Introduction

We highlight Waldorf Education (WE) as it is considered an educational orientation, based on the anthroposophic philosophy, proposed and developed by the Austrian philosopher and educator Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925). Anthroposophy, which originally comes from Greek and etymologically means, knowledge of human beings, can be characterized as “a method of knowledge of the nature of human beings and the universe, which expands the knowledge obtained by the conventional scientific method, as well as its application in virtually all areas of human life” [6]. Considering this, Steiner contributed to sectors of human knowledge such as education, medicine, economics, architecture, ecology, agriculture, social organization, art, among others [7].

The anthroposophic conception of education is based on the assumption of “[...] a profound knowledge of the development of human beings upbringing [...] goes from the total unconsciousness of the newborn to the total consciousness of the twenty-one year old [. ..] allowing the individual to be a completely responsible and free entity” [8] (p.58-59).

Steiner Anthroposophy conceives human beings, consisting of four bodies: the physical, the ether, the astral and an ego or I [7]. The physical body is common to the mineral, animal, vegetable and human kingdoms, while the ether body or the vital body is the impelling force of vitality and against the deterioration of the physical body and the astral or sentient body, present in animals and humans, is expressed through sensations [7]. And finally, the I, carries within itself the human soul, which is called, its interior, the spiritual identity of the individual [7].

In addition to these, the human anthroposophic conception establishes the twelve senses through which the individual relates to the world and to him/herself, such as: human nature, touch, life, movement, balance, smell, taste, sight, temperature, hearing, perception of speech, thought, the ego and the seven vital processes such as: breathing, warming, nutrition, circulation, maintenance, growth and maturation, and reproduction explained in detail in Steiner's book “The Twelve Senses and the Seven Vital Processes”( “Os doze sentidos e os sete processos vitais”) [9].

Anthroposophy divides human life into seven-year cycles known as seven years, marked by physical, psychic and spiritual characteristics. Considering this, it is through education that one seeks to develop and harmonize the three human activities through which man relates to the world: thinking, feeling and willing. Thinking would be developed through cognitive language, feeling through images in dreams or through imagination, and willing through body language [9]. However, the relationship in and with the world based mainly on the “rational” dimension is one of the challenges for the development of these activities [9].

Based on the Steiner educational conception, Waldorf schools emphasize human development continuously and intensely throughout a student's school life, raising awareness and interacting with nature. This process aims to emphasize interdisciplinary practices in a school routine that contribute to critical reflections regarding the relationship between human beings and nature.

Diffsion of Waldorf Schools

Based on Steiner educational principles, the first school was founded in 1919 called “Freie Waldorfschule Uhrlandshöhe” in the city of “Stuttgart, Germany, to initially serve workers’ children at the Waldorf-Astoria cigarette factory (which gave rise to its name), and later expanded to other regions and continents of the world” [9] (p.96). One of the main characteristics of a Waldorf school is “[...] that of being a living body, susceptible to assuming different forms and aspects, according to the concrete circumstances of a certain social environment of a country, of a current legislation in terms of education, etc.” [10] (p.115).

Since its creation to the present day, Waldorf schools have grown continuously, despite having been banned during the Second World War and in Eastern European countries during the communist regime [6]. Currently, Europe is the continent with the highest number of Waldorf schools, in which 21% are in Germany, followed by the Netherlands with 9%, on a global scale [11]. On the American continent, the United States of America has 10% [11], while in Brazil, according to the Federation of Waldorf Schools in Brazil, there are 84 registers of schools affiliated with the Federation, mostly concentrated in the State of São Paulo. However, there are some educational institutions that “adopt Waldorf Education, but that have not yet met all the requirements demanded by FEWB, which are, therefore, denominated “Waldorf inspired” or “in Waldorf construction” schools [9].

General considerations about the analyzed data and referrals

Throughout the educational process of children and young people, these experiences enable training for citizenship and sustainability.

The educational conception of the proposed Waldorf school is based on the following principles:

• valuing inter-trans-disciplinary work.
• equal importance given to curriculum disciplines for cognitive, biological-technological and practical-artistic development.
• encouraging the development of new knowledge on current issues and innovative perspectives, that is, a living curriculum (theory transformed into practice), which encourages spontaneous learning, an investigative spirit, creative and participatory activity in the formation of society.
• the teacher's commitment to the student, his/her family, the school and local community.
• the rhythmic sequence recognition-comprehension-mastery of the content (to experience, observe, experience, remember, describe, characterize, annotate, process, analyze, abstract and generalize, developing theories).
• participative and cooperative management, without hierarchies in school construction.
• the presence of the aesthetic and artistic element throughout the educational practice, as a means of enabling a loving bond between knowledge and the student.
• eco-efficient buildings and sustainable management of educational spaces and actions.

We believe that the Waldorf educational principles contribute significantly to rethinking the human relationship with nature, in a critical way, explaining the possible ways of comparing the hegemonic modes of production in our society. We understand that “if education alone does not transform society, neither does society change without it” [18] (p.67). Furthermore, the school, as a favorable space for creation and transformation, can also be the stage for an educational process that makes it possible to educate children and adolescents committed to fairer socio-environmental relations.

The analyses contributed to generating more discussions in the area of Environmental Education, as well as carrying out further research. When considering that in 2019, seventy-four countries adopted Waldorf Education, “how will Waldorf/Steiner education look in another century?” [11]

References

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