In the context of poststructuralist and postmodern philosophy, the concept of a decentered subjec... more In the context of poststructuralist and postmodern philosophy, the concept of a decentered subject has always retained a powerful, deconstructive potential -tracing its conceptual history all the way back to Nietzsche and beyond. But are we not yet to realize its constructive potential, from an educational-philosophical point of view? In this paper, we attempt to reassess the potential of a decentered subject using a variety of resources -leaning for instance on notions from a Romantic philosophical tradition, as expressed by Schelling; on Jungian depth psychology; and on Rudolf Steiner's writings on the central and peripheral self. In conclusion, we argue that a teacher may benefit from differentiating his/her understanding of decenteredness as well as from the ability to act out of a variety of psychic centers -of which the conscious ego is an important example, although not exclusively so. Also, we conclude that such attempts are likely to find success to the extent that they are grounded in the teacher's ability to align him/herself to centers that are of a more spiritual nature; for instance as described by Jung's writings on the nature of the Self archetype.
For education this means that teaching must respect the living nature of genuine concepts, as wel... more For education this means that teaching must respect the living nature of genuine concepts, as well as the aesthetic and "suffering" aspects of learning. Horst Rumpf has eloquently argued for the latter. In conclusion, some traits of Steiner's pedagogy are presented as possible practical implications.
This paper purports to identify the critical potential of Waldorf education within the context of... more This paper purports to identify the critical potential of Waldorf education within the context of environmental education and ecospirituality. It sees Steiner's thinking as a further development of early Romantic philosophy and takes both as rooted in Western esotericism. In line with this, the Romantic critique of the mechanistic view of Nature, characteristic of Enlightenment science and philosophy, has a parallel in Steiner's critique of the materialist world view, and how this is spread through mainstream education. Steiner's conception of the relations between humanity and the Earth/Nature is showed to have forerunners in the conceptions of Herder and Novalis. Hence, this is part of the ideational grounds of Waldorf education. The technocratic, neoliberal and capitalist regime, that rules globally today, stands in sharp contrast to the visions of Romanticism, as well as of Waldorf education. This contrast is illustrated by examples from the Indian environmentalist Vandana Shiva. Finally, the participatory epistemology and vision of child in Waldorf education illustrate how its critical potential in environmental education and ecospirituality can be realized.
This paper explores the educational significance of the critique of representationalism. As it in... more This paper explores the educational significance of the critique of representationalism. As it includes the notion of non-representational knowledge, Rudolf Steiner's epistemology is introduced and further linked to elements in Bergson and Deleuze. Humboldt's idea of Menschenbildung as the central function of knowledge is brought in, since both Humboldt and Steiner emphasise knowledge as mediating the interplay between self and world, producing a deeper sense of reality. Such an education must respect the living nature of genuine concepts as well as the aesthetic aspects of learning. After a note on the educational abuse of language in discursive closures, some traits of Steiner's practical pedagogy are presented as possible practical implications. Nyckelord representationalism, verklighet, bildning, estetiskt lärande, levande begrepp Uden for tema Inledning Denna artikel undersöker den pedagogiska betydelsen av den post-positivistiska och-strukturalistiska kritiken av kunskap som representation av verkligheten. Rortys Philosophy and the mirror of nature är ett välkänt exempel på denna "postmoderna" kritik av kunskap som representation. 1 Tre viktiga teman figurerar i denna kritik: 1) att verkligheten inte är "given"; 2) att det kunskapande subjektet inte passivt återspeglar verkligheten; och 3) att korrespondensteorin om sanning därför inte är adekvat. Ett övergripande tema är avståndstagandet från objektivism och möjligheten av en absolut, universellt giltig ontologi. Denna filosofiska kritik har influerat pedagogisk filosofi och teori. Så noterar t ex Osberg & Biesta att konstruktivistiska, pragmatistiska, post-strukturalistiska och så kallade emergens-epistemologier (de senare härledda ur komplexitetsteori) alla har bidragit till idén om kunskap som varken en representation av något som i sig är mer verkligt, eller som något
Denna rapport ar en forskningsoversikt som handlar om informations- och kommunikationsteknologisk... more Denna rapport ar en forskningsoversikt som handlar om informations- och kommunikationsteknologiskt (IKT) baserad distansutbildning och distansundervisning. Den behandlar olika aspekter av datormedi ...
Kunskaper i Svenska, Engelska och Matematik samt attityder till undervisningen i skolar 9 : En ja... more Kunskaper i Svenska, Engelska och Matematik samt attityder till undervisningen i skolar 9 : En jamforelse mellan waldorfelever och elever i den kommunala skolan
RoSE – Research on Steiner Education, Feb 14, 2010
Steiner Waldorf education is usually perceived as based on Rudolf Steiner's comprehensive vision ... more Steiner Waldorf education is usually perceived as based on Rudolf Steiner's comprehensive vision of human nature and development, the knowledge of which is the basic element of Steiner Waldorf teacher education. However, Steiner considered it important for teachers to be aware of the social and political issues of the times and his educational ideas can be seen as part of a social philosophy of Menschenbildung. This paper relates Steiner's idea of a threefold social structure to various theoretical notions that have appeared recently within social and political philosophy. In particular, Cohen and Arato's concept of civil society is found to be similar to Steiner's notion of culture as a third, relatively independent social sphere, balancing the powers of the state and the market. The power of civil society in general and education in particular is based on the creation of meaning and identity. Steiner Waldorf education supports the formation of a cosmopolitan identity based on the universally human. Such an educational impulse is needed today as a counterbalance to the global market forces.
Published in S. Suggate & E Reese (Eds) (2012), Contemporary debates in childhood education a... more Published in S. Suggate & E Reese (Eds) (2012), Contemporary debates in childhood education and development (ss. 3 – 12). London/New York: Routledge.
In the wake of globalisation, multiculturalism and the marketisation of schools the education-for... more In the wake of globalisation, multiculturalism and the marketisation of schools the education-for-citizenship-question in relation to state and independent schools seems increasingly relevant. This ...
Waldorfskolor och medborgerligt-moralisk kompetens : En jamforelse mellan waldorfelever och eleve... more Waldorfskolor och medborgerligt-moralisk kompetens : En jamforelse mellan waldorfelever och elever i den kommunala skolan
ABSTRACT In these days of both national and international comparative studies of so called learni... more ABSTRACT In these days of both national and international comparative studies of so called learning outcomes it seems important to raise the question of appropriate methods and methodologies for the assessment and evaluation of educational processes. Present evaluation methods seem to focus more and more on curriculum-as-product at the expense of curriculum-as-process. However, it is in the latter that more holistic qualities like social, moral and spiritual aspects of development and learning are likely to emerge, since such qualities are embedded in everything that teachers and students are doing. And, as MacGilchrist, Myers, and Reed (2004) point out, it is important that we assess what we value, rather than value what we can easily measure.
RoSE – Research on Steiner Education, Jul 21, 2013
In his book about Rudolf Steiner, Heiner Ullrich (2008) discusses-among other things-Steiner's ph... more In his book about Rudolf Steiner, Heiner Ullrich (2008) discusses-among other things-Steiner's philosophy of knowledge. Reading this part of the book, encompassing pp. 123-135, I was astonished to find so many claims about what Steiner means almost without a single reference to-let alone a quote from-Steiner's work. I am surprised that such a text can be published with the implicit claims of being a scholarly and academic book (it is published as volume 11 of the Continuum Library of Educational Thought). In these 12 pages (and also in the rest of the book) one finds one conclusive judgment after another about Steiner's philosophy without any arguments, demonstrations or clear references to Steiner's texts, 1 as if it was not at all a question of Ullrich interpreting Steiner's work, but as if he is merely recounting what Steiner himself has said or written. And yet, having studied Steiner's work for over 20 years, I for one can hardly recognize a single idea from Steiner in Ullrich's presentation of him. Almost all of it consists of distortions and misconceptions piled up, one upon another. Ullrich's account of Steiner's philosophy seems to be based on secondary and mainly critical sources, he seems not to have taken the trouble to read Steiner himself. In the following I will try to justify this highly critical view of Ullrich's presentation. I will limit myself however to the pages 123-127 of the book, comprising a section called "Anthroposophy as a philosophy without boundaries". I think a thorough discussion of these pages is enough to give an impression of how Ullrich (mis) treats Steiner's ideas. At some points I will bring in references and a quote from Steiner's work, but I will also allow myself the same liberty as Ullrich and simply state my interpretation of Steiner, in opposition to his. I do this because this is not a peer-reviewed academic article and finding all the relevant references is a timeconsuming work. Those who know Steiner's work may judge for themselves whether my interpretations accord with Steiner and with their own. If we disagree, the discussion about this issue can continue. Ullrich's claims about anthroposophy as "a philosophy without boundaries" Steiner is known to have made many critical remarks about Kant's philosophy. Ullrich says critics of Steiner conclude that he misreads Kant's epistemology in a psychological way and that this leads him to "a precritical, naively realistic position in the justification of his own theory of knowledge" (Ullrich, p. 123). Many dogs are buried in these simple statements; one is almost overwhelmed by the work that would be needed to unearth them all. I have to limit myself to a few of them. Steiner is indeed questioning the epistemological boundaries that Kant proclaimed, but he is no more "psychological" in his reading than many other philosophers after Kant, who also questioned these boundaries (Schelling, Hegel, and others). Hegel for instance, in his typically dialectical fashion, said that if one is aware of a limit, a border, one is implicitly also aware of what is on the other side of the border-this is inherent in the very concept of a border. 1. There are other references, but they are to critics of Steiner, and their conclusions.
Complicity: An International Journal of Complexity in Education, Jul 3, 2012
It would be futile, John Dewey argued in 1902, to think that we have to choose between child-cent... more It would be futile, John Dewey argued in 1902, to think that we have to choose between child-centered, progressive education and traditional, subject-matter-oriented approaches. Calling for adaptivity, he stressed that we need the act of balancing the one with the other. The tendency in current educational policy to lean in favor of traditional, disciplinary modes of control appears to lose sight of this need. The aim of this paper is to reconnect to the task of maintaining a balance between educational freedom and structure, using a variety of theoretical resources such as complexity science, and the philosophies of Deleuze and Guattari, Schiller, and Nietzsche. Based on these resources, the authors also discuss Steiner Waldorf education as an example of how educational practice may approach, and integrate the significance of chaos in the form of a "virtual pedagogy".
In the context of poststructuralist and postmodern philosophy, the concept of a decentered subjec... more In the context of poststructuralist and postmodern philosophy, the concept of a decentered subject has always retained a powerful, deconstructive potential -tracing its conceptual history all the way back to Nietzsche and beyond. But are we not yet to realize its constructive potential, from an educational-philosophical point of view? In this paper, we attempt to reassess the potential of a decentered subject using a variety of resources -leaning for instance on notions from a Romantic philosophical tradition, as expressed by Schelling; on Jungian depth psychology; and on Rudolf Steiner's writings on the central and peripheral self. In conclusion, we argue that a teacher may benefit from differentiating his/her understanding of decenteredness as well as from the ability to act out of a variety of psychic centers -of which the conscious ego is an important example, although not exclusively so. Also, we conclude that such attempts are likely to find success to the extent that they are grounded in the teacher's ability to align him/herself to centers that are of a more spiritual nature; for instance as described by Jung's writings on the nature of the Self archetype.
For education this means that teaching must respect the living nature of genuine concepts, as wel... more For education this means that teaching must respect the living nature of genuine concepts, as well as the aesthetic and "suffering" aspects of learning. Horst Rumpf has eloquently argued for the latter. In conclusion, some traits of Steiner's pedagogy are presented as possible practical implications.
This paper purports to identify the critical potential of Waldorf education within the context of... more This paper purports to identify the critical potential of Waldorf education within the context of environmental education and ecospirituality. It sees Steiner's thinking as a further development of early Romantic philosophy and takes both as rooted in Western esotericism. In line with this, the Romantic critique of the mechanistic view of Nature, characteristic of Enlightenment science and philosophy, has a parallel in Steiner's critique of the materialist world view, and how this is spread through mainstream education. Steiner's conception of the relations between humanity and the Earth/Nature is showed to have forerunners in the conceptions of Herder and Novalis. Hence, this is part of the ideational grounds of Waldorf education. The technocratic, neoliberal and capitalist regime, that rules globally today, stands in sharp contrast to the visions of Romanticism, as well as of Waldorf education. This contrast is illustrated by examples from the Indian environmentalist Vandana Shiva. Finally, the participatory epistemology and vision of child in Waldorf education illustrate how its critical potential in environmental education and ecospirituality can be realized.
This paper explores the educational significance of the critique of representationalism. As it in... more This paper explores the educational significance of the critique of representationalism. As it includes the notion of non-representational knowledge, Rudolf Steiner's epistemology is introduced and further linked to elements in Bergson and Deleuze. Humboldt's idea of Menschenbildung as the central function of knowledge is brought in, since both Humboldt and Steiner emphasise knowledge as mediating the interplay between self and world, producing a deeper sense of reality. Such an education must respect the living nature of genuine concepts as well as the aesthetic aspects of learning. After a note on the educational abuse of language in discursive closures, some traits of Steiner's practical pedagogy are presented as possible practical implications. Nyckelord representationalism, verklighet, bildning, estetiskt lärande, levande begrepp Uden for tema Inledning Denna artikel undersöker den pedagogiska betydelsen av den post-positivistiska och-strukturalistiska kritiken av kunskap som representation av verkligheten. Rortys Philosophy and the mirror of nature är ett välkänt exempel på denna "postmoderna" kritik av kunskap som representation. 1 Tre viktiga teman figurerar i denna kritik: 1) att verkligheten inte är "given"; 2) att det kunskapande subjektet inte passivt återspeglar verkligheten; och 3) att korrespondensteorin om sanning därför inte är adekvat. Ett övergripande tema är avståndstagandet från objektivism och möjligheten av en absolut, universellt giltig ontologi. Denna filosofiska kritik har influerat pedagogisk filosofi och teori. Så noterar t ex Osberg & Biesta att konstruktivistiska, pragmatistiska, post-strukturalistiska och så kallade emergens-epistemologier (de senare härledda ur komplexitetsteori) alla har bidragit till idén om kunskap som varken en representation av något som i sig är mer verkligt, eller som något
Denna rapport ar en forskningsoversikt som handlar om informations- och kommunikationsteknologisk... more Denna rapport ar en forskningsoversikt som handlar om informations- och kommunikationsteknologiskt (IKT) baserad distansutbildning och distansundervisning. Den behandlar olika aspekter av datormedi ...
Kunskaper i Svenska, Engelska och Matematik samt attityder till undervisningen i skolar 9 : En ja... more Kunskaper i Svenska, Engelska och Matematik samt attityder till undervisningen i skolar 9 : En jamforelse mellan waldorfelever och elever i den kommunala skolan
RoSE – Research on Steiner Education, Feb 14, 2010
Steiner Waldorf education is usually perceived as based on Rudolf Steiner's comprehensive vision ... more Steiner Waldorf education is usually perceived as based on Rudolf Steiner's comprehensive vision of human nature and development, the knowledge of which is the basic element of Steiner Waldorf teacher education. However, Steiner considered it important for teachers to be aware of the social and political issues of the times and his educational ideas can be seen as part of a social philosophy of Menschenbildung. This paper relates Steiner's idea of a threefold social structure to various theoretical notions that have appeared recently within social and political philosophy. In particular, Cohen and Arato's concept of civil society is found to be similar to Steiner's notion of culture as a third, relatively independent social sphere, balancing the powers of the state and the market. The power of civil society in general and education in particular is based on the creation of meaning and identity. Steiner Waldorf education supports the formation of a cosmopolitan identity based on the universally human. Such an educational impulse is needed today as a counterbalance to the global market forces.
Published in S. Suggate & E Reese (Eds) (2012), Contemporary debates in childhood education a... more Published in S. Suggate & E Reese (Eds) (2012), Contemporary debates in childhood education and development (ss. 3 – 12). London/New York: Routledge.
In the wake of globalisation, multiculturalism and the marketisation of schools the education-for... more In the wake of globalisation, multiculturalism and the marketisation of schools the education-for-citizenship-question in relation to state and independent schools seems increasingly relevant. This ...
Waldorfskolor och medborgerligt-moralisk kompetens : En jamforelse mellan waldorfelever och eleve... more Waldorfskolor och medborgerligt-moralisk kompetens : En jamforelse mellan waldorfelever och elever i den kommunala skolan
ABSTRACT In these days of both national and international comparative studies of so called learni... more ABSTRACT In these days of both national and international comparative studies of so called learning outcomes it seems important to raise the question of appropriate methods and methodologies for the assessment and evaluation of educational processes. Present evaluation methods seem to focus more and more on curriculum-as-product at the expense of curriculum-as-process. However, it is in the latter that more holistic qualities like social, moral and spiritual aspects of development and learning are likely to emerge, since such qualities are embedded in everything that teachers and students are doing. And, as MacGilchrist, Myers, and Reed (2004) point out, it is important that we assess what we value, rather than value what we can easily measure.
RoSE – Research on Steiner Education, Jul 21, 2013
In his book about Rudolf Steiner, Heiner Ullrich (2008) discusses-among other things-Steiner's ph... more In his book about Rudolf Steiner, Heiner Ullrich (2008) discusses-among other things-Steiner's philosophy of knowledge. Reading this part of the book, encompassing pp. 123-135, I was astonished to find so many claims about what Steiner means almost without a single reference to-let alone a quote from-Steiner's work. I am surprised that such a text can be published with the implicit claims of being a scholarly and academic book (it is published as volume 11 of the Continuum Library of Educational Thought). In these 12 pages (and also in the rest of the book) one finds one conclusive judgment after another about Steiner's philosophy without any arguments, demonstrations or clear references to Steiner's texts, 1 as if it was not at all a question of Ullrich interpreting Steiner's work, but as if he is merely recounting what Steiner himself has said or written. And yet, having studied Steiner's work for over 20 years, I for one can hardly recognize a single idea from Steiner in Ullrich's presentation of him. Almost all of it consists of distortions and misconceptions piled up, one upon another. Ullrich's account of Steiner's philosophy seems to be based on secondary and mainly critical sources, he seems not to have taken the trouble to read Steiner himself. In the following I will try to justify this highly critical view of Ullrich's presentation. I will limit myself however to the pages 123-127 of the book, comprising a section called "Anthroposophy as a philosophy without boundaries". I think a thorough discussion of these pages is enough to give an impression of how Ullrich (mis) treats Steiner's ideas. At some points I will bring in references and a quote from Steiner's work, but I will also allow myself the same liberty as Ullrich and simply state my interpretation of Steiner, in opposition to his. I do this because this is not a peer-reviewed academic article and finding all the relevant references is a timeconsuming work. Those who know Steiner's work may judge for themselves whether my interpretations accord with Steiner and with their own. If we disagree, the discussion about this issue can continue. Ullrich's claims about anthroposophy as "a philosophy without boundaries" Steiner is known to have made many critical remarks about Kant's philosophy. Ullrich says critics of Steiner conclude that he misreads Kant's epistemology in a psychological way and that this leads him to "a precritical, naively realistic position in the justification of his own theory of knowledge" (Ullrich, p. 123). Many dogs are buried in these simple statements; one is almost overwhelmed by the work that would be needed to unearth them all. I have to limit myself to a few of them. Steiner is indeed questioning the epistemological boundaries that Kant proclaimed, but he is no more "psychological" in his reading than many other philosophers after Kant, who also questioned these boundaries (Schelling, Hegel, and others). Hegel for instance, in his typically dialectical fashion, said that if one is aware of a limit, a border, one is implicitly also aware of what is on the other side of the border-this is inherent in the very concept of a border. 1. There are other references, but they are to critics of Steiner, and their conclusions.
Complicity: An International Journal of Complexity in Education, Jul 3, 2012
It would be futile, John Dewey argued in 1902, to think that we have to choose between child-cent... more It would be futile, John Dewey argued in 1902, to think that we have to choose between child-centered, progressive education and traditional, subject-matter-oriented approaches. Calling for adaptivity, he stressed that we need the act of balancing the one with the other. The tendency in current educational policy to lean in favor of traditional, disciplinary modes of control appears to lose sight of this need. The aim of this paper is to reconnect to the task of maintaining a balance between educational freedom and structure, using a variety of theoretical resources such as complexity science, and the philosophies of Deleuze and Guattari, Schiller, and Nietzsche. Based on these resources, the authors also discuss Steiner Waldorf education as an example of how educational practice may approach, and integrate the significance of chaos in the form of a "virtual pedagogy".
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