Tamarack Waldorf: Reply to Jeffrey Johnson

Dear Riverwest Currents and its Readers:

The faculty at Tamarack Community School are grateful both for the original article about Waldorf education at Tamarack as well as for the critical letter from Jeffrey Johnson. It is wonderful to be able to engage in dialogue about the hows and whys of educating children.

We would like to offer two other websites. First, please check out awsna.org, belonging to the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America. AWSNA has been working with the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) to develop an accreditation process for Waldorf schools that will be recognized by NAIS. AWSNA now only allows schools to use Waldorf in their official name after the schools have completed all the steps for full membership, which is equivalent to accreditation and serves as a quality control measure. Millenialchild.com is another website with Waldorf education resources.

We would like to respond to Mr. Johnson point by point. Waldorf schools are non-sectarian and Rudolf Steiner’s philosophy is not taught to children in any way. A Waldorf school is not a parochial school. It is true that insights coming out of anthroposophy regarding human development help to shape how and when a teacher presents the subjects in the curriculum, but the goal of Waldorf teachers is to encourage freedom of thought in their students.

The art materials used are chosen because of their aesthetic quality, beauty, and connection to the natural world. They include, but are not limited to, beeswax crayons and modeling beeswax, plant-dyed wool yarn, wood, and clay. Free creative expression is seen as a capacity of a mature human being. Children are encouraged to use their imaginations within the context of the lesson and to enjoy their experience of the colors or the particular artistic medium being employed. Children receive lessons in art daily. In watercolor painting, they are all asked to paint the same subject matter, just as one would in an adult art class.

Children begin to learn about their environment from first grade on. Geography lessons in fourth grade give children a great appreciation for the history of our city and the people who shaped it, from the origin of the name “Milwaukee” to the life of Salomon Juneau. In seventh and eight grade, the children study the age of exploration through the industrial revolution to the present day – studies that are grounded in the biographies of the human beings who have shaped our world. They learn about different approaches to government and learn to appreciate the democratic process.

Recess at Tamarack is strictly monitored by the teachers and rules are enforced. Our children are grateful for the use of Pulaski Park where little ones play on the tot lot, and other children play on the baseball field or tennis courts during recess time.

While it is true that younger grade school children begin writing by copying the teacher’s blackboard writing, by second and third grade the children also engage in writing class compositions and then individual compositions. It is not long before they are doing research papers on the animal of their choice in fourth grade, for example. By seventh and eighth grade, their research projects may focus on such topics as the influence of topography on weather, the development of Mayan culture or a comparison of world religions.

We appreciate this opportunity to respond to Mr. Johnson’s criticisms and welcome anyone with questions about or interest in Waldorf education to attend our next Information Evening, Oct. 8 at 7 p.m. and any of our other public events and festivals.

For the faculty of Tamarack Community School,
Lori Barian and Karen Green

Riverwest Currents - Volume 1 - Issue 9 - October 2002