llhat is a Child Study?

The body of teachers of our Waldorf School meets weekly on

Thursday afternoons. These meetings are divided among various
business items, a pedagogical study, artistic activity and a child
study. Above all, it is the nature of the child study that is most
unique in a Waldorf setting, and so I would like to offer a brief
descr ipt ion.
While each class teacher is enjoined to hold a mental picture
of each child nightly as a means of deepening his or her insight
and connection to the student, the entire faculty on a weekly basis
focuses on a particular chi1d. (In certain circumstances, do
entire class may be taken, often over a number of weeks.) The
intention is to create strong, clear picture of the child,
including physicaL description, habits, skills, relationships and
a general biography. fn a sense it is an attempt to hold that
child meditatively "in the light" so that his or her true being may
shine through. An effort is made to be objective and yet loving.
The clarity and truth of the picture that is being built would be
compromised were a great deal of speculating to be undertaken, so
that is discouraged. It is inportant to understand that thls is
not akin to any sort of meeting about a child in which we are
trying to analyze the student in order to come up with solutions.
Nor is it an evaluation of the student or a problem-solving
session, despite the fact that solutions may and do arise, though
often at a later date. The entire thrust should be to bring before
the mind's eye a vivid, living picture of the student. A child
study is a concerted effort by all the teachers to build and hold
in common the most clear, detailed and objective picture of the
child that we possibly can. From this can come the greatest
benef it for the child to vrhom we turn , f Lll-ed with the highest
reverence for the great mystery that he or she is.
Before going further I think it would be important to mention
how a child 1s chosen. First and foremost I should emphasize that
wh1le the child study is a vital tool in our work with the
children, it is definitely not a "disciplinary" action. We are in
no way intending to drag a misbehaving child into some sort of
spiritual disciplinary review board. Wh1le the very idea 1s
ludicrous, the child study does sometimes acquire that aura in a
parent's mind. Rather it is an attempt to address the
individuality of the child, and ideally we rrould like to offer this
to each and every child. In practice, the number of children in a
school makes this impractlcal although considerlng the "class
studies" mentioned above, most students do come before the faculty
over tj.me. A child may indeed be chosen because of a "diffj-culty"
perceived by the t,eacher, but the attitude that one wants to bring
to the study is characterized by the question, "How may we more
fu]Iy come to know this being so that his needs as an incarnating
soul may be met?" It is very often the case that a child just
seems to need some extra spiritual support at a certain point in
life's journey, a "boost" of seirts. On the other hand a teacher
will choose a child who is doing outstandingly well or one r,rho is
a pillar of the class in some way or one who is so quiet that her
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presence is only faintly felt under normal circumstances. The

reasons are many and varied and certainl.y go Feyond the general
ones I have listed here. We try to range through the grades, and
staff and faculty children may be taken up as wel1. In the latter
situation, the parent is absent for the child study to help insure
the building of an objective picture.
Considering all that has been said, one might ask just what
are the benefits of such an undertaking. First of all, for the
teacher(s), just knowing the child more deeply is immeasurably
valuable, and she or he conmonly finds new helpful ideas arise in
the days after the study. But it is also not uncommon for one to
see changes (sometimes dramatic, sometimes subtle) occur in the
child even without any external changes in the teacher's approach
.a new lightness in the walk, dr unexpected connectlon to a
subject in class, a different attitude to a classmate or teacher,
or even a newfound passion for putting one's desk in order (praise
God! ). Even when no such earth-shaking changes are observed, if a
child study is undertaken in the right spirit, its impact is sure
to be felt in the inner recesses of the child's being.
Bill Toole