A Selection of Lecture Topics Offered by Eugene Schwartz:
These may be modified, or you can suggest other topics that would be helpful to your school
To listen to samples of these and other lectures visit:
http://millennialchild.com/podcasts.html
The Core and the Source
The Core Principles of Waldorf Education constitute an important bridge that spans the work of both independent and public Waldorf schools in the United States. Although the seven Principles are simple enough to fit on a single page, they speak volumes concerning the unique nature of Waldorf methodology in all settings. In this talk, Eugene Schwartz explores just one of these Principles: Relationships. Although it is described in just two sentences, Eugene contends that it is the most comprehensive of the Principles and the “source” of them all. In addition to the insights presented in the audio file of the lecture, Eugene provides a video slideshow in which he shares examples of Waldorf student work that will help you to understand the term “relationships” in an entirely new way.
Today’s Children Need Tomorrow’s Schools
“No Child Left Behind,” “Race to the Top,” “The Common Core” — the litany of mottos guiding school reform over the past decades has failed to reverse the downward spiral of the American school system. In this lecture and the slideshow that accompanies it, Eugene Schwartz explores the way in which the nearly century-old Waldorf method can breathe new life in schools, private and public alike.
Between Autism Spectrum and ADHD
Back in the 1980s, Eugene Schwartz was the first Waldorf educator to lecture publicly about ADHD, and a few years later he was also the first to discuss Autism. In this groundbreaking lecture, he compares these two learning and behavioral challenges, delineating their differences, but pointing our some striking similarities. Above all, he helps us understand that both syndromes are clarion calls from the spiritual world announcing the necessity of entirely new ideas in education.
A Talk with Fathers:
Is Waldorf Education a Good Investment?
It is a truism that it is almost always the mother who immediately intuits that Waldorf education is right for her child, while the father goes along, slowly but surely recognizing the school’s high caliber. In our times, many parents of all genders embody Oscar Wilde’s description of the person who “knows the price of everything and the value of nothing,” but fathers, in particular, find the issue of “Return on Income” especially important. Eugene goes straight to the issue of money, and examines whether the value of a Waldorf education is commensurate with its high price. This serious and weighty issue is taken up with humor and levity.
Information or Transformation
Eugene Schwartz contends that the most important changes that are occurring in Waldorf schools are due to parents, not teachers. If parents effect change without understanding the fundamentals of Waldorf education, Waldorf schools will look more and more like “public schools with a pretty face” -- but an informed parent body can help guide the teachers into the 21st century. Other topics covered in this lecture include the role of Michael in the Waldorf Movement, reincarnation and the classroom, and the failure of school media policies. A refreshing look at a number of controversial issues.
The Child from Nine to Twelve
While imitation serves as the primary means by which the young child apprehends the world, between ages seven and nine authority becomes the window through which the child views her surroundings. In the Waldorf school the Class Teacher serves as the central source of authority, helping her students make sense of the world through her own poise and confidence, organization and enthusiasm. Although the very word “authority” is anthenama to many parents, the child needs it nonetheless, and Eugene provides a number of examples that illustrate the importance of authority in school and home alike. In the second lecture, we explore the ways in which this authority breeds healthy rebellion among the adolescents who gratefully accepted it in the primary grades. With the advent of sixth grade, the child’s developing inner life calls for an approach that is more personalized and respectful of the young person’s nascent life of soul.
The Other Two-Thirds of the Class
No North American Waldorf practitioner would deny that twenty-first century parents are profoundly different from Waldorf parents of the last century. These differences are often explained in terms of such dismissive sociological categories as “Generation Y Parents” or “Helicopter Parents.” Eugene Schwartz argues that the new generation of parents -- and the generations that will follow them -- are actually a great blessing to Waldorf education, indeed, they are the ones who will help schools meet and form the future. In this lecture Eugene describes the surprising and profound ways in which parents are rightfully connected to their children, and encourages schools to envision a dramatically different relationship to their parent body.
Mindfulness Parenting
There is no shortage of advice offered to today's parents about raising their children! Although Eugene Schwartz has been reluctant to add his voice to the chorus, in his over forty years as a Waldorf teacher, a father of four, and a grandfather of seven, he has learned something about the subject. He will share the methods that Waldorf teachers use to bring order and joy into their classroom and show how these may be adapted to the home setting. "Mindfulness Parenting" begins with the inner life -- and inner path -- of the parent and works from there, and that makes all the difference.
No Success Like Failure
Even as mainstream American schools move inexorably towards measurement-based standards as the only benchmark of achievement, an increasing number of psychologists, neurologists, and educators are moving in a diametrically different direction. How can we understand the remarkable "success" of adults whose predictors in primary school marked them for certain failure? Do we need completely different benchmarks -- methods of teaching, and assessment, that look at the whole of life, rather than short-term mastery? Drawing on the game-changing research of Carol Dweck of Stanford and Martin Seligman, former President of the American Psychological Association, and the latest developments in neurology, Eugene Schwartz will explore the ways in which Waldorf education authenticates
The Child’s Changing Consciousness:
A Conversation with Parents
Although there are many books and lectures available on the ways in which physiological and psychological development are addressed in the Waldorf setting, very little is discussed concerning the profound changes in consciousness that accompany -- and actually underlie -- the physical and soul growth of the child. Eugene Schwartz examines these changes, and provides an illuminating parallel between the development of humanity and civilization and the rapid transformations that appear in the growing child from year to year. He also points to the relationship of Theocracy, Monarchy, and Democracy (Autonomy) to the first three seven-year periods in the life of the child. This is a unique look at child development, and it sets the scene for a series of incisive parent questions and sometimes surprising answers.
The Media and Its Message
Waldorf schools are famous for their outspoken defense of children from the onslaught of media. But as computers and smart phones, tablets and eBooks become almost inescapable in everyday life, do Waldorf schools run the risk of growing entrenched in their attitude toward a device-filled world? If Waldorf students are encouraged to say “Yes” to the world, should their schools be saying “No”?
As a Waldorf educator, Eugene Schwartz is convinced that we cannot oppose television, computer games, and social media without deepening our understanding of child development. As an Apple iOS Developer, Eugene contends that we cannot understand the enigma of today’s child without a broader connection to media technology. Waldorf education, he believes, has the potential to bring breadth and depth to both of these worlds.
Waldorf Education in the Twenty-First Century
The Education of the Child, Rudolf Steiner’s first educational lecture, was given over 100 years ago. And in just a few years we will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of the opening of the first Waldorf School in 1919. Has Waldorf education kept pace with the almost incomprehensible changes that have occurred since that lecture was given? Are Waldorf schools prepared for the growing numbers of children diagnosed with ADHD, Asperger Syndrome, or even mental illness? How has the growth of the Waldorf public school movement affected the independent Waldorf schools? What steps must Waldorf teachers take to keep their schools relevant and even ahead of the ever-changing times in which we live? These are some of the issues Eugene Schwartz explores in this comprehensive lecture given to an audience of Waldorf charter school teachers and parents.
The Core Principles of Waldorf Education constitute an important bridge that spans the work of both independent and public Waldorf schools in the United States. Although the seven Principles are simple enough to fit on a single page, they speak volumes concerning the unique nature of Waldorf methodology in all settings. In this talk, Eugene Schwartz explores just one of these Principles: Relationships. Although it is described in just two sentences, Eugene contends that it is the most comprehensive of the Principles and the “source” of them all. In addition to the insights presented in the audio file of the lecture, Eugene provides a video slideshow in which he shares examples of Waldorf student work that will help you to understand the term “relationships” in an entirely new way.
Today’s Children Need Tomorrow’s Schools
“No Child Left Behind,” “Race to the Top,” “The Common Core” — the litany of mottos guiding school reform over the past decades has failed to reverse the downward spiral of the American school system. In this lecture and the slideshow that accompanies it, Eugene Schwartz explores the way in which the nearly century-old Waldorf method can breathe new life in schools, private and public alike.
Between Autism Spectrum and ADHD
Back in the 1980s, Eugene Schwartz was the first Waldorf educator to lecture publicly about ADHD, and a few years later he was also the first to discuss Autism. In this groundbreaking lecture, he compares these two learning and behavioral challenges, delineating their differences, but pointing our some striking similarities. Above all, he helps us understand that both syndromes are clarion calls from the spiritual world announcing the necessity of entirely new ideas in education.
A Talk with Fathers:
Is Waldorf Education a Good Investment?
It is a truism that it is almost always the mother who immediately intuits that Waldorf education is right for her child, while the father goes along, slowly but surely recognizing the school’s high caliber. In our times, many parents of all genders embody Oscar Wilde’s description of the person who “knows the price of everything and the value of nothing,” but fathers, in particular, find the issue of “Return on Income” especially important. Eugene goes straight to the issue of money, and examines whether the value of a Waldorf education is commensurate with its high price. This serious and weighty issue is taken up with humor and levity.
Information or Transformation
Eugene Schwartz contends that the most important changes that are occurring in Waldorf schools are due to parents, not teachers. If parents effect change without understanding the fundamentals of Waldorf education, Waldorf schools will look more and more like “public schools with a pretty face” -- but an informed parent body can help guide the teachers into the 21st century. Other topics covered in this lecture include the role of Michael in the Waldorf Movement, reincarnation and the classroom, and the failure of school media policies. A refreshing look at a number of controversial issues.
The Child from Nine to Twelve
While imitation serves as the primary means by which the young child apprehends the world, between ages seven and nine authority becomes the window through which the child views her surroundings. In the Waldorf school the Class Teacher serves as the central source of authority, helping her students make sense of the world through her own poise and confidence, organization and enthusiasm. Although the very word “authority” is anthenama to many parents, the child needs it nonetheless, and Eugene provides a number of examples that illustrate the importance of authority in school and home alike. In the second lecture, we explore the ways in which this authority breeds healthy rebellion among the adolescents who gratefully accepted it in the primary grades. With the advent of sixth grade, the child’s developing inner life calls for an approach that is more personalized and respectful of the young person’s nascent life of soul.
The Other Two-Thirds of the Class
No North American Waldorf practitioner would deny that twenty-first century parents are profoundly different from Waldorf parents of the last century. These differences are often explained in terms of such dismissive sociological categories as “Generation Y Parents” or “Helicopter Parents.” Eugene Schwartz argues that the new generation of parents -- and the generations that will follow them -- are actually a great blessing to Waldorf education, indeed, they are the ones who will help schools meet and form the future. In this lecture Eugene describes the surprising and profound ways in which parents are rightfully connected to their children, and encourages schools to envision a dramatically different relationship to their parent body.
Mindfulness Parenting
There is no shortage of advice offered to today's parents about raising their children! Although Eugene Schwartz has been reluctant to add his voice to the chorus, in his over forty years as a Waldorf teacher, a father of four, and a grandfather of seven, he has learned something about the subject. He will share the methods that Waldorf teachers use to bring order and joy into their classroom and show how these may be adapted to the home setting. "Mindfulness Parenting" begins with the inner life -- and inner path -- of the parent and works from there, and that makes all the difference.
No Success Like Failure
Even as mainstream American schools move inexorably towards measurement-based standards as the only benchmark of achievement, an increasing number of psychologists, neurologists, and educators are moving in a diametrically different direction. How can we understand the remarkable "success" of adults whose predictors in primary school marked them for certain failure? Do we need completely different benchmarks -- methods of teaching, and assessment, that look at the whole of life, rather than short-term mastery? Drawing on the game-changing research of Carol Dweck of Stanford and Martin Seligman, former President of the American Psychological Association, and the latest developments in neurology, Eugene Schwartz will explore the ways in which Waldorf education authenticates
The Child’s Changing Consciousness:
A Conversation with Parents
Although there are many books and lectures available on the ways in which physiological and psychological development are addressed in the Waldorf setting, very little is discussed concerning the profound changes in consciousness that accompany -- and actually underlie -- the physical and soul growth of the child. Eugene Schwartz examines these changes, and provides an illuminating parallel between the development of humanity and civilization and the rapid transformations that appear in the growing child from year to year. He also points to the relationship of Theocracy, Monarchy, and Democracy (Autonomy) to the first three seven-year periods in the life of the child. This is a unique look at child development, and it sets the scene for a series of incisive parent questions and sometimes surprising answers.
The Media and Its Message
Waldorf schools are famous for their outspoken defense of children from the onslaught of media. But as computers and smart phones, tablets and eBooks become almost inescapable in everyday life, do Waldorf schools run the risk of growing entrenched in their attitude toward a device-filled world? If Waldorf students are encouraged to say “Yes” to the world, should their schools be saying “No”?
As a Waldorf educator, Eugene Schwartz is convinced that we cannot oppose television, computer games, and social media without deepening our understanding of child development. As an Apple iOS Developer, Eugene contends that we cannot understand the enigma of today’s child without a broader connection to media technology. Waldorf education, he believes, has the potential to bring breadth and depth to both of these worlds.
Waldorf Education in the Twenty-First Century
The Education of the Child, Rudolf Steiner’s first educational lecture, was given over 100 years ago. And in just a few years we will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of the opening of the first Waldorf School in 1919. Has Waldorf education kept pace with the almost incomprehensible changes that have occurred since that lecture was given? Are Waldorf schools prepared for the growing numbers of children diagnosed with ADHD, Asperger Syndrome, or even mental illness? How has the growth of the Waldorf public school movement affected the independent Waldorf schools? What steps must Waldorf teachers take to keep their schools relevant and even ahead of the ever-changing times in which we live? These are some of the issues Eugene Schwartz explores in this comprehensive lecture given to an audience of Waldorf charter school teachers and parents.
Click here to learn about Eugene’s consultation work:
http://millennialchild.com/consults.html
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http://millennialchild.com/visits.html
To read Eugene’s Biography, visit:
http://millennialchild.com/bio.html