Millennial Child : Transforming Education in the Twenty-First Century [Paperback]

Eugene Schwartz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1999 | ISBN-10: 0880104651 | ISBN-13: 978-0880104654 | Edition: First Edition

Today's children are an endangered species. As a result of reductionism and the homogenization of the human stages of life, it seems that many children have lost their childhood only to be thrust into a confusing and chaotic world. Eugene Schwartz presents an incisive analysis of how errors during the first third of the twentieth century have now returned to haunt us at the beginning of the new century. After carefully examining Sigmund Freud's tragic misunderstanding of childhood and tracing its consequences for today's parents and educators, the author points us toward the radically new paradigm of childhood development offered by Rudolf Steiner and embodied in Waldorf education. Parents, teachers, and child psychologists will find a wealth of insight concerning such diverse subjects as the nature of play, the causes of ADHD, computers as teachers, and the power that love and imagination will have in educating the Millennial Child.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Eugene Schwartz is a faculty member of Teacher Training at Sunbridge College, Spring Valley, New York. He lectures widely on educational renewal and related subjects.

Product Details

• Paperback: 309 pages
• Publisher: Rudolph Steiner Pr; First Edition edition (September 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0880104651
• ISBN-13: 978-0880104654
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,102,255 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Antidote to our Educational Crisis, April 10, 2000

By 

Paul Margulies (The Berkshires, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Millennial Child : Transforming Education in the Twenty-First Century (Paperback)

This is a brilliant book that provides an answer to our pressing educational crisis. Anyone who has been teaching for ten years or more recognizes two things: that standardized tests are putting more pressure on kids, teachers, and parents; and that the kids coming into classrooms these days are different than they used to be. There ar more and more books being written today about how to deal with "the spirited child" emphasize the will, more than thinking or feeling. At the heart of our crisis is our failure to recognize the differences between thinking, feeling and willing. And that our stress on intellectual development, depriving children of their childhood, actually does more harm than good in the long run. He proposes a new curriculum based on doing, rather than passively absorbing intellectual material at an early age. The children play, do handwork, and listen to stories when young, and then move through a cogent and age-appropriate curriculum as they grow older, nurturing each level of development before passing on to the next. This is a kind of organic education, based on the insights of Rudolf Steiner, who developed the Waldorf system of education, among many other things. Every page lights up with insight after insight. But these are not merely theoretical. Schwartz backs up his insights with dozens of practical examples taken from his long expereince as a Waldorf teacher. This book could be for education what "The Silent Spring" was for the environment.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Saving Our Children, April 10, 2000

By 

Andrew Flaxman (Great Barrington, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Millennial Child : Transforming Education in the Twenty-First Century (Paperback)

This book is essential reading for anyone seriously interested in understanding the crisis in education today and what to do about it. However, the book requires an open mind because the educational philosophy presented runs counter to the mindset controlling today's school systems and the proposals dominating the political races. Schwartz sees that the path to educational reform is not to teach to fulfill centralized testing requirements but to recognize that children need something far more comprehensive. Schwartz's thesis is based on the pedagogy of Rudolf Steiner which is relatively unknown or misunderstood in the United States today. This educatinal philosophy is based on a very deep understanding of childhood development and the appropriate curriculum and methods for each stage. There has been very little study of his "Waldorf" method on the university or teaching-college level in spite of the rapid growth of Waldorf and Steiner schools in North America.

The book is part anecdotal and part scholarly so as to be able to describe the "education as art" methods suggested. Nothing less is needed to prepare our children for the future in the increasingly technological age.