גלעד גולדשמידט
From the beginning of the Enlightenment and particularly during the twentieth century, for many thinkers, scholars, and educators the child-centered approach became a pillar of their educational doctrine. The child-centered approach has diverse practical applications in alternative educational frameworks. Two such prominent frameworks introduced in Israel in the 1980s, are democratic education and Waldorf education (anthroposophical education). In this article, I present the history of the child-centered approach and examine its conceptual roots and applications in these two alternative educational streams. The same conceptual approach is applied in entirely different forms in democratic education and Waldorf education, stemming from their different conceptual-spiritual perspectives. Notwithstanding significant differences in application of the child-centered approach, alumni studies of these two educational streams report similar findings with regard to its positive benefits. My treatment attempts to ascertain the meaning of this similarity.
