The school is founded on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner (1861 – 1925) and his picture of human growth and development. From childhood onwards, Rudolf Steiner knew both spiritual and natural worlds. His search to integrate these led him to recognise the significance of thinking for spiritual as well as natural scientific research. Steiner was a philosopher, artist and scientist whose visions and depth of understanding continue to have a great impact in many practical fields in areas such as education, medicine, agriculture, architecture and the therapeutic arts.
Dandenong Ranges Steiner School is part of a worldwide educational movement that draws its inspiration from Rudolf Steiner’s lectures to teachers of the first Waldorf/Steiner School. As such the curriculum and structure of the Steiner school is similar in schools both within Australia and around the world. In Victoria Australia, Dandenong Ranges Steiner School works within the parameters of the Victorian Essential Learning Standards and according to the requirements of the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority.
We also implement the Steiner curriculum in a way that integrates the school within its community and the particular features of our school. These features derive from the character of our school community and the school’s physical location. They include the semi-rural aspect of the school, and the interests of the founding families, enabling us to have a strong Farming and Gardening Program. The school community has many people professionally involved in the Arts. Many members of the school community come to us as part of a commitment to holistic living in a broad sense, manifested in natural foods and clothing, and a commitment to organic/biodynamic/natural food. A number of our main lesson topics incorporate the history and geography of the local area.
In his many lectures on education Rudolf Steiner delivered a method that helps the child develop faculties which unfold at specific times of life. For example, during the kindergarten years it is active play engaging the limbs which is paramount. At primary school level, children learn through the imagination as feelings manifest. Here there is a need for rhythm which is expressed in music, poetry, the rhythm of the day and so on. The secondary school years bring clarity of thinking and a capacity for judgement as the intellect develops.
Our endeavour at the Dandenong Ranges Steiner School is to provide an all-around, in-depth education of all aspects of growing children. All areas of cultural development are important to us; academic, physical, social, moral, artistic and spiritual.
The curriculum throughout the school is a response to the inner and outer development characteristic of each year of childhood and adolescence. Every subject can have a direct and intimate relevance to these subtle processes of growth. In particular there is an emphasis on healthy development of individuality within a social context and a nurturing of the students’ capacity to discern and take responsibility for their conduct and work.
Behind all the teaching is the recognition of the spiritual in each human being and throughout the natural world. This elevates every subject from being simply training in skills and a gathering of information to becoming a medium for individual deepening and maturation. All aspects of the curriculum are considered important for a healthy, rounded development.
The Strands, domains and progression points of the AusVELS as well as the Rudolf Steiner curriculum are interpreted by the teachers and applied within the structure of the subjects offered. An integration of the two curricula occurs, with each approach being quite complementary. When reviewing and developing our curriculum the Curriculum Manager with the College of Teachers strives for balance between academic, artistic and practical activities.
Overall, DRSS strives for a curriculum responsive to the developmental phases in childhood to young adulthood and nurturing of children’s imaginations that is accountable to the broader community through compliance with the standards set for education in Victoria, Australia. We encourage our students to strive for excellence, respect, find their place in the world and care for others and thereby become motivated, balanced and responsible citizens.
For Prep, the curriculum is delivered through a structured play based program. For classes 1-6, each day begins with a two-hour period known as the Main Lesson. This teaching unit is integrated and cross-curricular and includes activities to awaken and focus the children’s attention, oral and written practice of basic skills, mental arithmetic, music and drawing, presentation of new material, recall and discussion of the previous day’s (or earlier) work, individual working, conversation, narrative and practical work. This main lesson period of the day includes a “morning circle” where the children are awakened to work with song, maths drill, instrument practice, literacy games, recitation and movement activities. A particular subject is studied for 3-4 weeks to allow for a deep and enriching learning experience. The Main Lesson endeavours, through the use of a wide range of strategies, to unite all the powers of the soul by engaging the child’s thinking, feeling and willing.
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