New Ways in Waldorf Pedagogics - School on the Road

This is only for those who really want to - otherwise it is too tough. But it is about three months of intense living and joy. That is how the Waldorf teacher Andreas Schier is taking students on bicycle trips, covering new territory in education and relationships with adolescents.

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During the spring of 97 I taught - after preparing the trip for nine months - as a travel teacher for the first time. Taking two American teenagers, juniors from public schools in the States, we were on the road in Europe for 3 months. Several severe mistakes were made. The basic concept was developed one year before I joined in. I didn't realize that the parents had worked on the concept with the students expressing their agreement, while they secretly planned a different trip on their own. Great problems arose when the difference between concept or expectation and reality of the trip.
        Furthermore, I had happily agreed that I could teach and grade one of the students in several subjects, as long as I documented in detail and taught as close as possible to the curriculum. But we found out during the trip that this agreement was far too much oriented on the classroom. My idea of traveling by car instead by train was realized. It was obviously cheaper and more flexible, but it turned out that is was too easy and passive for the girls. Moreover, one of the students realized too late that she couldn't keep her usual attitude towards teachers on this trip.
        The biggest success of the entire trip was therefore the incredible learning out of the mistakes. And the students continued their travel for six more weeks alone --even though they'd never traveled without their parents before - since they had reached a high level of independence in this area.

The experience led me to change several basic aspects of my concept for the following three months bicycle trips through the States: Taking 6 to 8 students at a time and switching from the pedagogically questionable car to the highly pedagogical bicycle. It allows students to be constantly active, independent and responsible for their own gear. In the beginning, I am in charge of the budget until the students are ready to take over. The total budget has to be tight, so that inconvenience and laziness can't be matched through higher expenses.
        The school stuff is greatly reduced, because traveling - especially by bicycle - is a learning experience, and book learning often doesn't fit to the nature of traveling. For example, being a certificated English teacher, I only tell good students, and those only sometimes, about their mistakes in grammar; but after an introductory period of three weeks I speak only English to the students instead. Fear of making mistakes is the biggest hindrance in learning a foreign language on the road. The students get the basics of American history from me, while they chose biographies. They are giving their talks during the first month of a trip.

Monument Valley, seen through a bicycle frame

For a bicycle trip with high school students three months seem to be optimal; having more time it'd be possible to integrate volunteer work at a project. Three months correspond with a season. It's possible to go through deep experiences in this period. The long duration of a trip is also important to enhance perseverance decisively. And experience also showed that students did well making up for the stuff they missed at school.
        Participating students are not only at the top of their class. Students and parents from 10 different waldorf schools all agree that the trips have been highly successful. Therefore it seems difficult to understand at first that, the faculties are not interested in these experiences becoming better known and reachable for more students - through slide shows for the whole high school, for example. One reason is certainly that most Waldorf teachers are overworked. Then there is insecurity what might come out of these experiences and how to react. Is it possible that today's structure of school is loosening?
        The classmate of one particpants asked the faculty for the allowance to work at a social project in San Francisco for three months. The teachers were a bit at a loss. On the other hand, the business world doesn't get tired expressing that knowledge is only one needed aspect, like flexibility, an independent personality and team work. How can these capacities be enhanced while the pressure for good grades is growing?

How does a trip actually work? In the beginning, I take care of all the duties basically, be it the budget and bookkeeping, preparing and finding the route, shopping or finding a place to stay and I think aloud a lot. At the same time, decisions are made as soon as possible by the group. The students learn about the difficulties of concensus. Depending on the situation though, majority, minority or I decide.        Important presupositions for the independence on the road are a good and awake handling of the bike and knowing how to read a map. An unwanted detour is very helpful for this. Subsequently, we split up into small groups for part of the day, soon whole days and finally solo rides are possible. My job is "to get out of the way". This is also done practically towards the end, when the group is ready to cycle alone for a couple or few days.
        This may sound too adventurous at first. But the students are well prepared then and very grateful for the trust given to them. Moreover, the US is not, as many Americans think, a generally dangerous country at all. It all depends on how one is acting and where to be when.

having just returned to Germany

Not much is happening to strangers and if so, a grave mistake was made usually. Traveling like we do, the trust in the world is growing - and it is not a blind trust. Last trip we stayed overnight privately 20 times (!) - mostly invited spontaneously - to camp out in the yard, sleep on the floor or even in beds. The hospitality is one of the greatest gifts that we receive. Our nights camping in nature remain unforgettable - in warm nights without tents - be it at the Pacific Coast, in the vastness of the Southwest or the Rocky Mountains.
        Our daily budget of $ 12 per person is mainly used to fill our hungry stomachs. Some moneys goes for campgrounds in national or state parks; at times even with showers. But football fields of schools (unofficially, during summer vacation) and churches prove to be great spots for the night as well.
By now, I put great emphasis on riding 55 to 60 miles per day. It makes the cycling so much easier, and it's no problem to have single students cycle up to 125 a day, if they want to find their limits. Every trip is very different because of the participating students. We can take the liberty to acknowledge individual desires and needs.

It's a rule on all trips that students cannot use phone, fax or email to contact family and friends at home. It gives the students the possibility of developing more independence. The parents show their trust and practice "letting go". The students write letters and postcards as often as they want to, while parents and friends get "only" three mailing addresses. And we truly celebrate on those three occasions.

These trips are not cheap, but inexpensive; with my pay being below that of any Waldorf teacher. Trips planned for 1999 cost up to $ 2,200, to the States $ 2,700, plus pocket money and gear. Getting the gear is very inexpensive when bought or lent from former students. And during the last trip we saved $ 500 to be given to a student of the next trip as a scholarship.

What is planned for 99? Two possibilities for each of the so called spring and fall trip: students and parents make the final decision of where we're going.
        One option for the spring - April, May, June - is a trip to the States again. This time exploring the East Coast: From New Orleans through the "deep" South, the Appalachian Mountains, civil war battle fields and Washington D. C. to New York City.
        The other option is Turkey: country, culture and religion of 2.3 million Turks living in Germany. Carsten, from the last trip, told me about his encounters with young Turks. Usually, it's like "Why do you stare at me? Fuck off!" Imagine he'd know some Turkish and would tell aout his trip! So, the Mediterranean Coast, Anatolia, Capadocia, Black Sea Coast and finally Istanbul.
        For the fall I am planning to travel to Southwestern Europe. The theme of the trip is "ecumeny": a visit fo the Taize Community, the Central Massiv (mountains), the area where Kathares (a Christian Community during the Middle Ages) at the Northeastern side of the Pyrenees, the "El Camino Real" (an old pilgrim's trail) to Santiago de Compostella in Northwestern Spain and we might end up in Lisbon, Portugal.
        The alternative is Eastern Europe: Czech Republic (Prague), Poland (concentration camp Oswiecim), Slovak Republic (High Tatra Mountains), Hungary (Budapest), Slovenia and Italy (river Po). This is only for those who really want to; otherwise it's too tough. But it is about three months of intense living and joy.

Learning without a classroom - some background info

During my studies at the Mannheim, Germany, and Rudolf Steiner college in Fair Oaks, California, I understood of Waldorf pedagogics that the main goal is to foster the individual personality and general capacities. Basic capacities like independence and responsibility (two sides of a coin), activity, perseverance and hope (both are needed to reach goals), trust into the world, love of nature, creativity with others, the environment and oneself and to learn "to live with the unknown" - no need for everything being planned beforehand; inner instead of outer security.

My internships were spent mainly at a boarding school, since I was searching from the beginning for a deeper connection with the students like it's especially outside the classroom possible. Inside and outside the classroom I observed especially with high school students, that more than a few gained the conviction that real life doesn't take place before after school. I know this attitude very well from my own years at a public high school. But according to my understanding and work as a teacher, school means life and school of life.

What does today's life look like? It seems that our society - in Germany and elsewhere - moved into many dead ends. It's most obvious in our exploiting the earth, but also in other areas like treating one another, people of foreign countries or supplying the basic needs of all of humanity. I only see the possibility of a "healing" future, if new ways and developments come forth from the youth.

Talking with adolescents, I heard often that they don't have any hope to change things to the better. The reasons given were "that everything is fixed and declared for good" or "I am feeling weak and helpless and have only few positive experiences to put against this". Moreover, many adolescents complain that they need outer pressure to become active and that they face great difficulties to reach goals independently.

Andreas Schier (2nd from the right) "School on the road is an alternative to classroom teaching"

Since I used to be a "full time" backpack traveler, I looked into more experience oriented education. It is usually used wen other measurements fail. The "problem" student - outwardly or inwardly destructive, sometimes into drugs - spend time on a farm, a sailing boat, a hospital in a third world country or learn how to survive in nature.

All these experiences, participation on class trips and a thesis about "drug problems at Waldorf Schools" led me to the question: Why are those measures only taken when great problems are faced? Why cannot "normal" students gain from these experiences?

The decision to become a "travel teacher" was clear. I used to travel extensively before my studies and went to places and countries for my internships. My own experiences were obvious, the above mentioned general capacities are greatly enhanced through traveling. Every student understands that "school on the road" is deeply connected to life. And especially nowadays, a deeper understanding of foreign cultures and knowledge of foreign languages are important.

A further decisive aspect of travel teaching is the possibility to work on a different student - teacher relationship. Being on the road, I don't have to call the students attention on their mistakes and often, since the world is working as a mirror and leads to a direct experience. It is on the other hand important to be quiet instead of saying "I told you before." At the same time, I am partly a teacher, but also legal guardian, participant or friend. Truthfulness becomes even more important, since everybody gets "recognized" anyway.

The nature of the trips doesn't make it just desirable, but necessary because of the great responsibility, that open and honest relationships are developed. Attitudes like "as long as I don't get caught" don't work, although smaller bendings of the rules happen; which is important and right for adolescents. A "promise of honesty" (instead of the "code of honor") is integrated: given only voluntarily. Students report to me at the next opportunity, should certain things have happened; they call it "to confess".

Living together so closely opens the possibility to pay special attention to every student. Everybody has to be treated differently to be true to the different needs and different personalities. The students are truly co-organizers on such a trip unlike what can be done in a classroom (usually). The work - cycling, travel activities, covering of basic needs and "school stuff" - is agreed upon by the students, but the actual doing and integrating leisure time - "breathing out" - is more and more put into the hands of the students. And it is very important that the students experience free times for initiatives; free, because they don't have to be used in a certain way.

Basti feeling free

Being a teacher, I try to become ever more aware of how I am working with the students. When do I use reward, punishment or other forms of pressure to influence? Do I take advantage of the above mentioned inability to become active without pressure? Or do I enhance real interest and integrity?
        Moreover, I find it important for a teacher to show my own vulnerability. It is so much easier to teach when there's no expectation of making no mistakes. A deep and human development is generally only possible, when vulnerability and weaknesses are recognized as realities and furthermore don't need to be hidden. It's not a question of manipulation, but of understanding.
        Some of the possibilities mentioned in this article are reachable with small groups only. A class with 3 or 4 teachers sums up to the same "quantity relationship", let's say 1:8. But the teacher-student relationship is too distanced.