Soul Economy: Body, Soul, and Spirit in Waldorf Education (Cw 303) Volume 12

by Rudolf Steiner, William Michael Jensen (Introduction), Roland Everett (Translator)

Overview

16 lectures, Dornach, Dec. 23, 1921-Jan. 5, 1922 (CW 303)

Today's schools fill children's heads with information instead of helping them develop their natural human faculties and capacities. They place too much stress on memory, leading to inner exhaustion instead of real learning for a healthy, fulfilling life.

The important lectures in this volume were given in Dornach, Switzerland, to leading educators, including many from England. As a result, he was invited to Oxford to expand on some ot the themes presented in these talks.

Steiner begins by placing Anthroposophy as the foundation for understanding the principles behind Waldorf education. In what follows, he describes an education based on the human as a continually developing being of body, soul, and spirit. From this perspective, Waldorf education depends on the teacher's ability to observe and respond to each stage of a child's development. Steiner shows how Waldorf education emphasizes the efficient use of children's inner energies and how children can be nurtured through their natural stages of development by giving them just what they need at the right time--an approach that Steiner calls "soul economy."

These detailed and accessible lectures give parents and teachers the keys to a much-needed renewal of education for our children and their future.

German source: Erziehung und Unterricht aus Menschenwesens. Eine Einführung in die anthroposophische Pädagogik und Didaktik. Weihnachtskurs für Lehrer (GA 303).

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780880105170
Publisher:	Steiner Books
Publication date:	03/01/2003
Series:	Foundations of Waldorf Education , #12
Edition description:	Rev ed.
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	6.56(w) x 8.46(h) x 1.08(d)

About the Author

Rudolf Steiner (b. Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner, 1861-1925) was born in the small village of Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia), where he grew up. As a young man, he lived in Weimar and Berlin, where he became a well-published scientific, literary, and philosophical scholar, known especially for his work with Goethe's scientific writings. Steiner termed his spiritual philosophy anthroposophy, meaning "wisdom of the human being." As an exceptionally developed seer, he based his work on direct knowledge and perception of spiritual dimensions. He initiated a modern, universal "spiritual science" that is accessible to anyone willing to exercise clear and unbiased thinking. From his spiritual investigations, Steiner provided suggestions for the renewal of numerous activities, including education (general and for special needs), agriculture, medicine, economics, architecture, science, philosophy, Christianity, and the arts. There are currently thousands of schools, clinics, farms, and initiatives in other fields that involve practical work based on the principles Steiner developed. His many published works feature his research into the spiritual nature of human beings, the evolution of the world and humanity, and methods for personal development. He wrote some thirty books and delivered more than six thousand lectures throughout much of Europe. In 1924, Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which today has branches around the world.

William Michael (Jens) Jensen began working with Anthroposophic Press in 1995, beginning as a copyeditor, a job that soon included putting together and maintaining the first website for the press. In September 2001, he moved to Montreal, where he worked long-distance for the press until 2015, when he moved to western Massachusetts.