MEETING OF INTERNATIONAL STEINER WALDORF PARENTS NETWORK

8/9 JUNE 2008

 

 

The weekend of 8/9 June, Michael Hall played host to the 3rd meeting of the ISWPN.  Representatives were there from 9 European states - Germany, Latvia, Estonia, Sweden, Slovenia, Norway, France, Finland and the UK.  All were parents in Steiner Waldorf schools and, with the exception of the UK schools, were official representatives of their country.  The parents from Michael Hall and Brighton Steiner School were active participants in their schools, but not official representatives in the formal sense.

 

Friday Evening

 

Introductions revealed some interesting insights; whilst schools in the UK are not state funded, all the other schools received state support - although this was very restricted in France.  Yet this did not ensure the financial security of those state funded schools, as their comments revealed.

 

We all faced similar issues in communicating an understanding of the education to the broad community.  Questions arose as to what parents from different countries and cultural backgrounds wanted for their children: merely the kind of education that would enable them to take over the family business? Or did they want their children to obtain a range of qualifications that would (hopefully) guarantee them a well-paid professional job? Or were they looking to encourage their children to be curious, enquiring, open and self-confident?

 

We probed each other for broad details of their state schooling system.  Did all carry out some form of testing at regular intervals? (SATs in the UK).  Most did, it seemed.  Interestingly, in most countries the provision of funding did not depend upon the results of such tests.  Except perhaps conversely, where more funding was directed to schools with poor results to help them improve.

 

At this point in the discussion, Esa Makinen(Finland) remarked on the results of a recent report in Finland on the correlation between exam success rates in mainstream schools and children's happiness; it was found that irrespective of exam success, children generally were not happy.  They complained of boredom in classrooms, "bad" food, and a sense of isolation from fellow students.  Finland apparently has the highest murder and suicide rate in Europe.  All agreed education has become a political tool, rather than a child-focused activity.

 

Denise Weavers (UK) was keen to ensure that any new initiative to connect parents across Europe and beyond should be careful to offer a variety of communication methods.  It is good to offer talks/workshops etc. to provide information where requested, but we must also allow a forum for listening and open dialogue between parents.

 

A rather sobering end to our first evening together, but all were fired with a real sense of purpose and mutual support.  Michael Hall PTFA provided supper for all in the canteen, followed by an opportunity to see Class 6 perform the story of St. Francis in the theatre.

 

Saturday

 

Saturday dawned with a clear blue sky and glorious sunshine.  How blessed we felt!

 

European Council and Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship

 

Christopher Clouder began the proceedings with an overview of the education, which was both meaningful and accessible - and jargon free!

What is an educator?  Essentially, any adult who works with children as teacher, parent, carer etc.    And what spirit should one bring to this life's work?  Steiner referred to St Francis, who spoke of the need for courage and valour, renewal and risk-taking.  Many do not feel equal to the challenge, preferring the safety of tradition.

Steiner put much emphasis on the presence of the "Golden Impulse" as a pre-requisite to a healthy individual / society; that is to say to have an interest in something or someone else.  Without that, there is introspection. The world tends to view such people with suspicion or negativity.

There is thus a real benefit to all in moving away from "Steiner speak", the shorthand/jargon many of us use to describe the education.  Instead we should use a language and images that everyone can understand and relate to.  Once revealed in its clarity, the education speaks for itself:  Jacques Delors in his study "Learning: the Treasure Within" [Note 1] characterised Steiner Waldorf education as the crystallisation of the educational and spiritual impulse. 

 

This is a model with which we are all familiar as fundamental to the teaching in Steiner Waldorf schools; what we notice here is the accessibility of the language.

Paulo Freire - the well-known Brazilian educator - characterized 2 approaches to education:

A "banking" education; one puts a certain amount in, and then one takes a certain amount out, and

 

A "problem-posing" education, such as in Steiner Waldorf education.  A problem is posed, which leads to a process of questioning.  It is in this process that we are most enlivened and dynamic.  We are always in the process of "becoming" rather than "being", a lifelong learning process.  It is a process in which children can become our teachers, overcoming our authoritarianism and intellectualism.

 

Authoritarianism is increasing in many countries.  Steiner Waldorf schools need to answer this authoritarian approach with an open attitude of "this is how we meet that need" or " we achieve that in this way".  This is all part of humanizing education, with

 

 

Steiner Waldorf schools by their nature tend to be open to attacks from without and within.  We need to review and revitalize the language of education to strengthen the role of SW education.

 

Discussion then ensued among the members present about the need to express the education in a way that is accessible to all.  However, in answer to a question about the appropriateness of SW education for all children, it was noted that there will be challenges where

 

 

Norway

 

Godi Keller from the Rudolf Steiner University College, Oslo then spoke about his work with parents across Europe.  He uses his skills and experience to help parents become better parents.  His recent work has responded to a question he has heard in many forms, but is essentially this: "Is it right to say No to my child?"  He was alerted to the underlying issue of parents feeling distanced from their children, not knowing how to treat them, as if they were something "other".  There is move away from common social parenting - where we regard ourselves as parents in some degree to all children.  The emphasis now is on individual freedom, but this also carries a heavy responsibility.  Godi aims to empower parents to answer their own questions.  He finds the same issues concern parents across Europe, despite cultural differences.

He also offers courses to teachers to help them understand parents better.  One of the most important messages he tries to impart is "if there is something that you do, but you cannot communicate it, then don't do it!"  One has to really own what one teaches - don't fake it!  One powerful tool he found whilst watching a class teacher first thing in the morning; she greeted all her pupils as usual, then spent some time with the class finding out what they had done just before coming to school.  Thus she had a real feel for the energy each was bringing, and could conduct the morning's work accordingly.

There was much interest expressed in Godi's work, and a strong desire to bring his experiences into our individual schools somehow.

 

Finland

 

Esa Makinen spoke about his desire to develop collaborative parent-teacher practices in SW school.  He looked at what Steiner had to say about collaboration, and from this investigation deduced 6 cornerstones:

 

 

In Finland recently there was a questionnaire sent to 500 state class teachers of years 1-6.  Teachers reported parents were increasingly troublesome; 60% believed they had suffered abuse from parents.  Clearly there is a wide gulf to close.

 

Estonia

 

Next we heard from Tiina Kirss and Stella Somer in Estonia, where there are 9 state funded schools.  In their school, parents do get involved but not in a very coordinated way.  This lack of organization can provoke criticism from outsiders.  They are facing a crisis of premises - the city need the buildings back to accommodate an expanding population.  The school has not been offered suitable alternative premises.  Ideally they would like to have land on which they can build in such a way as to incorporate more meaningful integration with the elders in their community.  They realise that they face challenges here in terms of finance and organisational skills.

The other schools in the country also struggle financially.  The parents have formed a loose association across the country and are generally passionate and supportive.

 

 

France

 

Mariam Francq and Françoise Garbit-Poyard spoke for the situation in France.  SW education has been established for 60 years in France.  There are around 20 schools - 1/3 Kindergartens, 1/3 primary and 1/3 up to class 9/11. They have suffered from violent attacks against them, due - in part it seems - to the self-imposed isolation of many SW parents from their local community. The parents can join an organisation, which also incorporates friends and teachers.

The schools are 50% state funded on average, but parents still struggle financially.  There are a few well-established schools, but most are tired, lacking joy.

 

Slovenia

 

Matjaz Florjanc Lukan painted a very different picture of SW in Slovenia.  There is 1 school in Ljubljana, established 16 years ago.  There are 420 students, with a healthy waiting list!  The Lower School is very popular, but interest wanes in Upper School.  The state is beginning to acknowledge the benefits of SW education, and they have good relations with the Ministry for Education and Sport.  State funding amounts to 85% in KG, 100% in primary and 85% in high school.  Where fees must be paid, all pay the same rate.  They host a big Christmas Bazaar, which is attended by over 3,000 people.  It is a big cultural event, which attracts many artists and wide media coverage.  Matjaz was very positive about the situation in Slovenia.  The only problem they have is in recruiting Class Teachers!!

 

Sweden

 

Ann Jansson Jarpling comes from Sweden.  She finds it is now difficult to get parents actively involved.  They say they want the association to exist, but have no time to devote to it.  Due to this lack of resources they have had to restrict their work to this international initiative, the formation of a Parent Academy and building a Home Page for the website.

Ann comes from a school of 95 pupils up to class 9.  They have to mix the ages to make the school viable.  It is state funded according to the number of pupils and has been going for 12 years.  There is a KG (established 3 years ago), but this does not integrate with the rest of the school.

 

Germany

 

Birgitta Gralfs and Martin Ziemann hailed from Germany, where there are 210 SW schools.  They painted quite a complicated Federal structure for the funding of the education, which generally continues up to Class 13.  There is a Federation of Steiner Schools open to parents and teachers, which meets twice a year.  Teachers rarely attend in practice.  Hosting of this meeting is rotated among the schools and 150 - 200 schools are usually represented.  They work on issues through groups and with lectures.

 

Latvia

 

In Latvia there are 2 schools left!  Zaiga Kazaka told us about her school; it is 15 years old with 185 pupils.  They are members of UNESCO, and pride themselves on their local community work.  They receive a small amount of state funding - teachers and staff do not have to pay for the education.  There is a group for schools to connect with each other, but not parents - they lack the resources to do more.  The biggest problems they face are

 

 

Esa told us more about the situation in Finland.  There they have an Association of Steiner Pedagogical Communities, which includes Camphills, farms and 2 companies.  There are 20 schools including 3 home schooling groups, which simply lack the relevant state recognition.  40 KG's; 12 with Upper Schools.  The remainder goes from Class 1 - 9 (the point at which compulsory education finishes).  9 own their own buildings; 11 rent buildings in the city, with city funding!  Esa's school has rented the land from the city for 50 years and has built its own buildings.  They are not allowed to require contributions from parents, but encourage families to pay 85Î per month, or whatever they can afford (some pay more!)

 

United Kingdom

 

Christian Lewin spoke for the situation in the UK, with additions from Christopher and Denise.  There are 32 schools and 60 KG's, with 5,000 pupils in total.  Most struggle to survive financially.  Teachers' salaries are about half that of their state counterparts.  Michael Hall is the exception - we can charge a fee sufficient to provide most of the facilities required for an Upper School.  Each school is independent of the others.  The media is generally kind to us, and the Ministry for Education is "warming" to us!  Communication between schools is limited to contacts between teachers - there is no structure for parents to communicate among themselves.  It was felt now was the time to re-introduce an initiative to create such a group.  Christian outlined what work the PTFA (Parents, Teachers and Friends Association) does to support the school [Note 2]

 

 

 

 

Norway

 

We heard from Hilde Lengali (meeting organiser) that Norway has the highest per capita presence of SW schools, with 5,000 pupils in total.  In the 1970's and 80's the education really boomed.  Now there are 32 schools receiving 85% state funding.  They have a parents' handbook, which is constantly evolving.  The law requires all parents to oragnise themselves and involve themselves in their school.

They have suffered from a lot of negative media exposure in recent years and the media have tried to manipulate parents to get involved in the criticisms.

 

A Mission Statement

 

After digesting and discussing what we had heard, we worked on Hilde's draft proposal for a "mission statement" for the ISWPN.  Final wording was agreed [Note 3].  We also agreed that there was more to do and we would reconvene Sunday morning to plan next steps.

Then it was time for dinner and convivial conversation at the local pizza parlour!

 

Sunday morning

 

Sunday was another glittering day as the group gathered once more.

It was decided that a meeting next year should definitely be our aim.  Possible venues (to be confirmed) include Holland and Denmark, with Michael Hall as a reserve.  The date suggested was 5/6/7/June.

Christian (UK) made a commitment in the meantime to contact all the UK SW schools and try to re-connect.  All other member reps. will do the same.  Ann needs support to help administer the group.  The UK, Germany and Finland offered their support.

 

 

 

Possible agenda for next year:

 

 

 

 

 

Funding

Once all schools have been contacted we will need to explore possible sources of funding to help with our limited/non existent resources!

 

Michael Hall offered to support the written English communications (document drafting, website).  There was a suggestion that we could create a form for member schools to complete to give an idea of their current ideas and priorities.

It was agreed a copy of this report would go to new member schools as they join.

 

Report prepared by Denise Weavers

Parent, Michael Hall, Forest Row, UK.

 

 

 

Participants:

Annika Wohlstrom (Sweden)

Zaiga Kazaka (Latvia)

Tiina Kirss (Estonia)

Stella Sömer (Estonia)

Birgitta Gralfs (Germany)

Martin Ziemann (Germany)

Matjaz Florjanc Lukan (Slovenia)

Esa Mäkinen (Finland)

Mariam Francq (France)

Françoise (France)

Godi Keller (Norway)

Hilde Lengali (Norway)

Christian Lewin (UK)

Denise Weavers (UK)

Kate Taylor-Smith (UK)

Caroline Ritchie (UK)

Charlotte Macpherson and Annika (Brighton Steiner School)

 

 

Note 1

 

"Learning: the Treasure Within" - Jacques Delors.  Delors believes in 4 pillars of education:

 

In this we can see reflected many of Steiner's own educational views.

 

This was further backed up by the 2007 Kroneberg Declaration, which stated

 

"Leaders in the public and private sectors must embrace change in organizations and people by providing opportunities and incentives to facilitate and motivate, as well as to overcome typical barriers in knowledge acquisition and sharing;

• Knowledge acquisition and sharing institutions will have to focus more closely on the development of social and emotional abilities and skills, and to come to a wider, value-based concept of education;

• The importance of acquiring factual knowledge will decrease, whereas the ability to find one's way in complex systems and to find, judge, organise and creatively use relevant information, as well as the capability to learn, will become crucially important;

• The importance of the role of teachers as instructors will decrease, while their role as facilitators, consultants, guides and coaches for learners, as role models and as validators and interpreters of knowledge sharing, creation and acquisition, will increase; "

 

Note 2

 

MICHAEL HALL PTFA

 

These are some of the activities we have set up.

 

Open Days

We have regular Open Days with tours and a talk. The students are very involved in this.

 

Preliminary Interviews

We hold these every Thursday. Anyone interested in the school can come and be shown round. There is a talk in a more informal setting and the opportunity to ask questions, take away information and buy books.

 

Parents' Handbook

We have a book updated annually and on the Website (coming in Sept) taking parents through all the things they need to know about the running of the school. This includes explanation of the college, council, mandate system, school management team, the association (all parents are members) and the open association meetings.

 

Welcoming New Parents

We always want to do this well. We put our new parents in touch with a host family who will look after them in their early days at Michael Hall. They are invited to a welcome coffee morning with their class contact. (A liaison between the teacher and the parents)

 

 

Class Contacts

Every class has one or two class contacts. Their function is to support the teacher in all ways possible, to support the parents and to be active in helping to set up class functions. The contacts meet together three times a year to discuss, to share information and support each other.

 

New Parents' Evening

This is held each September and is an opportunity for all new parents to learn more about the school and ask questions.

 

Bite-Sized Talks & A Day In The Classroom

The PTFA runs bite-sized talks in the morning on various subjects. Out of these we develop evening forums on particular topics. We have special Saturdays when parents can come and learn as their children do. Early years, lower school, middle school and upper school. In the main school this will offer a main lesson and several classes.

 

Exit Interviews

We offer all parents who are leaving an exit interview, whatever the reason and whatever the stage in the school.

 

Old Scholars

We are working hard on a new initiative to keep in touch with our past students, to keep them updated, to invite them to events and to encourage them to come and speak to our present students about their lives, their jobs and how they feel they benefited from the education.

 

 

Note 3

 

INTERNATIONAL STEINER WALDORF PARENTS NETWORK (ISWPN)

 

ISWPN is a forum for the mutual support of parents through the exchange of ideas and experiences concerning Steiner Waldorf education.  We encourage parents interested in Steiner Waldorf education to participate.  The main meeting point is at this website:  www.waldorfparents.net

 

Fundamental aims of ISWPN:

 

 

The ISWPN works in co-operation with the European Council for Steiner Waldorf Education.

 

For more information please contact adm@waldorfparents.net

 

"Our highest endeavour must be to develop free human beings who are able themselves to impart purpose and direction to their lives"

 

Rudolf Steiner