• The transformation of our images of childhood and adolescence

“Childhood“ and “adolescence” are always social constructs. What we understand to be “childlike“ or “appropriate for children” is, to a great extent, dependent on our individual and collective sense of values, our lifestyles, and our understanding of human beings. For many hundreds of years, children were basically considered to be “small adults” and it was only relatively recently that childhood was “discovered“ as a particular phase of individual development, characterized by ”a special way of seeing, thinking, and feeling” (J. J.Rousseau), and defined by its own intrinsic values. What is the typical image of childhood and adolescence in today’s society? Are children, who have been discovered by advertising and media companies as part of a lucrative “target group”, still viewed as children? Do current social, economic, and technological developments, along with the development of the “multi-option society” (P. Gross) present children with challenges which even adults are no longer able to master? Which concepts of “childhood” and “adolescence” are particularly relevant at the beginning of the 21st century?

• Age-appropriate education: new approaches and concepts

Educational approaches, learning concepts, and curricula incorporate the findings and models of developmental psychology in various ways. Yet, what role does age-appropriate education actually play in the context of pedagogical theory and practice? Are differences between developmental stages recognized, or are they disregarded? In what way does the politically supported emphasis on standardization and the (international) comparability of test results take into account the psychological development of children? Are today’s children and adolescents physically, socially, and cognitively more “grown-up” than a few decades ago? Are childhood and youth themselves changing, or just their social context?

For teachers and educators, considering these questions raises a host of others. How can (or must) teachers modify their teaching approaches to compensate for possible changes in child development processes? Do teachers who aim to respect the dynamic development of children need to rethink their theories and practices to accommodate new situations? Which current approaches and concepts regarding the understanding of human development can provide new impulses for the field of education?

• Childhood and adolescence in transition: the role of media

There is hardly any phenomenon which demonstrates the vehemence and rapidity of the changes which have taken place in recent years more clearly than the exponential development of media and communication technology. To what extent do modern media change the life and development of children and young people? How do children and adolescents see their own relationship to media? How do children learn to work with new technologies? What challenges and possibilities do modern media pose to teachers and educational institutions?

• Communication: changing relationships

People “cannot not communicate" (P. Watzlawick). Children and adolescents continually communicate with their peers, with parents, teachers, etc., and yet the forms of communication have changed dramatically in recent years. Are relationships between people also changing? How does the transformation of relationships between generations and the modification of family structures influence these developments? Do today’s children need new and different kinds of relationships with adults? What forms of intersubjective relationships enable children and young people to develop abilities such as autonomy and stabilitywithin our “risk society”? (U. Beck). Are changes in the relationships between teachers and students necessary?

• Multicultural education: challenges and opportunities

Processes of globalization and migration have caused social, cultural and religious heterogeneity to become essential features of modern societies. These processes have created new challenges for educational institutions: Do school classes carried out in a language which is a foreign tongue for many or most students require new approaches toward teaching? What opportunities are offered by “globalization in the classroom”? What institutional and structural conditions can help enable a successful multicultural education?

• Social and emotional intelligence: new perspectives for the field of education

In a time in which the meaning of traditional ties and values is steadily decreasing, while social individualization – but also fragmentation – is increasing, social skills are becoming of ever greater importance. In what respects do the promotion and facilitation of social and emotional intelligences belong to the essential tasks of modern education? What kinds of spaces do children and adolescents need for playing, learning, and creating in order to practice such 'soft skills' ? What social and emotional capabilities are necessary for children and adolescents to develop in the context of societies in accelerated transformation?

Organizer:

Zentrum für Kultur und Pädagogik – Institute of the Alanus University for Art and Society. On behalf of: ENASTE (European Network for Academic Steiner Teacher Education). ENASTE is a collaborative network of all European Waldorf teacher education programs offering academic accreditation. Its goal is to promote cooperation among these institutions, to represent their interests in the realm of educational politics and to support other Waldorf teacher education programs which aim to achieve academic accreditation. ENASTE is particularly interested in promoting dialogue between Waldorf pedagogy and the more general field of educational science.

Committee:

- Prof. Dr. Leonhard Weiss (Chairman), Alanus Hochschule für Kunst und Gesellschaft: Zentrum für Kultur und Pädagogik, Österreich

- Caroline Bratt, Waldorflärarhögskolan, Sweden

- Univ.-Prof. i. R. Dr. Karl Garnitschnig, Universität Wien, Österreich

- Prof. Dr. Peter Lutzker, Freie Hochschule Stuttgart, Deutschland

- Prof. Dr. Marcelo da Veiga, Alanus Hochschule für Kunst und Gesellschaft, Deutschland

- Prof. Dr. Carlo Willmann, Alanus Hochschule für Kunst und Gesellschaft: Zentrum für Kultur und Pädagogik, Österreich