Learning through Doing in Edinburgh...

 As we explain on our Ten Distinctive Features web page, activity is central to Steiner education. Here is a glimpse from the Edinburgh Steiner School into Learning through Doing.

Steiner education works! New research confirms our suspicions....

New research shows that Steiner students learn with more enthusiasm and interest, feel more supported, and know their strengths better than students in mainstream schools. The survey of educational experiences of Steiner pupils was done by three experts: scientific co-worker Sylvia Liebenwein, Professor Heiner Barz, both of the University of Düsseldorf, and Dirk Randoll, professor at the Alanus-Hochschule. It examines the educational experiences of Steiner students age 15-18 in Germany. 80% of Steiner students find their learning fun (compared to 67%). 85% find the environment supportive (compared to 60%). The relationship with teachers is judged significantly better at 65% compared to 31%.  Andreas Schleicher, education expert and international co-ordinator of the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) wrote an informative foreword to the survey. Schleicher praised the emphasis on personal responsibility and self-motivation, preparing children for the life that awaits them after graduation. "There is a high degree of congruence between the requirements of the modern world and what is taught to Steiner students," said Andreas Schleicher. "Remembering facts has less and less importance", the important thing was "to have creative and solution-oriented knowledge that you can apply to new areas". A wide range of experts, students and teachers agree that the optimal learning environment is one with a high degree of initiative, a lot of creative freedom and a high level of student support. The study showed that providing students with motivating performance feedback and the opportunity to learn together and from each other, as in Steiner Schools, are the elements for a successful modern education. You can use Google translate to translate the article from German...

http://www.welt.de/wissenschaft/article109484661/Namen-tanzen-fit-in-Mathe-Waldorf-im-Vorteil.html