Tawhíd – Everything is Connected

In my master's thesis at the Seminar für Waldorfpädagogik (College for Waldorf Education) in Berlin, I attempted to shed light on possible reasons for the absence of Muslim families at Waldorf schools and to gather ideas on how this situation could be changed. A fundamental commonality between Steiner's work and Islam is already evident in the view of human beings as spiritual beings and part of a creation that also includes the invisible. According to the Qur'an, we are responsible for treating creation with care. By promoting a connection with this creation in many different ways, Waldorf education meets the educational needs of Muslim parents. It provides a welcome counterbalance to the materialism and consumerism of our time and is a resource that has been largely untapped by Muslims to date.

There are also some similarities in terms of teaching methods, such as taking into account the seven-year cycles: «Let them play for the first seven years, teach them for the second seven years, and be their advisor for the third seven years», according to Islamic tradition. Learning by example and the aspect of holism are also highly valued on both sides. The latter forms the basis of Islam, on which the process of acquiring knowledge is also considered. The Arabic term for the unity of all being is Tawhíd.

For example, the phenomenological approach, which is primarily used in the natural sciences in Waldorf education from the upper middle school onwards, is clearly in line with the theory of knowledge as taught in the Qur'an. Although the terminology is different, there are many urgent calls for people to use their senses, including their hearts, to observe the «signs in nature», «on the horizon and within yourselves», to read them and reflect on them.

The Qur'an also contains extensive narratives in which knowledge that goes deeper than mere information is conveyed in a pictorial manner and with parables, known as mithal. Thus, the education not only of the intellect but also of the heart represents another common concern that is given little or no consideration in the materialistically oriented regular school system. Yet this is what was originally intended, at least in the Bavarian Constitution, according to Article 131: «Schools should not only impart knowledge and skills, but also form the heart and character», it states.

Too much Christian influence?

So why are there such few recognizable Muslims at Waldorf schools? In my work, I used surveys to examine which elements of Waldorf education cause practicing Muslims to have concerns about their children attending these schools, and then explored the extent to which these aspects are actually incompatible with Islamic practices. It is possible that these are «only» culturally influenced concerns. I also examined the extent to which those factors that represent an obstacle for practicing Muslims are an integral part of the Waldorf curriculum or are variable. In addition, I incorporated the results of a Waldoratorium workshop on intersectionality held in January 2023. The Waldoratorium is a format for joint regional cooperation between the Berlin-Brandenburg State Working Group in the context of Waldorf education. For this purpose, I asked young people from Muslim families whether they had ever been confronted with the topic of Islam in a way that made them feel uncomfortable during their time at Waldorf school – and received some very moving answers. At the end of the workshop, entitled Diversitätssensibilität in Bezug auf Kinder aus Familien mit islamischer Lebenspraxis (Diversity Sensitivity in Relation to Children from Families with Islamic Practices), we identified three reasons for the low participation of practicing Muslims: The largely Christian influence on curricula and school culture, even though there are only a few Christian children in the classes; the exclusion of the Muslim perspective on currently highly topical issues such as gender and sexuality; and the negative experiences of Muslim children and parents at Waldorf institutions. Regarding the second point, it should be noted that it is not the topics themselves that are problematic for children and young people, but rather the way they are dealt with, if the spiritually based practices of the families of origin are ignored or even devalued. As a further tool for Waldorf institutions that want to examine how inclusive they actually are with regard to children from practicing Muslim families, the workshop also developed five questions, which are also included in the master's thesis.

Creating offers related to identity

The overarching question at the outset of my work was: «How can Waldorf schools become more open to Muslim families by designing their curricula accordingly, thereby contributing to successful dialogue across society as a whole without neglecting essential elements of Waldorf education?» Of course, with regard to the decolonization of the Waldorf curriculum, it makes sense to make more intensive reference to our rich heritage of Islamic cultures, which is reflected in European arts and crafts, mathematics, physics, chemistry, technology, astronomy, medicine, and philosophy. This would offer children and young people with an Islamic background positive opportunities for identification within the context of the class community. For example, younger children could regularly look for the crescent moon, which marks the beginning of each new Islamic month, and older children could determine the position of the sun, which indicates Islamic prayer times.

The concept of the caravanserai and the exploration of its historical manifestations offer particularly diverse points of reference for topics in lower, middle, and upper school. This could be referred to in the implementation of the vertical curriculum in zoology, then in climatology and geography, and later again in architecture and poetry. Alternative economic models and social and political structures can also be reflected upon excellently against the backdrop of this diverse, historical habitat. 

However, some traditional teaching topics already contain opportunities for references that only need to be identified—such as in the bee block, where the Qur'an surah An-Nahl (The Bee) contains an entire verse about bees that could be used here. In the stories about Francis of Assisi, his extensive, cordial exchange with the Egyptian Sultan al-Malik al-Kamil is an obvious point of reference. The humorous but profound stories of Mullah Nasruddin, which are known in many parts of the world, are ideal as short stories at the end of a lesson. Instead of Columbus, Ibn Battuta could be discussed in seventh grade as an example of a learned traveler who was not also a conqueror.  The Blickpunkt-Broschüre (Focus Brochure) Number 14 of the Bund der Freien Waldorfschulen (Association of Independent Waldorf Schools Germany) Waldorfpädagogik in der Migrationsgesellschaft (Waldorf Education in the Migration Society) already mentions some of these points. And based on Steiner's remarks on the meaning and purpose of language teaching, there is no reason not to offer Arabic more frequently as a standard subject. An interdisciplinary insight into the art of calligraphy, with self-made ink and a self-carved bamboo pen (qalam), could rekindle a love of beautiful writing ...

Connected to the origin and final destination

Based on the results of my survey, I took a closer look at the two topics of religious education and school celebrations. In doing so, I discovered that Rudolf Steiner emphasized the importance of flexibility, sensitivity to the needs of children and young people, and innovation, and demanded these qualities from teachers. He regarded spirituality as an essential human characteristic, the expression of which should by no means be predetermined at Waldorf institutions. Rather, he believed that every child's predisposition to religiosity should be preserved and encouraged – in an appropriate manner, which requires the art of education. Since the term religiosity has negative connotations for many people, I would like to clarify my understanding of it here: for me, it refers to the innate desire to express a connection to one's own origins and ultimate goal. 

Taking all these aspects into account probably adds to the complexity of lesson planning. However, they cannot be ignored if Waldorf schools truly want to be places where children from all social groups feel seen and valued. Inspiration for implementation can be found not only in the pioneers mentioned in my master's thesis—for example, Anjum Mir in Los Angeles. She is a Waldorf teacher there and a board member of WECAN (Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America). One result of my master's thesis that I am already very excited about was the invitation to present it last April to the working group of the Bund der Freien Waldorfschulen (Association of Free Waldorfschools Germany) on Interculturality and Diversity. Since then, I have been part of this wonderfully multi-perspective team, which is currently planning a symposium for the end of February 2026: Diversity. The perspective that connects.