History of Waldorf Education
Waldorf-Steiner education began in 1919 from the philosophy of renaissance man, scientist, and philosopher, Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925). He was born on Feb. 25, 1861, in Donji Kraljevec, a town that was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in Europe. The first Waldorf-Steiner school was established in 1919 in Stuttgart, Germany for the children of the Waldorf-Astoria Factory employees. The owner, Emil Molt (1816-1936) approached Steiner to ask him whether Anthroposophy can be applied to education. His desire was to educate children with a different mindset and view of the world in order to avoid more wars and strife.
Rudolf Steiner developed a unique unhurried approach where a child can discover the joy and love for lifelong learning. His ideas have continued to inspire a worldwide movement of Waldorf Steiner schools, along with renewed ideas in medicine, agriculture, and societal transformation. There are over 1,200 independent Waldorf Steiner schools and kindergartens all over the world. In 2019, Waldorf Steiner schools worldwide marked the centennial 100th year anniversary of Waldorf Steiner education, with the theme “Waldorf 100”.
History of Acacia Waldorf School
Acacia Waldorf School (AWS) is a co-educational and non-denominational school established by parents, educators and friends who came together as like-minded individuals in 2003, to begin an alternative education for their own children that respected the seed of individuality already living in them. The school had its humble beginnings as a little kindergarten playgroup called “The Secret Garden” in the home of its founders, south of Metro Manila.
In 2003, Acacia Waldorf School opened its gates to a spacious campus amidst wide-open skies, flowers, trees, and birds in a quiet residential village of Hacienda Sta. Elena in Sta. Rosa, Laguna. The land where the school stands used to be part of a vast sugar plantation estate. In 2014, Acacia Waldorf School became one of three independent Waldorf Steiner schools in the Philippines to offer education from Pre-Kindergarten up to Class 12. The school is a founding member of Steiner Waldorf Education Association of the Philippines or SWEAP, an association of Waldorf Steiner schools in the Philippines.