A History of Waldorf Education

A History of Waldorf Education

From the very beginnings to the present day

• the comprehensive history of Waldorf education
• a historical overview
• on the 100th birthday of the Waldorf school


The first Free Waldorf School, founded in Stuttgart in 1919, was the starting point for what is now a well-established, worldwide education method with more than a thousand schools in more than sixty countries. On the occasion of its centennial anniversary, this comprehensive illustrated publication traces the history of Waldorf education from when it was founded to the present day.

The following questions are among the many which the author deals with:
What role did Rudolf Steiner’s anthroposophy play in the concept of Waldorf schools? How did the Waldorf schools behave during the Third Reich? How can the boom in this method, which started in the 1970s, and its long-lasting appeal be explained? To what extent was Waldorf education innovative? How were the Waldorf schools financed and how did they organise themselves? How did they manage to develop their own teacher training? How has Waldorf education been received and perceived by the public? And how did it come about that it was often seen as dogmatic and aloof?


Target group
Teachers at all types of schools, educationalists, anyone interested in education and society