Teacher Training

The program consists of three academic years of part-time work and two summer intensives of two weeks each,  preceding the second and the third year. There are weekly assignments in various classes that serve as preparation and/or practice related to the subject of the particular class.

  • The days and times of classes in 2012-2013 will be two weekends in a row each month that begin at 3:30 on Fridays (instead of 2:00) then all day Saturday and again on Sunday morning. Then two weekends will be free each month. 
  • Yearly classes begin in September and end in early June. The two week summer intensives are scheduled in the month of July and run from 8 am until 4:30pm.
  • Tuition is $6500 for 2012, however, it may be necessary to increase tuition a modest amount in future years.

"What is important is that teachers become capable in the presence of each child and in each moment to newly form and reform the educational task. For the true teacher, pedagogy must be something living, something new at each moment….We could even say that the best pedagogy–stated radically–is one that the teacher continually forgets and that is continually reignited each time the teacher is in the presence of the children and sees in the them living powers of developing human nature."
— Rudolf Steiner, The Spirit of the Waldorf School

CURRICULUM

FIRST YEAR: Foundation Year in Arts and Anthroposophy is considered the first year of our teacher training program. Click here to see the curriculum.

SECOND YEAR: The second year is dedicated to the understanding of child development that forms the basis of Waldorf education. The focus will be on early childhood and elementary (grades 1-8) education. An introduction to Waldorf high school education will also be given. The anthroposophical picture of child development will be the foundation for exploring the “why” of Waldorf curriculum: why certain subjects are brought to the children at various stages of their development and why we bring those experiences to the children in a certain mood and manner. In having a strong sense of the developing child, we can be truly creative in working and developing Waldorf curriculum.

A week-long summer intensive after the Foundation Year is considered the beginning of the second year. To support this understanding of child development the 2nd year includes:

  1. Immersion in the life of early childhood and the grade school
  2. Curriculum studies
  3. Rudolf Steiner’s "Foundations of Human Experience"(formerly Study of Man) and other anthroposophical/pedagogical texts
  4. Continued development in the arts (eurythmy, visual arts, speech, form drawing, woodwork, handwork, Spacial Dynamics, music, storytelling, creative writing, and sculpting)
  5. Group work exploring forms that encourage healthy meetings
  6. Continued anthroposophical inner, meditative work
  7. A biography project and presentation
  8. Three observations in Waldorf schools (one for early childhood, one for lower grades, one for middle school and one for high school)
  9. A three-week full-day practicum in a Waldorf classroom in the winter
  10. Presentations by guests working in the educational realm
  11. Biodynamics

It is of utmost importance to us that all teachers receive an understanding of the developing child in its entirety, regardless of whether the teacher later chooses to work in early childhood or elementary education. The choice to focus on either early childhood or elementary education is initially made after Winter break.

THIRD YEAR: Teacher Training

Having chosen a focus in either early childhood or grade school education, students will find that the third year focuses on how to work with the children, parents, and colleagues in a Waldorf school. The transformative path of a teacher calls upon inner and outer skills. The work of the third year serves to develop these practical skills so that students can “imbue themselves with imagination, have courage for the truth and sharpen their feeling for responsibility of soul.” (Rudolf Steiner)

A two-week, full-time intensive in the summer between the second and third years is required before formally beginning the third year. To support the development of the teacher, the third year includes:

  1. Continued study of curriculum, with a focus on methodology
  2. A four-week practicum at a Waldorf school
  3. Continued study of Rudolf Steiner’s “Balance in Teaching", "Philosophy of Freedom" and other anthroposophical/pedagogical texts.
  4. Continued development in the arts (eurythmy, visual arts, speech, form drawing, woodwork, handwork, Spacial Dynamics, music, storytelling, creative writing, sculpting, seasonal crafts, blackboard drawing, drama, classroom games and dancing)
  5. Presentations by faculty and guests on selected themes concerning the teacher’s work beyond the classroom: life and structure of a Waldorf school, administrative and financial issues, gender/racial bias in a multicultural society.
  6. A research project and presentation
  7. An observation in a non-Waldorf educational setting
  8. Biodynamic field trip