Germany

Europe, Germany

The German Association of Waldorf Kindergartens comprises 558 Waldorf kindergartens at this time, plus affiliated early childhood care in nurseries or in-home daycare provider networks. There are approximately 24,881 children between birth and age 6 in their care.

The Waldorf kindergarten movement in Germany is subdivided into regional working coalitions according to the different German provinces. Indeed, there are different frameworks for the kindergartens in each province. However, the German Association of Waldorf Kindergartens is developing general agreements that will apply to all Waldorf kindergartens in Germany.

Its tasks are also to provide teacher training and strengthen collaboration across regional boundaries. Active collaboration in offering conferences; working together with the Association of German Waldorf Schools, the Association for Curative Education, and the Pedagogical Section in Dornach; as well as collaboration with IASWECE, are all tasks for this association of the German Waldorf Kindergarten movement.

One focal point for discussion in recent years, alongside the development of a teacher training for early childhood teachers, is the quality of Waldorf early education. In the last ten years of Waldorf pedagogical practice, many new themes have been taken up: full-time childcare for children in the first seven years, support for families, the tasks of educating the very young child, strengthening the Waldorf kindergarten as a place for the child’s free play, and many more themes…

In the last fifteen years, childcare has been developed for the very young child, and is now taking place on a widespread basis.

Although an attempt was made to lower the age of school entry to 5 years, the overall experience with that was so poor that children may now once again enter school at 6 years. In certain provinces, it is also possible to start school at age 7 years.

The work of mentoring and accompanying colleges of teachers and boards of Waldorf kindergartens continues to grow in importance. Therefore, the German Association of Waldorf Kindergartens has given this mentoring and advising work its own place in the Association by establishing a new company; consultants (experienced Waldorf educators) work here to accompany and advise the kindergartens in their questions about pedagogy and self-administration.

The situation in Germany, with the generational change and growth in numbers of children through birth and immigration, requires many new Waldorf kindergartens and teachers. There are 11 training seminars for Waldorf teachers and they will not meet the demand. Here lies a task for the future!

Hartmut Beye, is responsible for public relations for the German Association of Waldorf Kindergartens

Website of the German Waldorf Kindergarten Association with the addresses of all German kindergartens and training centers

Norway

Europe, Norway

In Norway, a country with 5,5 million inhabitants, there are 44 Waldorf kindergartens with 2000 children from ages one to six. And there are 34 Waldorf schools with 5000 children. 5 of them have a high school.

Most kindergartens have separate groups for small children (age 1-3) and groups for older children (age 3-6). The size of the kindergartens ranges between 16-18 children in one group to around 100 children divided in 6 groups.

All our programs are state-funded and Waldorf kindergartens are under the same regulations and conditions as mainstream kindergartens. Parents pay the same amount (regulated by law) for all kinds of kindergartens. Also required staffing is regulated by law. For the children from 1-3 there should be one educator/teacher for every three children. For the bigger children every educator/teacher can have six children. So a usual size for a group is 9 small children (with 3 adults) or 18 big children (with 3 adults).

Although we have the same framework as all kindergartens in Norway, we have our pedagogical freedom. All early childhood programs in Norway (1-6 years) are called “barnehage” that means Kindergarten/Children’s garden. Children in Norway are used to playing outside a lot. Playing in nature is deeply rooted in the Norwegian spirit, so that is not special in Waldorf kindergartens.

In Norway children start school in August the year they are turning 6 years old. In Waldorf schools the curriculum for first grade is actually kindergarten activities, and the school curriculum starts in second grade.There are two kindergartens left in Norway who have their first grade pupils integrated in mixed age kindergarten groups. The other first grade classes have their own classroom furnished as a kindergarten.

Working together. All the Waldorf kindergartens are working together in the Norwegian Association for Steiner/Waldorf Early Childhood Education. This Association has a national conference each year where 350 colleagues meet over a long weekend, with keynote speakers and workshops addressing burning questions such as the role of the adult, attachment theory, core values in Waldorf education, etc.

Training. The Rudolf Steiner College University in Oslo www.rshoyskolen offers a three-year bachelor program and also a part-time education course over a period of five years for students who want to become Waldorf early childhood educators. They also offer a masters degree in Waldorf Education; this program is in English and open for application from all over the world.

Birth to Three. In Norway children from birth to three are in separate groups within the same kindergarten with a few exceptions. Most families are financially dependent on two incomes. Parental leave is in Norway for one year with a full salary, and after that both parents go back to work. Around 75% of one-year-old children in Norway spend long days in early childhood programs, and thus it may be understandable that educators are deeply concerned and struggle with questions and challenges regarding attachment and bonding in the early years.

History. The first Waldorf kindergarten started in 1934 in Oslo, some years after the first Waldorf school, so we have a long tradition in the country. Many of the schools and kindergartens were founded between 1970 and 1990. At first most kindergartens were for children from the age of 3,5 to 7 and they were open from 9 AM until 2 PM. So gradually days got longer and the age younger, especially after around the year 2000. Now most Waldorf kindergartens offer daycare from between 7.00-8.00 AM until 4-5 PM.

Aurelia Udo de Haes, Kindergarten teacher and member of the IASWECE Council

Website of the Country Association
Rudolf Steiner College University

Poland

Europe, Poland

There are now 10 Waldorf kindergartens in Poland. They are owned by associations, foundations or private persons and are diverse in size, number of groups and opening hours. All are funded partially through state subsidies and partially through the parents.

There are also many Waldorf-inspired kindergartens in cities like Poznań, Grudziądz, Bielsko Biała, Kraków, Wieliczka, Siemianowice and Wrocław. Some are interested in becoming Waldorf kindergartens. In Warszawa there is a Waldorf-inspired state kindergarten, also for children with disabilities.

Kindergartens do not offer day care for children under 3 years old. The need is slowly increasing and as a response, meetings or playgroups take place once a week in some kindergartens.

Children can continue Waldorf education at schools in Warszawa, Kraków, Poznań and Bielsko Biała. The schools are primary schools with 6 classes. In the first three cities there are Waldorf-inspired secondary schools with classes 7 to 9. The school in Warszawa now is planning to open upper classes 9-12.

Looking back. The first kindergartens in Poland were small groups in private flats for the teacher’s children and friends. After the political change in 1989 it become possible to talk openly about Waldorf education and anthroposophy and lectures and workshops for teachers began to take place.

It also became possible to open non-public alternative schools and kindergartens. Waldorf kindergartens began to open in the late 1980s and early 1990s, some with financial help from abroad, some on their own.

Collaboration. Waldorf kindergartens and schools are together in one association, Związek Szkół i Przedszkoli Waldorfskich w Polsce (Association of Waldorf Schools and Kindergartens in Poland). Kindergartens have their own section in the Association. The teachers meet and work together regularly. There is one big, open annual national conference and several smaller conferences or workshops during the year.

Training. In 1992, with very active help from Joop van den Heuvel from Holland and Maria Ziemska, a professor at Warsaw University, Waldorf teacher training was organized as a postgraduate study course at Warsaw University. This course of study, Podyplomowe Studium Edukacji Niezależnej, has trained kindergarten and school teachers ever since. At first the lecturers came from Holland, Germany or Austria, and now most of the lecturers are Polish.

The students come once a month to Warszawa, which is in the middle of the country and easy to reach by train, bus or car in several hours at most. They attend lectures and workshops from Friday afternoon till Sunday. They also meet for an intensive summer course and go for work experience to kindergartens in Poland or abroad.

Our concerns. Our problems are strict sanitary and epidemiological rules, which often prevent or make difficult our way of working with children. It takes a lot of time and force to talk with the officials and receive legal permission for how we work, and it is often not possible. For example, we are not allowed to cook or prepare food with the children. The kitchen must comply with such difficult requirements, that the majority of the kindergartens can’t afford it. These regulations also affect many small things like sand, chairs or towels…

Other problems come from changing educational rules and curriculums. In the last few years there have been many changes with the transition to school and the age of school entrance. The development and needs of the children in Poland are strongly influenced by economic and political interests.

The kindergartens and teacher training centers are working on presenting and popularizing Waldorf education. This education is not well known and some people in our country unfortunately have a distorted picture of it. We are working to change this.

Maja Rębkowska is a teacher in Waldorf kindergarten in Warsaw and is member of the IASWECE Council.

Website of the Waldorf Associaion in Poland

Canada

Although Canada is a very large country with many Waldorf initiatives in various stages of progress, there are currently only 25 Waldorf early childhood programs in five of the ten provinces.

Waldorf early childhood education came to Canada with the 1968 founding of the Toronto Waldorf School in Ontario, closely followed by the 1969 founding of the Vancouver Waldorf School in British Columbia. Many of these schools were part of the burgeoning growth of the North American Waldorf movement in the 1970s and are mostly clustered in British Columbia and Ontario, although there are long-term established schools in Quebec, Alberta, and Nova Scotia. Some schools in Canada receive partial government funding.

Working together. The 25 Waldorf kindergartens in Canada are members of the Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America (WECAN) and work closely together with Early Childhood Programs in the United States.

Training. Schools and programs that receive government funding have caregivers who have completed training in both Waldorf and mainstream early childhood education. All other group leaders are expected to have completed their Waldorf training. There are three WECAN-approved early childhood teacher education institutes in Canada – The Rudolf Steiner Centre Toronto (RSCT) in Ontario, founded in 1978, the West Coast Institute for Studies in Anthroposophy (WCI) in British Columbia, founded in 1996, and the Institut Rudolf Steiner au Québec in Montreal, founded in 1990. All three work with the IASWECE Guidelines and WECAN Shared Principles.

Ruth Ker is the WECAN Teacher Education Coordinator and director of the Early Childhood Teacher Education Program at the West Coast Institute for Studies in Anthroposophy on Vancouver Island, British Colombia, Canada.

Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America (WECAN)

Italy

Europe, Italy

In Italy, there are 1000 children attending the 30 Waldorf kindergartens in the country. The largest number of schools and kindergartens are in the North, but there are also some in the South and the center of Italy.

Collaboration. Beginning in 1978, two national meetings, one in autumn and one in spring, have been regularly organized. Today about one hundred teachers attend these meetings. In 1991 teachers working in the area and rooted in Anthroposophy created the Italian association Sole Luna Stelle (Sun, Moon Stars) to take care and support the early childhood education. Since 1991 the Association organizes a summer week of intensive work for teachers on pedagogical and anthropological themes regarding kindergarten-age children, and life and activities in kindergartens. Birth to three is also part of the work. Since 1994 regional meetings are held once a month in 3 areas (north – Milan, east – Oriago – Venice, Centre-south – Rome). A further meeting is held during the winter, together with teachers working with children in the second and third seven-year periods.

Training. Today in Italy there are six training centers recognized by the Italian Federazione Steiner Waldorf. The courses last two/three years (depending on how they are structured), after which kindergarten teachers have a compulsory internship.

Birth to three. Today in Italy there are no nurseries recognized by the Association Sole Luna Stelle. However during the last years sporadic initiatives for children from 0 to 3 years have started mainly as family groups, often by people with a training in Waldorf education. In many kindergartens, meetings for parents are organized in order to provide practical information regarding early childhood. Themes such as pregnancy, childbirth, first aid, breastfeeding, feeding, and the stages of child development are treated. These activities are very important because baby care and family environments are of fundamental importance for early childhood. The Italian Association considers the age 0-3 years to be very important and takes care of people and initiatives in this area.

Looking back. The first Italian kindergarten started from an Anthroposophical impulse in 1946 in Milan and the following year a little first grade class begun. Thanks to many conferences on education held in Milan, during the 1970’s many Waldorf kindergartens opened .

Silvia Rizzoli is Waldorf kindergarten teacher in Bologna, Italy and member of the IASWECE Council

Association “Sole Luna Stelle”
Association for Waldorf education in Italy

France

Europe, France

There are 21 Waldorf kindergartens in France – approximately half of them are part of a Waldorf school. A large number are in or near Paris, Provence, the Riviera, and Alsace.

Financial support from the government is available only to schools and kindergartens that follow the national curriculum, and this does not leave much space for Waldorf education. Therefore Waldorf parents and educators often have a great deal of idealism and capacity for improvisation, necessary in order to fight for a space for free play in the centralized and highly regulated French school system.

Aside from the lack of funding, however, there are some very favorable working conditions: every kindergarten that does not receive government support has the greatest possible educational freedom, also in regard to school entrance age.

Training. Two training centers (in Chatou, near Paris, and in Avignon) offer three-year part-time training courses in Waldorf education. A number of trainers are making efforts to establish a state-recognized Waldorf early childhood training including Waldorf educational elements, but thus far without success.

Collaboration. Since 1995, Waldorf schools and kindergartens have been working together in the „Fédération des écoles Steiner-Waldorf.“ Each autumn there is a national meeting, and in spring there is a special conference for Waldorf educators working with children in the first seven years.

Care for the Very Young Child. There are five nurseries (child care centers) whose caregivers have a Waldorf orientation. A group of 15 trained Waldorf educators have recently completed a further training in birth to three care (with Michaela Gloeckler and Geseke Lundgren). This initiative group organizes regional training courses and is seeking to integrate preparation for birth to three work into existing training courses.

Looking back. Since the end of the 19th century, the education of children from age three has been part of the very strict secular federal school system. Since then, the „école maternelle“ has offered school activities for three- to six-year-olds at no charge. Thus it is no surprise that Waldorf kindergartens founded in 1949 in Strasbourg and shortly afterwards in Paris did not readily find successors. Only in the 80’s and 90’s when it became clear how difficult it is to reform the state school system, did a modest wave of new Waldorf kindergarten foundings begin.

Philipp Reubke is a Waldorf educator in Mulhouse/France und a member of the IASWECE Coordinating Group.

Website of the French Steiner-Waldorf Association of Schools and Kindergartens
Training in Chatou/Paris
Training in Avignon

United Kingdom

Europe, United Kingdom

Waldorf Education has been established in the UK for 100 years. The United Kingdom includes kindergartens (settings) in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland (North and some South). There are around 18 schools with kindergartens, and together with the independent kindergartens, Daycare settings, woodland groups, childminders, parent and child groups and new initiatives, reach around 1500 children and their families.

Almost all 3 and 4 year olds have government subsidised places, and there is one fully state funded school.

Training. There are two Steiner Waldorf early childhood training courses birth to seven which carry a Diploma at Level 5 and are fully government recognised within England. Both these courses meet the IASWECE guidelines for trainers. An established course specialises in the child between birth and three, giving a strong foundation in Steiner Waldorf practice for this age group, as well as deepening an understanding of the Pikler approach to respectful care. It carries a government recognised qualification for Childcare at level 3. www.waldorfeducation.uk/careers/teacher-training

Support for kindergartens and schools. In order to use the name Rudolf Steiner and Waldorf in relation to education, settings and projects need to register with Waldorf UK,(formerly Steiner Waldorf Schools Fellowship) which is the overarching charity providing support and guidance.

Looking back. In the 1940’s, a group of kindergarten teachers established what is now the Steiner Waldorf Early Years Group (SWEYG) made up of early childhood teachers, home childcare professionals, teacher trainers and advisors. This still meets twice a year and enables Waldorf UK to keep abreast of challenges facing the schools and kindergartens.

Janni Nicol, Waldorf early childhood consultant, and Board member of IASWECE, Publisher and Editor of KINDLING, Journal for Steiner Waldorf Early Childhood. www.kindlingjournal.org

Website of the country association WALDORF UK www.waldorfeducation.uk

Austria

Austria, Europe

In Austria, around 1300 children are currently cared for in 37 Waldorf kindergartens. There are 22 Birth to Three groups attached to existing kindergartens.

Although the demand for kindergarten places is still increasing in Birth to three sector and in all-day care, there are increasing fluctuations in the number of children, partly due to growing mobility and changes in the living conditions of families.

Children generally start school at the age of six.

Depending on the federal state, parental contributions are currently subsidized by the state up to a maximum of 80%.

The work on the educational community of parents and educators through careful introduction to pedagogy, support and advice is taking up more and more space and time.

A look back. In the mid-20s of the last century, there was a lively anthroposophical life in Vienna and there was great enthusiasm for Rudolf Steiner’s impulses, including a renewal of pedagogy. The first kindergarten was established in Vienna in 1927. In the post-war years, there were renewed initiatives from 1955 onwards, until Waldorf education finally gained a foothold in kindergartens in all of Austria’s federal states in 2012. As a rule, kindergartens were founded at the same time as the now 20 schools. Kindergartens with one to five groups as well as the schools are located both in urban areas and in very rural areas, whereby the inclusion of nature is a concern everywhere.

Cooperation within the Waldorf Association Austria. Waldorf schools and kindergartens are members of the Waldorf Association Austria, which was founded in 1981 and represents the interests of Waldorf institutions nationwide.

Cooperation and exchange takes place in regular meetings between representatives of the schools in the working groups for education, business, parents, public relations, quality development and in the kindergarten working group.

The kindergarten working group is organized as a federal state representation of the kindergartens. Pedagogical, legal and organizational guidelines are initiated here and cooperation is coordinated. An annual advanced training conference is also held.

The current cycle of conferences The kindergarten as a place of healthy development has been running since 1922 and – starting with the work on the earth – relates the fields of life of anthroposophy “from the ground up” to the core educational task with a further focus each year. The deepening and continuous supplementation of the topics proves its worth. (See picture).

In 2019/20, all working groups of the Waldorf Association worked together to develop Guidelines for self-administration. In 2020/21, the first Training course for kindergarten management took place on the basis of self-administration. The new course from 2024 is also open to administrative quality development as a Basic course for self-administration.

Pedagogical training courses. Training in Waldorf kindergarten pedagogy was founded in 1990 as a 3-year part-time Waldorf Kindergarten Seminar in Vienna. It has produced around 300 active kindergarten teachers to date. The participants have either already completed state training or state recognition can be obtained through a one-year advanced training course.

Since 2002, the Waldorf-Seminar-Salzburg has also been running a 3-year in-service-training course in Waldorf kindergarten education.

In 2022, the Waldorf Seminar Salzburg was able to launch a Basic Course in education from Birth to three which had been missing for some time and in which many teachers already working in Birth to three groups also took part. The course will start again in fall 2024.

Current further tasks for the future. The fulfillment of the educational mission in Waldorf kindergartens in comparison to the requirements of the state educational framework plan for elementary educational institutions was newly developed as a basic concept in 2024. This is available to all colleges to supplement according to the respective institution.

Ways of ensuring quality in training for early childhood and kindergarten education and in the daily practice of Waldorf education must continue to be developed.

The expansion of mentorship, the support of colleges and boards as well as the possibilities for covering the increasing demand for personnel constantly raise questions.

There is still room for improvement in the regional, national and international networking of kindergartens.

Status May 2024

Ursula Dotzler, Kindergarten Wien-Mauer, on the working group and board of the Waldorf Association Austria and member of the IASWECE Council

www.waldorf.at

www.waldorfkindergartenseminar.at

www.waldorf-salzburg-seminar,at

United States

Waldorf education came to the United States when the Rudolf Steiner School in New York City opened in 1927. The main growth of the movement began in the late 1960s, and the number of Waldorf schools and kindergartens increased from nine in 1967 to nearly 200 today, including kindergartens, nursery or pre-school groups, parent-child, parent-toddler and parent-infant classes, extended care and after-school programs, and child care programs in homes and centers.

Waldorf schools and kindergartens in the US do not generally receive financial support from the government. This has meant a great degree of freedom from government regulation, as well as financial and social challenges.

Working together. The Waldorf Kindergarten Association was founded in 1983; the Association changed its name in the late 1990s to the Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America (WECAN). WECAN’s activities are guided by its board, composed of experienced Waldorf educators and trainers, and carried out by its mostly part-time staff, including two co-directors, an administrator, a publications coordinator, a communications coordinator, and coordinators for teacher education and membership. Twenty-one regional representatives facilitate activities within regions.

In addition to conferences and gatherings within the regions, WECAN hosts major conferences each February in Spring Valley, New York. WECAN also actively publishes Gateways, a twice-yearly newsletter, and a wide variety of books for Waldorf early childhood educators and parents. There are working groups on public policy, the child from birth to three, teacher education, digital media, and inclusion, diversity, equity, and access (IDEA).

WECAN works closely together with the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America (AWSNA) as well as with the Alliance for Public Waldorf Education. AWSNA and WECAN work on a continental rather than a national basis, with members in the US, Canada, and Mexico. WECAN is also an active member of IASWECE.

Training. Everyone leading a group of children in a Waldorf early childhood setting is expected to have completed a Waldorf early childhood teacher education program. There are 14 early childhood teacher education programs and institutes in North America. Seven are Full Members and seven are Associate Members of WECAN. All work with the IASWECE Guidelines and WECAN Shared Principles for Waldorf early childhood teacher education. All offer part-time, low-residency training courses, often with 2-3 week intensive courses in the summer and shorter week-long or weekend courses throughout the school year, over two to three years. All offer a Waldorf certificate or diploma; one program is in partnership with a state university master’s degree. The training programs collaborate through a membership path that includes self-study and peer review through site visits.

Susan Howard is Co-Director of WECAN and a member of the IASWECE Coordinating Group

WECAN Annual Report 2023

WECAN Diversity Statement

WECAN Online Bookstore

Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America (WECAN) website

Australia and Pacific

Australasia