Steiner Education and Social Issues

Is the philosophy by which we choose to educate our children responsible, at least partially, for the attitudes and general tone of our societies? A recent UNICEF report on wealthy countries ranked the United States and the United Kingdom at the bottom of a table that measures quality of life for young people across a wide range of headings, including poverty, health, drugs, friendships, and happiness. Experts observed that the nations that performed best in the survey have created “child-friendly” societies in which young people, for example, are not pressured to achieve academically until their teens.

By contrast, the cultures of the US and UK are geared toward economic success, with education as a means of sifting—through increasing testing—the high achievers who will produce the goods...

Brien Masters, an educationalist for more than 50 years, states that education has a central role to play “in bringing into human lives those qualities that can take us forward to a progressive future.” He proposes that Rudolf Steiner's educational approach, as practiced mainly in the Waldorf schools around the world, is well equipped to enable this.

In this book—through a series of short, engaging chapters and based on his broad personal experience of teaching and teacher training—Masters tackles a wide range of modern social issues, from drugs and nutrition to boredom, the influence of TV, and multiethnic societies.

Steiner Education and Social Issues is a wise and informative guide for parents, teachers, and anybody interested in the future development of our culture.