Steiner/Waldorf education and anthroposophy – A literature review

Abstract

In recent research the need for studies that provide comprehensive and systematic reviews of specific topic related to Steiner/Waldorf education has been highlighted. One such area is the relationship between Steiner/Waldorf education and anthroposophy where a significant amount of writing has been done over the years. The article focuses on two issues. First to provide an initial systematic review of the literature and second to look at how the discussion has evolved over time. The article reviews journal articles, books and research stretching back to 1968. The main findings are that the core of the discussion has largely remained the same: that anthroposophy is a method not a world view and that its importance for Steiner/Waldorf education lies in how it becomes a path for individual transformation not in it being a teaching or dogma. There is, however, a clear increase in writing from 2010 onward and with this a significant nuancing and deepening of the arguments from previous decades. Intersecting with that are different styles and approaches, one termed “maximalist” and one “minimalist” in the analysis, the former employing a style thick with Steiner quotes and anthroposophical content and the latter more focused on the epistemological aspects of anthroposophy with less emphasis on quotes from Steiner and content discussion.