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The Story of Waldorf Education in the United States: Past, Present, and Future
Representing more than a decade of research, this book is the first account of the history and development of Waldorf education in America. Looking at the past and present with an eye to how the understanding of the term Waldorf education has changed over time, the author identifies key trends in education, both Waldorf and general education, to imagine the direction in which Waldorf education may move in the future. Part one shows how the number of Waldorf schools grew slowly and steadily and how they have evolved through four generations, changing gradually from “experiments” to “alternatives” and, in the process, forging and re-forging Waldorf education itself. Part two examines the methods and myths of Waldorf education, showing what is essential and what is extraneous. Peeling away layers of convention and even misunderstanding, the author reveals Waldorf education as what many believe Rudolf Steiner, its founder, intended it to a living method of education that may be employed by any teacher or any school. As Waldorf education comes increasingly into public view and into public schools, primarily through charter schools, questions about what Waldorf education is (and is not) are becoming increasingly relevant. The author concludes that Waldorf education is not a method that can be packaged and sold, but a living method that depends on insight for continual renewal. The Story of Waldorf Education in America is a fresh, insightful, analytical, and valuable resource for parents, teachers, and educators who would like to know more about Waldorf education―whether they have extensive experience in the Waldorf education or have only just heard of it.
220 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 19, 2018
Brilliant discussion about the identity of Waldorf schools that everyone involved in any kind of education should be having. Sagarin synthesizes from many sources to tell this story, and the depth of research (going into the archives of the Rudolf Steiner School in NYC to read faculty meeting minutes from 1930 sounded dope) creates a compelling dialogue about this peculiar type of schooling and pedagogy. The overall point: the first century of all this has done things right and done things wrong. He advocates for moving forward in a much more open way (and in a way in which private, independent Waldorf schools will likely not be around).
His writing shifted (or perhaps confirmed) my critical leanings of these schools, particularly in the realm of the public/private debate and the struggle that independent schools have in reconciling their economic compromises with the social mission of this methodology. I started teaching, by chance, in a Waldorf charter school whose mission was to bring these methods to kids who would otherwise not have access to them. Since teaching now in two independent private versions, the socioeconomic compromise has become particularly problematic to me.
On the methodology: I’m siding with Sagarin’s view that “Waldorf” as a thing in itself—yeah, that “Waldorf” from which parent- and student-shaming and insularity and exclusivity and the idea of it as a brand arise—doesn’t exist in these methods. It’s much more open and reliant on a spiritual relationship rather than beeswax and featureless dolls and group-speak prayer-verses and all the bullshit trappings that people think these methods are about. I keep thinking of The Treachery of Images: this is not a pipe. And duh, of course, doesn’t everyone involved realize that? Apparently not. Similarly, his explanation of anthroposophy working in this way, as applied anthroposophy and not as a philosophy underlying the pedagogy but a open methodology, flipped a switch too. From this view, there are many ways it can be actualized.
Ultimately, if American Waldorf schools are going to survive, they’ll need a new paradigm and a new way to see themselves and their work in our culture. People like this guy have the right ideas, I think.
His writing shifted (or perhaps confirmed) my critical leanings of these schools, particularly in the realm of the public/private debate and the struggle that independent schools have in reconciling their economic compromises with the social mission of this methodology. I started teaching, by chance, in a Waldorf charter school whose mission was to bring these methods to kids who would otherwise not have access to them. Since teaching now in two independent private versions, the socioeconomic compromise has become particularly problematic to me.
On the methodology: I’m siding with Sagarin’s view that “Waldorf” as a thing in itself—yeah, that “Waldorf” from which parent- and student-shaming and insularity and exclusivity and the idea of it as a brand arise—doesn’t exist in these methods. It’s much more open and reliant on a spiritual relationship rather than beeswax and featureless dolls and group-speak prayer-verses and all the bullshit trappings that people think these methods are about. I keep thinking of The Treachery of Images: this is not a pipe. And duh, of course, doesn’t everyone involved realize that? Apparently not. Similarly, his explanation of anthroposophy working in this way, as applied anthroposophy and not as a philosophy underlying the pedagogy but a open methodology, flipped a switch too. From this view, there are many ways it can be actualized.
Ultimately, if American Waldorf schools are going to survive, they’ll need a new paradigm and a new way to see themselves and their work in our culture. People like this guy have the right ideas, I think.
March 19, 2023
Even thought I was looking for an intro to the Waldorf education (a soon to be new parent researching alternative education), this book pleasantly surprised me. Having a scientific background and venturing briefly into art therapy, lots of names referenced sounded albeit too familiar. As I read, I became increasingly interested in the evolution of Steiner’s approach into the US (from Germany, which I did not know!), into American culture, and into the standard education. This book read like a text book, with a very dense analytical historical analysis. A great next book would be analyzing the evolution of the Waldorf teaching methods as an additional layer to weave into this historical analysis. Even though the Steiner methodology cannot be distilled into one thing, which I fully appreciate, but at the same time yearned for. Our world is unfortunately categorized this way and I would love to read about how the Waldorf methods have evolved in parallel with this history.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews