Waldorf schools are not art schools, they are not religious, and are very different from Montessori schools.
Waldorf schools have their foundations in anthroposophy, which the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America defines as “the belief that humanity has the wisdom to transform itself and the world, through one’s own spiritual development.”
Waldorf schools are inspired by the work of Rudolf Steiner and Emil Molt. Steiner, an Austrian scientist and thinker, established a school at the Waldorf Astoria cigarette factory that was owned by Molt in Stuttgart, Germany in 1919.
You can learn all of this and more from their list of frequently asked questions about Waldorf Education.
What you don’t learn is that many of the kids that go to the 250 Waldorf schools in North America are not vaccinated, including schools with some of the highest vaccine exemption rates in the country, including:
- Waldorf School of Mendocino County (California) – 79.1% vaccine exemption rate
- Tuscon Waldorf Schools (Arizona) – 69.6% vaccine exemption rate
- Waldorf School of San Diego (California) – 63.6% vaccine exemption rate
- Orchard Valley Waldorf School (Vermont) – 59.4% MMR vaccine exemption rate
- Whidbey Island Waldorf School (Washington) – 54.9% vaccine exemption rate
- Austin Waldorf School (Texas) – 48% vaccine exemption rate
That shouldn’t be a surprise, as anthroposophical medicine “attempts to mix the theories and practices of real medicine with quack cures, physical and artistic therapies and biographical counseling” and “their anti-vaccination stance derives from a dangerous and ignorant belief in diseases being something you must go through to strengthen the soul in its present incarnation.”
It should be noted that Waldorf schools often note that they don’t encourage or recruit teachers or students who skip or delay getting vaccinated. It just seems to work out that way for all of their schools.
For More Information on Waldorf Schools and Vaccines:
- Pertussis Closes Waldorf -Based Private School in Virginia
- Waldorf Steiner and Education – Weird and (Not So) Wonderful Schools
- Anthroposophy
- Publicly Funded Waldorf Education
- Rudolf Steiner’s Quackery
- Woo Math: Steiner and Theosophical Math
- Non-Medical Vaccine Exemptions: Balancing Parental Rights and Public Health
- Swedish Anti-Vaccine Infection Parties for Measles and Rubella
- Sweden Has Antivaxers Too
- Combatting antiscience denialism and quackery
- Here’s What Some of California’s Least-Vaccinated Schools Have to Say for Themselves
- FAQs: About Waldorf Education
Last Updated on January 17, 2018