A Road Map For Anthroposophy
I decided to title this episode “A Road Map for Anthroposophy”, because I felt that really best described what this episode is. If you're a big Waldorfy fan and have listened in all the way back to the beginning of season one, you'll remember that in episode 103 I did a more brief sweeping introduction to anthroposophy. If you want to go back and check that episode out click here.
In this episode we’re breaking down what anthroposophy is in simple terms and then laying out all the things that fall under the umbrella of anthroposophy. I know I referenced that umbrella term a lot in the trailer for this season but I think it really helps to illustrate how these things are related. This episode in a way also serves as another trailer because we’re touching on many of the topics that I’ll be discussing in this whole season. Be SURE to listen through this whole episode because after we discuss anthroposophy, my guest Dr. Douglas Gerwin shares some of the findings from his survey of Waldorf graduates, published in a book this week actually. That book is, Into the World: How Waldorf Graduates Fare After High School.
Subscribe to the Waldorfy podcast
Douglas Gerwin, Ph.D., is Executive Director of the Center of Anthroposophy in Wilton, NH, where he oversees adult education programs including the preparation of Waldorf high school teachers. Douglas has himself taught history, literature, German, music, and life science at the Waldorf high school level since 1983. Prior to that time he taught child development and other courses to both graduates and undergraduates at the University of Dallas, where he received his doctorate in Psychology and Literature in 1984. Before entering the teaching profession, Dr. Gerwin served as foreign correspondent, editor, and radio broadcaster for Reuters News Agency in Europe from 1972 to 1978.
Dr. Gerwin presently divides his time between adult education and mentoring or teaching in various North American Waldorf high schools. In 1994, he founded the Waldorf High School Teacher Education Program under the auspices of the Center for Anthroposophy, which offers Waldorf teacher preparation in conjunction with the Waldorf Master’s program at Antioch University New England. As Chair of the high school program, Dr. Gerwin is responsible for readying high school teachers for the classroom, as well as serving as guest teacher and advisor to some 40 Waldorf high schools in Canada and the United States. He has lectured and led workshops on adolescence, Waldorf education, and foundation studies in anthroposophy at schools and colleges across North America, as well as in Europe, South America, and the Middle East. In 2012 he was selected as Chair of what is now called the Teacher Education Delegates Circle, a network of 14 teacher training institutes belonging to the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America (AWSNA). He is currently Co-Chair of this group.
In 2004, Dr. Gerwin was appointed Co-Director of the Research Institute for Waldorf Education, which oversees various research projects related to Waldorf education including the publication of its twice-yearly Research Bulletin. In 2013 he was made the Institute’s first Executive Director.
In all, Dr. Gerwin is co-author or editor of ten books on Waldorf education, including a collection of articles, including some of his own, entitled Trailing Clouds of Glory: Essays on Sexuality and the Education of Youth in Waldorf Schools (2014). His most recent publication is as co-author of the book Into the World: How Waldorf Graduates Fare After High School (2020), a comprehensive survey covering the last quarter century of Waldorf alumni.
At present, Dr. Gerwin resides on the outskirts of Amherst, Massachusetts, with his wife Connie, a Waldorf high school teacher of mathematics.
Follow Waldorfy on Social Media
Resources:
Here's where you can get the new book Douglas talks about in this episode, Into the World: How Waldorf Graduates Fare After High School.
Trailing Clouds of Glory: Essays on Sexuality and the Education of Youth in Waldorf Schools is a collection of articles including some of Douglas' on High School sex education.
Eco-Alchemy is another book that Douglas talks about in this episode. The author is Dan McKanan.
Some posts contain links to Amazon. Ashley from Waldorfy is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. Thank you for your support.
