16 lectures, Dornach, Dec. 23, 1921-Jan. 5, 1922 (CW 303)
Today's schools fill children's heads with information instead of
helping them develop their natural human faculties and capacities. They
place too much stress on memory, leading to inner exhaustion instead of
real learning for a healthy, fulfilling life.
The important lectures in this volume were given in Dornach,
Switzerland, to leading educators, including many from England. As a
result, he was invited to Oxford to expand on some ot the themes
presented in these talks.
Steiner begins by placing Anthroposophy as the foundation for
understanding the principles behind Waldorf education. In what follows,
he describes an education based on the human as a continually developing
being of body, soul, and spirit. From this perspective, Waldorf
education depends on the teacher's ability to observe and respond to
each stage of a child's development. Steiner shows how Waldorf education
emphasizes the efficient use of children's inner energies and how
children can be nurtured through their natural stages of development by
giving them just what they need at the right time--an approach that
Steiner calls "soul economy."
These detailed and accessible lectures give parents and teachers the
keys to a much-needed renewal of education for our children and their
future.
German source: Erziehung und Unterricht aus Menschenwesens. Eine
Einführung in die anthroposophische Pädagogik und Didaktik.
Weihnachtskurs für Lehrer (GA 303).