Who was Rudolf Steiner?
Rudolf Steiner, born in 1861, was an Austrian philosopher/scientist whose insights into the development of human consciousness inspired the Waldorf school movement. Steiner called this new field of study Anthroposophy or “the wisdom of the human being.” A central tenet is that every human being has three aspects–a body, a soul, and a spirit–and that each of these aspects is crucial to a person’s growth and development. In the increasingly mechanized society of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Steiner valued the dignity of each individual. He held that each individual had an obligation to use his or her endowed gifts in the service of others. Steiner applied this philosophy to many fields, including medicine, agriculture, economics, architecture, and ultimately education, where his impact is felt most widely today. The first “Steiner school” was opened in 1919, just after the First World War, at the request of Emil Molt, who owned the Waldorf Astoria cigarette factory in Stuttg
Dr. Rudolf Steiner was a highly respected and well published scientific, literary and philosophical scholar who was particularly known for his work on Goethe’s scientific writings. He later came to incorporate his scientific investigations with his interest in spiritual development. He became a forerunner in the field of spiritual scientific investigation for the modern 20th century individual. His background in history and civilizations coupled with his observation in life gave the world the gift of Waldorf Education. It is a deeply insightful application of learning based on the Study of Humanity with developing consciousness of self and the surrounding world.
Dr. Rudolf Steiner was a highly respected and well-published scientific, literary and philosophical scholar who was particularly known for his work on Goethe’s scientific writings. He later came to incorporate his scientific investigations with his interest in spiritual development. He became a forerunner in the field of spiritual-scientific investigation for the modern 20th century individual. His background in history and civilizations coupled with his observation in life gave the world the gift of Waldorf Education. It is a deeply insightful application of learning based on the Study of Humanity with developing consciousness of self and the surrounding world.
Dr. Rudolf Steiner was a highly respected and well-published scientific, literary and philosophical scholar who was particularly known for his work on Goethe’s scientific writings. He later came to incorporate his scientific investigations with his interest in spiritual development. He became a forerunner in the field of spiritual-scientific investigation for the modern 20th century individual. His background knowledge in history and civilisations coupled with his observations in life gave the world the gift of Waldorf or Steiner Education. It is a deeply insightful application of learning based on the study of humanity with developing consciousness of self and the surrounding world.
Dr. Rudolf Steiner was a highly respected and well-published scientific, literary and philosophical scholar who was particularly known for his work on Goethe’s scientific writings. He later came to incorporate his scientific investigations with his interest in spiritual development. In 1919 he was invited to give a series of lectures at the Waldorf-Astoria cigarette factory in Stuttgart, Germany. As a result, the factory’s owner, Emil Molt, asked Steiner to establish and lead a school for the children of the factory’s employees. Steiner agreed to do so on four conditions: the school should be open to all children; it should be coeducational; it should be a unified twelve-year school; and that the teachers, those who would be working directly with the children, should take the leading role in the running of the school. Molt agreed to the conditions and, after a training period for the prospective teachers, die Freie Waldorfschule (the Free Waldorf School) was opened September 7, 1919.
