Human Values in Education

The underlying thesis of these lectures, Volume XX in the Foundations of Waldorf Education series, is that true education must be founded on a knowledge of the whole human being and that there can be no knowledge of the whole human being without love. On this basis, Rudolf Steiner lays out an understanding of every aspect of a child's development--bodily, psychological, and spiritual. At the same time, he shows that to prove worthy of their calling, teachers must begin to develop themselves inwardly. In Steiner's view, humanity gives value and meaning to the world. Modern education, however, is gradually undermining this meaning. The lectures demonstrate, however, that education can heal this lack of meaning and thereby restore the meaning of humanity for the world.