It's official - Steiner Education is fun!

New research shows that Steiner students learn with more enthusiasm and interest, feel more supported, and know their strengths better than students in mainstream school. The study by Andreas Schleicher, education expert and international coordinator of the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), with the Heinrich-Heine University in Dusseldorf, examines the educational experiences of Steiner students age 15-18 in Germany. 80% of Steiner students find their learning fun (compared to 67%). 85% find the environment supportive (compared to 60%). The relationship with teachers is judged significantly better at 65% compared to 31%. Schleicher praised the emphasis on personal responsibility and self-motivation, preparing children for the life that awaits them after graduation. "There is a high degree of congruence between the requirements of the modern world and what is taught to Steiner students," said Andreas Schleicher. "Remembering facts has less and less importance", the education expert said, the important thing was "to have creative and solution-oriented knowledge that you can apply to new areas". A wide range of experts, students and teachers agree that the optimal learning environment is one with a high degree of initiative, a lot of creative freedom and a high level of student support. The PISA study showed that providing students with motivating performance feedback and the opportunity to learn together and from each other, as in Steiner Schools, are the elements for a successful modern education. You can use Google translate to translate the article from German...

http://www.welt.de/wissenschaft/article109484661/Namen-tanzen-fit-in-Mathe-Waldorf-im-Vorteil.html

We are thrilled to announce that we have been approved by the Department for Education to go through to the next stage towards opening in September 2013!  Now the work really begins to create our fantastic school.  First up is a huge effort to secure our preferred site - more news on this as it develops - and to organise a series of events so that people can get a better idea of what the school will be like.  Watch this space for more news!

We went for interview at the Department for Education in London on the Thursday before the Jubilee weekend. It seemed to go well; at any rate, we had answers for all the questions posed by the panel of four interviewers. There were several other groups waiting in the reception at DfE on what we think was the last day of Free School interviews. It's clearly been quite a marathon for the department staff, who have been interviewing throughout May, but their welcome was warm and they showed real interest in our plans. We've been told to expect an answer by the end of the school year, so there is only a few more weeks to wait....

Our latest press release about getting through to the interview has been fantastically successful! We've had enquiries from all over the South West.  Look out for us in your local paper, or listen out on BBC Radio Devon news today

Great news this morning!  Our application has got through to the next stage.  We're going for interview on Thursday 31st May.  We still need signatures of support - catch us on the Cathedral Green on Saturday 28th April.

Getting close to the deadline now.  We have over 600 signatures of support and the team is still going strong!  We also had our first meeting with local councillors and schools this week, with some really positive talk about cooperation between us and a local primary.

Next up is a meeting with local head teachers and governors on Tuesday 21st February.

Public meeting poster



 If you would like to find out more about our proposal in particular, and Steiner education in general, come to our public meeting. It's on Tuesday, February 7th, between 7 and 9 pm, at Exeter Central Library.

Public meeting announcement

There will be a public meeting to discuss the new Steiner Academy in Exeter at Exeter Central Library at 7pm on Tuesday 7th February.

Out and about

Supporters of Steiner Academy Exeter will be out in Exeter this weekend -- 28th and 29th January.  Catch us at the Guildhall Shopping Centre and the Central Library on Saturday and at the Matford Carboot sale on Sunday.

New website

Our new website is up and running this morning at http://www.steineracademyexeter.org.uk/.