Do you know any graduates of Waldorf schools?

[Anonymous]

My daughter was in a Waldorf school for 10 years and I was actually the person who got bullied, by the other parents. There are definitely bullying problems at Waldorf schools and they should be addressed. Issues if karma should not involve abuse. While I wholeheartedly believe in Waldorf education and do not regret putting my daughter there —I cannot lie. Bullying and the lack of appropriate response to it at many Waldorf schools is real

[Anonymous]

PS —the bullying towards me (spreading rumors, calling child protective services, shunning, causing her to lose two babysitting jobs, yelling at me....etc) was something I had never experienced as a child or young adult EVER. I was shocked! And the bystander effect was the worst I had ever encountered. You know—it’s ok to love Waldorf education and to still be honest about its weaknesses. I don’t regret putting my daughter there but I will never be the same. The bullying towards me was like something in a Lifetime Movie

[Anonymous]

I have forgiven everyone involved but I will never be the same. My daughter still loves the school and is a deep thinker, incredibly empathetic, kind— a straight A student who wants to be a doctor. So it is a very special type of school —I would probably put another child there again if I were younger and could have more children. But I would protect myself more. Because once the bullying starts—my experience is that no one will help you. You become a scapegoat for the community like in the olden times.

[Anonymous]

I think because there are fewer boundaries, in general —at these schools it is even more important that you have good personal boundaries. It seems to be a natural part if being human to blame and bully others —it’s part of the lower self. If I could do it again —I would have simply protected myself more. Because I don’t think you can change other people or human nature.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for listening! I still love Waldorf education. I hope that came through....

[Anonymous]

If you want to learn about them, subscribe to the Waldorf critics mailing list.

[Anonymous]

I used to work as a school psychologist that was very close to a Waldorf School. Federal education law says public schools are in charge of testing private school students who might need special education. The way our district did it is the public school closest to the private school had to complete the assessments.

It was really tragic to assess students in third and fourth grades who couldn't read. Waldorf holds off teaching reading until 2nd grade because as one teacher there told me the student has to develop a positive relationship with reading and writing and "it will just click when they are ready".

While some kids do pick up reading effortlessly, for many, many children learning to read can be a long hard slog. At least 40 percent of children really need direct intensive instruction in phonics to learn to read in English. People love to say look at Finland -the kids play all day until 7 then they go on to do well in school. Well Finnish is a phonetic language where letters make one sound so it is easy to learn how to read. German is also a phonetically consistent language unlike English which is just crazy hard to learn to read and spell because of all the phonetic inconsistencies. So Steiner didn't think it took that much instruction to learn to read.

So I really have a negative view of Waldorf.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP again. I’m curious as I’m reading about many Silicon Valley types sending their kids to Waldorf and forest schools. Mainly driven by desire to get away from screens. With the decline of our schools in general, is it possible that these approaches will actually turn out the most mentally stable, and as a result prepared for the world, children?

It can be great. But like any and all types of school, you can’t rely on school to meet 100% of your child’s educational needs. Waldorf school can be great to develop curiosity, a love for learning, and provide your child many ways and avenues to spend their time that doesn’t involve a screen. But that may mean you need to work some on reading and math facts at home to both progress in these areas and to make sure your child is meeting or exceeds grade level proficiency. But that is the same for public school- where your elementary kid will spend a ton of time on screens and where many kids still end up educationally deficient without parental involvement at home.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:So much misinformation about Waldorf. My child is in a local Waldorf school and doing great socially, emotionally, and academically. We sort of stumbled on it while searching for an alternative to virtual school during the pandemic. We love that the program incorporates nature, movement, music, and art into the curriculum. This is really how young kids should learn, as opposed to being stuck at their desks all day doing worksheets, tapping on iPads and chromebooks, and taking standardized tests. Our school has a lot of international families, as I think other countries embrace this type of education over the current American system (which, let’s admit, is a pretty broken model).

Is your child allowed to use any color they want in their art? Are they allowed to choose subjects to paint?

Yes! They do a good bit of form drawing, used to teach math and geometry concepts, but have opportunities for free drawing and painting as well.

If they're allowed to use black, then they're not doing the full Waldorf thing, which is an improvement.

Reporting back that my son brought home a picture he drew today at his Waldorf school today and he used black crayon all over!

Don’t believe everything you read on the internet, as there are many misconceptions about Waldorf. While Steiner may have believed kids should t draw or paint with black, it’s not on the ground reality at all (maybe not even most) US Waldorf schools.

Your perception of the "on the ground reality" though reflects what you want to believe about your school too (I assume you're not in the school building day-to-day) if your the PP who talked about your 'wonderful Waldorf school,' I have to admit that you seem to echo some of their "talking points"--assuming public schools have kids on screens all day (my public ES kid has computer class 1x a week and isn't otherwise on screens) or just doing worksheets (they do plenty of other things) and starting to talk about "how kids are meant to learn" --which is rooted in a very particular Steiner philosophy. Your defensiveness about "misinformation" from people who are not just looking up on the internet, but who have direct experience/knowledge. Just encouraging you to talk a little deeper with the teachers about how they handle social conflicts when they arise, what they do if their methods don't work, how they will teach reading and math, what they do when children struggle with it etc. and make sure that this lovely school you happened into really aligns with the education you want. Also, I would keep in touch with parents of similar aged kids outside the school as your kid gets older and compare things like where they are at in reading and math in specific terms if you're planning on eventually re-entering public schools (or a non-Waldorf private) at some point.

NP who is not defending Waldorf, but your description of your child's public ES sounds just as skewed of the overall picture. We are in DCUM land, and in Montgomery County for example, elementary school kids use games on Chromebooks, videos on Youtube and watch the teacher project often on a screen. They also listen to taped audio books, etc. So tech is definitely not once per week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have forgiven everyone involved but I will never be the same. My daughter still loves the school and is a deep thinker, incredibly empathetic, kind— a straight A student who wants to be a doctor. So it is a very special type of school —I would probably put another child there again if I were younger and could have more children. But I would protect myself more. Because once the bullying starts—my experience is that no one will help you. You become a scapegoat for the community like in the olden times.

How exactly would you protect yourself?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My daughter was in a Waldorf school for 10 years and I was actually the person who got bullied, by the other parents. There are definitely bullying problems at Waldorf schools and they should be addressed. Issues if karma should not involve abuse. While I wholeheartedly believe in Waldorf education and do not regret putting my daughter there —I cannot lie. Bullying and the lack of appropriate response to it at many Waldorf schools is real

This sounds like your person issue and nothing to do with Waldorf generalizing a whole

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP again. I’m curious as I’m reading about many Silicon Valley types sending their kids to Waldorf and forest schools. Mainly driven by desire to get away from screens. With the decline of our schools in general, is it possible that these approaches will actually turn out the most mentally stable, and as a result prepared for the world, children?

How old are their kids? I think in the early years, yes, it's a great idea and environment but if you actually look at the actual curriculum in the elementary years it is something very different than what you might expect.