very high-ranking person in those circles. She is represented, as if by coincidence, by the same lawyer as the Anthroposophical doctors who are suing me for insult and defamation for my article "My Experience with Anthroposophical Medicine" [2].
This time, the article in dispute is entitled "The Class Trip at a Waldorf School: A Good Time to Indoctrinate Students" [3]. What I am accused of: I pointed out how odd it is that, at a Steiner school that claims not to teach Anthroposophy to students, a class was taken on a trip during which they heard a speaker who is none other than the Secretary General of the Anthroposophical Society in France. This was done without openly informing the students’ parents; instead, the speaker was merely presented as a specialist in botany and mineralogy.
For my part, at no time was it my intention to damage anyone's honour and reputation. Following the questioning of several worried families who had turned to me, it was only important for me to critique a practice and a project likely to harm young students through indoctrination in Anthroposophy…
[T]he multiplication of lawsuits against me will not undermine my determination to denounce what should be denounced when it is legitimate to do so. On the other hand, these suits reveal a desire to muzzle someone through judicial harassment…
[B]y behaving like a desperate institution eager to silence me at all costs, Anthroposophy in France and its enterprises are in danger of shooting themselves in the foot again, whereas it would be much wiser for them to accept contradiction and criticism, as do all organizations that are not aberrant cults.
[But now] I have to ask my readers and supporters for financial help again. Indeed, this second lawsuit will inevitably generate new, not insignificant costs….
[3/13/2019 https://veritesteiner.wordpress.com/2019/03/12/acharnement-judiciaire-contre-gregoire-perra-et-nouvel-appel-aux-dons/ This message originally appeared on March 12. I have translated it relying heavily on www.DeepL.com/Translator]
The address for making contributions to Perra’s legal defense is https://www.okpal.com/soutenir-le-lanceur-d-alerte-gregoire-perra/#/.
To read some of Perra’s essays translated into English, see
MY LIFE AMONG THE ANTHROPOSOPHISTS,
SEXUAL MORES IN STEINER-WALDORF SCHOOLS,
(excerpted from He Went to Waldorf)
(with Sharon Lombard and Roger Rawlings)
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] See “My Life Among the Anthroposophists, Part 3”.
[2] See “Anthroposophical Doctors Bring Suit Against a Critic”, January 8, 2019.
[3] https://veritesteiner.wordpress.com/2018/12/19/le-voyage-de-classe-dans-les-ecoles-steiner-waldorf-un-moment-propice-a-lendoctrinement-des-eleves/.
— R.R.
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.March 12, 2019
WALDORF PARENTS FILE SUIT
AGAINST HEALTH AUTHORITY
Waldorf school often have unusually high numbers of unvaccinated students. Rudolf Steiner warned his followers against the perils of vaccination, although he also indicated that vaccines can be okay in some circumstances. [1]
Waldorf schools rarely if ever have official policies opposing vaccination, but they are often associated with anti-vaccine sentiment. When lists are drawn up, identifying schools with high percentages of unvaccinated students, Waldorf schools are often at or near the top of the lists. [2]
The following report — interestingly, from The Daily Mail, a British newspaper — deals with a situation affecting an American Waldorf school. [3] Measles epidemics have broken out in numerous American communities, and news coverage has sometimes included references to Waldorf schools as centers of anti-vaccination beliefs. [4]
Parents of 44 children who have not been
vaccinated against measles file lawsuit
after school banned them from attending
• Parents representing 44 unvaccinated pupils have filed a federal lawsuit
• They say the order to ban their children goes against their constitutional rights
• Follows measures put in place by authorities to control the the sudden outbreak of measles
By Bhvishya Patel
The outraged parents of 44 pupils who have not been vaccinated against the measles have filed a federal lawsuit to get their children back in school.
The children from Green Meadow Waldorf School [5] had been told by authorities in December that they would not be allowed to enter the school as they had not been vaccinated against the measles virus.
However their parents are now taking a stand against the decision made by the Rockland [6] health department in New York arguing 'the medical benefits of the vaccination are debatable’.
The parents also argue that the ban, that was ordered by Dr. Patricia Schnabel Ruppert, violates their constitutional rights…
Speaking earlier to [a reporter], administrator at the Green Meadow Waldorf School TreAnne Mcenery said: "We were mandated to exclude our non-vaccinated or under vaccinated students" [7]….
[3/12/2019 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6798819/seek.html.]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] See “Steiner’s Quackery”.
[2] See, e.g., “Asheville Waldorf”.
[3] Waldorf or Steiner education is currently a hot topic in Britain. [See “The Steiner School Crisis”.]
[4] See the heading “vaccination” in the Waldorf Watch Annex Index.
[5] The school is located in the town of Chestnut Ridge, in the state of New York.
[6] Rockland County is a suburban area just north of New York City.
[7] The school is not itself a party to the lawsuit. The school excluded unvaccinated students because the Rockland County Health Department ordered it to do so.
— R.R.
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.March 9, 2019
WALDORF TEACHERS
BRUSHING UP THEIR BELIEFS
Here is news of an upcoming event; the announcement appears on the website of the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America:
Advanced Seminar for Experienced Waldorf Teachers
Sound Circle Center - Freeland, WA
March 14-16, 2019 - Freeland, Washington
Individualization and Differentiation in the Consciousness Soul Age
Find Inspiration and Renewal, Better Connect, Develop new Impulses, Share Wisdom and much more…
[S]essions will focus on Polarities, Temperaments and Soul Types, and Learning Styles, and one session (Spring 2019) will be with Christof Wiechert.
Cost of each session is $450 plus a $30 fee for common meals. Reduced fees for multiple participants from a single school are $400 plus a meals fee of $30….
[3/9/2019 https://www.waldorfeducation.org/news-resources/events-calendar]
Waldorf Watch Response:
Like their counterparts employed at other sorts of schools, Waldorf teachers often attend seminars and other gatherings meant to make them better teachers. There is a difference, however. Waldorf continuing-education programs for teachers are generally meant to improve the teachers’ knowledge of, and commitment to, an occult worldview: Rudolf Steiner’s Anthroposophy. [1]
The announcement of the upcoming “advanced seminar” — intended for the benefit of “experienced Waldorf teachers” — is couched in Anthroposophical jargon. To understand the prospectus, we should walk through some of this jargon, phrase by phrase.
According to Anthroposophical belief, the consciousness soul (also called the spiritual soul) is the third of three soul members or soul types; it connects one's inner consciousness with the outer world. Humanity currently lives in the “age” of the consciousness soul — the age when such a soul is incarnating for mankind generally. This age began in about 1413 AD, when humanity entered the fifth cultural epoch since the sinking of Atlantis. [2]
The concept of polar oppositions ("polarities") plays a crucial role in Anthroposophy, which tends toward dualism. Steiner discussed polarities of many types: light and dark, upward evolution and downward evolution, good gods and evil gods, West and East, Lucifer and Ahriman, the Sun God and the Sun Demon, knowledge and belief, materialism and mysticism, and so forth. [3] While Steiner often indicated that, ultimately, all things tend to contribute to the fulfillment of the divine cosmic plan, he also indicated that the forces of good are arrayed against the forces of evil, here on the physical plane and also high above in the spiritual realm. So, for instance, Steiner told his followers this: ”[W]e are watching the battle waged by the good gods against the evil gods." [4] The task of Waldorf teachers is to work in cooperation with the beneficent forces of the cosmos, Steiner said. “Among the faculty, we must certainly carry within us the knowledge that we are not here for our own sakes, but to carry out the divine cosmic plan. We should always remember that when we do something, we are actually carrying out the intentions of the gods, that we are, in a certain sense, the means by which that streaming down from above will go out into the world.” [5]
The “temperaments” recognized in Waldorf education are four ancient stereotypes. These four descriptions of human types have long since been discarded by modern science, but they are upheld in Waldorf schools. Every individual, this schema indicates, is predominantly melancholic, sanguine, choleric, or phlegmatic. [6] Waldorf teachers are expected to identify these temperaments among their students, and then they should treat the kids accordingly. Waldorf pedagogical theory holds that each type of student has a different “learning style.” Melancholic students, for instance, should be given different assignments than those given to other students; they are better at some types of math problems than others; they prefer different sorts of stories and books than other kids like; they are inspired by different sorts of heroes; they have an affinity for different musical instruments; they should sit in a different part of the classroom; and so on. [7]
In addition to separating students according to “temperament,” Waldorf teachers are also expected to make distinctions according to “soul type.” Anthroposophists believe that after we die (and, to some extent, while we sleep) we ascend into the spirit realm by rising through a succession of planetary spheres. [8] Within each sphere, we make contact with the resident planetary spirits — the gods who live there. Our souls are conditioned by this contact. We are most affected by the gods dwelling in the spheres where we stay longest. Hence, we return to our next Earthly incarnations with souls that bear the imprint of these spirits.
"Between two incarnations, the 'I' [9] lives in the spiritual world where it travels through the following sequence of planetary spheres: Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn. When the 'I' is again born on earth, it arrives there with all the knowledge it has been able to absorb during its sojourn in the spirit world. This newly acquired knowledge manifests in the soul of the new human being ... [T]he planetary sphere where the 'I' stayed longest...will leave a predominant imprint on the soul." [10]
In trying to understand Waldorf schools — for instance, when deciding whether to send your child to a Waldorf school — it is helpful to become acquainted with the jargon employed by Waldorf teachers. This jargon may not be used when the teachers talk to you, an outsider. But this is the language Waldorf teachers often use when conversing with one another. If we crack the code, an extraordinary belief system opens up for our consideration. In the long run, a Waldorf school will likely be right for your child and you only if you can embrace the Waldorf belief system — Anthroposophy.
Christof Wiechert, by the way, is a former leader of the Pedagogical Section at the international Anthroposophical headquarters, the Goetheanum. [11] Having taught for three decades in Waldorf schools, he is the author of such books as SOLVING THE RIDDLE OF THE CHILD (Verlag Am Goetheanum, 2014) and THE WALDORF SCHOOL - An Introduction (Verlag Am Goetheanum, 2013).
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] See the entry for "Anthroposophy" in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia - A.
[2] See the entry for “consciousness soul” in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia - Ci-Cu. [To brush up on Atlantis, see "Atlantis".]
[3] See, e.g., the book POLARITIES IN THE EVOLUTION OF MANKIND, consisting of lectures delivered by Rudolf Steiner (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1987).
[4] Rudolf Steiner, KARMIC RELATIONSHIPS, Vol. II (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1974), p. 251.
[5] Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 55.
[6] See “Humouresque”.
[7] See “Temperaments”.
[8] See "Higher Worlds".
[9] The human spiritual ego, one's divine individuality. [See "Ego".]
[10] Waldorf teacher Henk van Oort, ANTHROPOSOPHY A-Z (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2011), p. 95.
[11] See the section on the Goetheanum in "Is Anthroposophy a Religion?"
— R.R.
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.March 6, 2019
ANOTHER STEINER SCHOOL
WILL CLOSE ITS DOORS
Steiner education in the United Kingdom (UK) is currently in turmoil. Inspectors from the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) have found deep faults in numerous UK Steiner schools.
Some of the schools blasted by Ofsted are recently created Steiner “academies” — that is, they are Steiner “free schools,” comparable to Waldorf charter schools in the USA. [1] But other Steiner schools criticized by Ofsted are long-established Steiner private schools. The institutions in this latter category represent the very heart and soul of Steiner education in the UK.
Rudolf Steiner School Kings Langley was founded in 1949. Following a series of critical inspection reports from Ofsted, in 2017 the school was ordered to close. [2]
Wynstones School is a Steiner boarding school in Glouchestershire. It was founded in 1937. A recent “damning” report by Ofsted has imperiled the school. [3]
Now Michael House School [4], which was founded in 1934, has announced that it is closing. The proximate cause is the criticism the school has gotten from Ofsted.
Here are excerpts from a letter released released by the school:
Announcement to close the school at the end of this academic year.
On the 13th February we held a Whole School Meeting where we explained the two current crises facing the school.
The first is the consequence of the poor Ofsted inspection. [5] We have a limited time in which to write and submit a credible Action Plan [6] to the Department for Education (Dfe). [7] This must address each of the shortcomings identified by the inspectors…
[The first crisis came] against a backdrop of a poor financial situation where our income does not meet our monthly expenses [8]. We are slipping further into debt each month…and teachers are not being paid their salary in full on time….
At the time of the last meeting…we felt that on balance…we would just about be ok.
However, over the last couple of weeks we have had further blows to our finances. Additionally, now that the details of the Action Plan are being developed, it is becoming apparent that certain large changes are required that we simply don’t have the resources to achieve. [9]
With a heavy heart, trustees and the College of Teachers [10] have come to the conclusion that we should aim for a managed closure of the school at the end of this academic year [11]…
[W]e hope to re-establish a new school as soon as possible [12]….
[3/6/2019 http://www.michaelhouseschool.com/2019/announcement-to-close-the-school-at-the-end-of-this-academic-year/ The letter is dated March 1.]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] See “S. A. Exeter” and "Bristol, Frome, &".
For an overview of the crisis confronting Steiner education in the UK now, see “Steiner School Crisis”.
[2] See “RSSKL”. All parts of the school have shut down except for a kindergarten. But RSSKL is appealing the closure order and hopes to reopen.
[3] See “Another ‘Damning’ Inspection of Another Steiner School”, February 28, 2019.
[4] Michael House School is located in Derbyshire. It should not be confused with the UK's oldest Steiner school, Michael Hall, which is located in Sussex and was founded in 1925.
Both Michael House School and Michael Hall are named for the Archangel Michael, with whom Steiner teachers believe they have a special bond. [See “Michael”.]
[5] See “Yet Another Steiner School Given Lowest Ofsted Grade”, February 7, 2019.
[6] This is a plan for rectifying the failings found by Ofsted. The plan would have to be accepted by the DfE, and thereafter implementation would be reviewed by Ofsted inspectors. Failure to fulfill the plan could lead to closure of the school.
[7] The Department for Education is the UK government's ministry overseeing "child protection, education, apprenticeships and wider skills." It is equivalent to the federal Department of Education in the USA, but with a wider ambit.
[8] Finances are an ongoing challenge for all private Steiner schools. Some Steiner proponents have opted to create Steiner free schools, instead of private Steiner schools, precisely in order to obtain state funding.
[9] The key question is whether a Steiner school can meet standards set by government education authorities and remain a real Steiner school. Whether or not a Steiner school has the necessary resources, the required changes could cause the school to violate its Anthroposophical beliefs — and the school might well balk for this reason. [See, e.g., "Steiner Academy Bristol Girds for a Fight", February 16, 2019.]
[10] When a Steiner or Waldorf school is organized according to Steiner/Waldorf tradition, this is the central administrative committee. [See the entry for “college of teachers at a Waldorf school” in The Brief Waldorf / Steiner Encyclopedia.]
[11] In the UK, academic years generally end early in April (the conclusion of the spring term).
[12] The shuttering of a Steiner or Waldorf school is traumatic for devoted supporters. Often, these schools provide the focal point for the spiritual and social lives of the faculty and many of the students and their parents. [See, e.g., “Schools as Churches” and “My Life Among the Anthroposophists”.] Accepting the closure of their school is almost unthinkable for the true-believing Anthroposophists who usually stand at the center of a Steiner/ Waldorf school — they consider themselves to be engaged in a spiritual mission of immense importance. [See, e.g., “Mission”.] For these reasons, plans to restore a failed Steiner/Waldorf school are almost always devised. (Thus, for instance, the skeleton staff at Rudolf Steiner School Kings Langley is striving to resuscitate that school. [See "RSSKL 2".]) Implementing such plans may, however, prove difficult or even impossible in some instances. [To review some Steiner/Waldorf closures, see “Failure”.] This may be particularly true if state education authorities judge the proposed new school to be essentially the same at the failed school they ordered to close.
— R.R.
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.March 5, 2019
TEACHER’S ACTIONS “INAPPROPRIATE” —
HE IS BARRED FOR 3+ YEARS
The disciplinary hearing for a prominent Steiner/Waldorf teacher in the United Kingdom (UK) has wrapped up. The teacher has been found to have acted inappropriately with his students, although the disciplinary panel stopped short of concluding that his actions were sexual in nature. He has been barred from teaching for at least three years. (News reports vary on the length of his suspension.)
The matter has received wide media coverage in the UK. McCarthy's behavior contributed to the collapse of the long-established Rudolf Steiner School Kings Langley. In turn, the closing of that school has fed into the crisis currently confronting Steiner education throughout the UK. Here are excerpts from some of the most recent news articles about McCarthy's difficulties.
From the BBC [London, England]:
Steiner teacher banned
for 'grandfatherly' behaviour
A former teacher who claimed he had acted in a "grandfatherly" way by hugging pupils and letting them sit on his lap has been banned from teaching.
Denis McCarthy, 66, who taught at a Rudolf Steiner School in Hertfordshire [the Rudolf Steiner School Kings Langley] for 33 years, was found to have acted "inappropriately" with six children.
However, a professional conduct panel was not persuaded that his actions were sexually motivated...
[The] panel looked at allegations relating to six pupils between 2009-2016, in the classroom, at a school summer fair and on a camping trip…
The school closed last summer after a number of Ofsted [Office for Standards in Education] inspection reports said it was failing in its safeguarding requirements….
[3/5/2019 https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-47441374 This item originally appeared on March 4.]
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From The Daily Mail [London, England]:
Teacher, 66, at £10,000-a-year
Rudolf Steiner school who said
he was being 'grandfatherly'
when he allowed children to
sit in his lap and massage his head
is struck off
By Sophie Law
A teacher at a £10,000-a-year Steiner school who allowed children to sit on his lap and massage him has been struck off.
Denis McCarthy...shocked parent when he said he 'could make a lot money' by charging pupils to sit on him.
The 66-year-old also chased a girl around a playground, allowed students to massage his head and drew letters with his finger on another pupil's back.
The ex-teacher was known to stroke pupil's face and hair and defended giving hugs to pupils as 'wholesome' and ‘grandfatherly'.
The Robert [sic: Rudolf] Steiner school was closed down last year over pupil safety fears and a string of damning Ofsted reports.…
[3/5/2019 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6769671/Teacher-66-10-000-year-Rudolf-Steiner-school-said-grandfatherly.html This item originally appeared on March 4.]
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From The Hemel Gazette [Hertfordshire, UK]:
Rudolf Steiner teacher
banned indefinitely
By Ben Raza
A teacher has been handed a lifelong ban from his profession, after it was found his behaviour “amounted to misconduct of a serious nature which fell significantly short of the standards expected”.
Denis McCarthy taught at Rudolf Steiner School Kings Langley (RSSKL) for 34 years.
But following a three-week professional misconduct hearing it was found that he “failed to maintain appropriate professional boundaries and/or professional standards”.
And the Secretary of State for Education has decided Mr McCarthy must be banned from teaching indefinitely. Mr McCarthy cannot apply for the order to be removed until March 2022.
The minister said: “I have taken into account the panel’s comments on insight and remorse … In my judgement, the lack of complete and unambiguous insight means that there is some risk of the repetition of [McCarthy’s] behaviour and this puts at risk the future wellbeing of pupils….”
[3/5/2019 https://www.hemeltoday.co.uk/news/rudolf-steiner-teacher-banned-indefinitely-1-8834008 This item originally appeared on March 4.]
Media attention to the McCarthy hearing may have been excessive, but we should take note of it. And the larger issues now swirling around Steiner schools in the UK are certainly noteworthy. The future of Steiner education in the UK and perhaps beyond may be significantly affected.
The most sensational charge against McCarthy came from a former student who alleged that, years ago, he sexually assaulted her. The panel evidently decided they could not establish the truth or falsity of this charge.
For previous reports on McCarthy’s disciplinary hearing, see Waldorf Watch coverage for February 5, 8, 12, and 17, 2019.
For reports about the general situation at Rudolf Steiner School Kings Langley, see “RSSKL”.
For coverage of the Steiner crisis overall, see “Steiner School Crisis”.
— R.R.
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.March 4, 2019
◊ NEWS BRIEFS ◊
WALDORF & HEALTH;
WALDORF & TAXES
Waldorf schools have again been linked, by the media, to the anti-vaccination movement that is responsible for much unnecessary illness and suffering.
Meanwhile, a Waldorf school in India is under investigation for tax-code violations.
From The New Yorker [New York City, USA]:
Why Measles Is a
Quintessential Political Issue
of Our Time
By Masha Gessen
On Wednesday, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations [1] held a timely and important hearing…focussed on ongoing measles outbreaks in the United States. Between January 1st and February 21st, a hundred and fifty-nine cases of measles were diagnosed in ten states — more cases than there were in all of 2017. Measles is highly contagious and potentially deadly. It’s also entirely preventable through vaccination…
From all available evidence, a majority of anti-vaxxers — educated white people, such as those who send their children to Waldorf schools — have access to public-health information and to vaccination; [yet] they choose not to believe and not to participate [3]...
The solution to under-vaccination lies not in getting the right kind of information and messaging to the "vaccine-hesitant" but in changing the politics of health care.…
[3/4/2019 https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/why-measles-is-a-quintessential-political-issue-of-our-time This item originally appeared on March 2.]
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From The Times of India [Mumbai, India]:
After capitation fee issue,
Sloka under I-T lens
[By] Nirupa Vatyam
HYDERABAD: Nearly a month after Sloka, The Hyderabad Waldorf school acknowledged accepting donations and refunded Rs 1.2 lakh collected as corpus fund to a parent, the institution has now come under the income tax department’s scanner... [4]
Speaking to STOI [5], the parent said that her intention was not to drag the school into this mess but only to get her money refunded...
When STOI contacted Radhika Rani, principal of the school, on Saturday, she refused to acknowledge that her school was under I-T scanner [6] and said that she had nothing to say on the issue.
[3/4/2019 https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/after-capitation-fee-issue-sloka-under-i-t-lens/articleshow/68240620.cms This article originally appeared on March 3.]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] This is a subcommittee of the United States House of Representatives.
[2] This is a stereotype. Not all parents who choose Waldorf schools for their kids are highly educated, and not all are white.
[3] For an overview of the Waldorf attitude toward health care in general and vaccination in particular, see "Steiner's Quackery".
[4] Hyperabad is a city in south-central India. Sloka is a Waldorf school in Hyperabad. The school collected a "capitation fee" from a parent of a Waldorf student. (The school may have done the same with other parents.) A capitation fee is an illegal financial charge levied beyond limits set by law. The capitation fee in question was meant, the school indicated, to help cover the school's contributions to a legal "corpus fund" set up by the government. Outlays from the fund would be used to benefit students in secondary and higher education. A fee of Rs 1.2 lakh is 120,000 Indian Rupees (equivalent to approximately $1,700 US dollars). The tax department's "scanner" is an investigative process.
[5] STOI is The Sunday Times of India.
[6] I.e., under investigation through the income tax department's investigative process.
— R.R.
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.March 2, 2019
MORE TROUBLES
FOR FROME — AND BEYOND
Troubles continue to pile up for Steiner schools in the United Kingdom (UK). The Steiner academy in Frome has recently received particular criticism from UK education authorities, but the difficulties at that school appear to reflect a widespread pattern affecting virtually the entire Steiner school movement in Britain. [1]
The following is excerpted from Schools Week [London, UK]:
Steiner school handed finance warning
after failing to submit accounts on time
[by] Pippa Allen-Kinross
A Steiner academy has received a financial notice to improve after failing to submit its audited accounts on time.
Steiner Academy Frome [2] has been formally warned to improve financial management, control and governance by the Department for Education [3] after it missed the December 31 deadline to submit its accounts.
Issuing a finance warning for solely failing to submit accounts on time seems highly unusual. [4]
The DfE usually just ‘names and shames’ such trusts [5]…
The Steiner school, which follows the teachings of Rudolf Steiner, has been placed in special measures by Ofsted [6] and given a funding termination warning [7] by the DfE in the last two months.
The government warning now urges [Steiner Academy Frome] to consider joining a multi-academy trust [8] to “secure the academy’s future”. It stated that failing to submit accounts on time breached funding rules…
The trust [9] has been told it must review its governance arrangements and the roles of current trustees “to ensure that the pattern of repeated financial mismanagement is addressed” and must hold more regular board meetings…
Steiner Academy Frome’s Ofsted report [10], published in January, warned that leaders had “failed to provide pupils with a safe and effective education”.
In February, Steiner Academy Frome and Steiner Academy Bristol were issued with termination warning notices, meaning they could be transferred to new trusts unless improvements are made. Steiner Academy Exeter, which was placed in special measures in October, received a “minded to terminate” notice from the government in December. [11]
Three of the four state-funded Steiner schools in England are now rated ‘inadequate’ [12], prompting education secretary Damian Hinds to grant Ofsted powers to inspect all Steiner schools in England, including 21 private schools [13]….
[3/2/2019 https://schoolsweek.co.uk/steiner-school-handed-finance-warning-after-failing-to-submit-accounts-on-time/ This article originally appeared on March 1.]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] See “Steiner School Crisis”.
[2] See “Inadequate - Bristol, Frome, and…”.
[3] This is the ministry that oversees education in the United Kingdom; it is the equivalent of the federal Department of Education in the USA.
[4] Some Steiner representatives have alleged that the government is unfairly targeting Steiner schools. [See, e.g., “Steiner Academy Bristol Girds for a Fight”, February 16, 2019.] Schools Week says issuing a warning "solely" because accounts are late would be unusual. But in this case, Steiner Academy Frome has been found to have multiple failings, including "repeated financial mismanagement" and failure to provide "a safe and effective education."
[5] In the UK, academies are, technically, self-governing trusts.
[6] Special measures are emergency provisions intended to produce rapid improvement in failing schools. Ofsted is the UK government's Office for Standards in Education.
[7] The school has been warned that it may lose its state funding, an eventuality that might lead to the closing of the school.
[8] I.e., a trust that runs two or more schools. Joining such a trust would mean the academy would lose much of its independence.
[9] I.e., the school’s current supervisory organization, especially its board.
[10] I.e., the report on the most recent official inspection of the school, conducted by the Office for Standards in Education.
[11] See “S. A. Exeter”.
[12] This is the lowest grade given to schools by UK education officials; its is the equivalent of an “F” (failing).
[13] For reports on conditions at some private Steiner schools in the UK, see, e.g., "RSSKL" and "Another 'Damning' Inspection of Another Steiner School", February 28, 2019.
— R.R.
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.March 1, 2019
STEINER ACADEMY IN FROME
MAY BE FORCED TO CLOSE
School inspectors in the United Kingdom (UK) have declared several Steiner schools to be “inadequate” — that is, they have found these schools to have severe deficiencies. [1] The UK government has already ordered one Steiner school to close [2], and now they are threatening to close others. The Steiner academies in Frome and Bristol seem to be in the most immediate danger.
The following is from the Frome Times [Somerset, England]:
Steiner Academy faces
possible closure or takeover
but has ‘robust plan’ for improvements
STEINER Academy Frome has received a termination notice by the Government after being rated as ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted [3].
The school faces possible closure or takeover after the Department for Education [4] said it intended to cut off their funding later this year. But the school has told Frome Times it is working on ‘a robust development plan to bring about rapid school improvement’ [5]…
The school had until 20th February to hand over an action plan for improvement to the government.
The Department for Education has advised the school to convert to a multi-academy trust [6] and said it would help them find a sponsor. Once this happens, funding from the Department for Education will terminate as they [7] will convert from free school status [8] to being part of a multi-academy trust. This process is expected to take several months. If no action plan is made or a sponsor is not found, both schools will close…
The school was rated ‘inadequate’ in a report published by Ofsted in January. Areas of concern included: the unsafe nature, insufficient progress for those with special educational needs, high number of exclusions [9] and no senior authority [10].
At the time, the trustees of Steiner Academy Frome said they would be formally challenging the report and the inspection process itself [11].
[3/1/2019 http://www.frometimes.co.uk/2019/02/26/steiner-academy-faces-possible-closure-or-takeover-but-has-robust-plan-for-improvements/ This article originally appeared on February 26.]
Waldorf Watch Footnotes:
[1] “Inadequate” is the lowest grade given to any school — it means the school is failing as an educational institution.
[2] This is Rudolf Steiner School Kings Langley. [See “RSSKL”.]
[3] Ofsted is the UK government’s Office for Standards in Education.
[4] The Department for Education (DfE) is a ministerial department of the UK government.
[5] Significantly, such a statement indicates that the school’s leaders accept the accuracy of at least some of the inspector’s findings — the statement indicates that the school does need “improvement.”
[6] A multi-academy trust is an educational organization consisting of two or more schools, all operating under a single board of governors or board of trustees. Placement in such a trust may mean that a Steiner school will lose control of its own operations, and it may be forced to reduce or even sever its ties to Anthroposophy. Thus, it would cease to be a Steiner school.
[7] I.e., the Steiner academies in both Frome and Bristol. [See “Inadequate — Bristol, Frome, and…”.]
The Steiner academies are “free schools” — they function essentially as independent schools, having their own syllabi and methods, but they receive public financing. In the USA, such schools are called charter schools. (Steiner academies are at least technically different from private, self-funded Steiner schools. Generally, however, both types of Steiner educational institutions strive to fulfill the vision of Rudolf Steiner.)
[8] I.e., rejected applications for admission. Because the school is funded by the government, it should be open to virtually any child in the region. But the Frome academy — like many other Steiner institutions — has tried to be selective.
[9] I.e., no clear and effective management.
In addition, inspectors found that teachers at Frome have unduly low expectations for their students. The teaching, in other words, is poor. [See “Failing Steiner Schools Must Improve or (Possibly) Close”, February 13, 2019.]
[10] Some of the Steiner academies and schools receiving negative evaluations from Ofsted have challenged the inspectors’ findings; others have indicated a willingness to cooperate with education officials. At this time, Steiner Academy Frome may be attempting to follow the latter course.
— R.R.
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