At the far end of the world
Chile extends like a long, narrow strip from the southern Cape Horn over 4200 km along the Pacific Coast to the north. The breadth of the country varies between 90 and 400 km. Chile was formerly known as "El ultimo Rincón del mundo," the end of the world with Cape Horn, which still is the southernmost end of the inhabited world.
Waldorf education came to Chile through Claudio Rauch, who had studied anthroposophy for four years in Los Angeles, USA. In March 1967 he founded the Miguel Arcangel School for children with learning difficulties as the first remedial education school on the basis of anthroposophy in South America. In 1970, the Miguel Arcangel School was recognized by the state and exists up to this day. In March 1979 a kindergarten opened in Santiago de Chile, out of which the Giordano Bruno School emerged and opened its doors one year later for first and second graders. Unlike in other South American countries, assistance and support for Waldorf educational initiatives in Chile in the early stages came exclusively from within the country.
In 1984, the Ministry of Education officially honored the Giordano Bruno School for its work. Since then the Waldorf curriculum is generally accepted in Chile. The Waldorf school has decided not to seek financial help from the state, in order to work with the independent Waldorf curriculum. Meanwhile, the school goes up to 8th grade. After that, the students attend public schools. The directors of the public schools acknowledge the achievements of the Waldorf students and certify them with an extraordinary interest in everything.
Founded in 1984, another initiative the "Colegio Rudolf Steiner" now leads up to 12th grade. Currently, the school is a well-kept oasis in the heart of the city. However, the school is bursting at the seams and therefore a property was purchased on the outskirts, where both kindergarten and school would have enough space. Unfortunately, the new district is not yet developed and teachers and parents love the bourgeois atmosphere in the city center. As a result, a final decision has not yet been taken in favor of a move.
Social misery, unemployment, drug trafficking and violence shape the slums of La Lengua, El Pinar and Villa Navidad in the municipality of San Joaquin in Santiago. There are not enough schools and at public schools too many children are cramped into school buildings that are way too small. Children of the slums are often discriminated against and leave school discouraged. The lesson usually starts at 8am and ends around 7 pm. Furthermore it is a general practice to treat naturally occurring hyperactivity in children with medication.
In this environment the small Parsifal Waldorf School was founded in March 1995. Here, underprivileged children benefited from reading, writing and mathematics lessons in small classes as well as offerings in music, art and craft. Furthermore, the mostly single mothers attended courses in nutrition, hygiene and production of clothing and toys. For young drug addicts the initiative offered therapeutic sessions. The Parsifal School also had space problems that were resolved with the help of the Friends of Waldorf Education and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). A piece of land was bought, two classrooms were built and a hall was refurbished.
The local authorities had been willing to pay for the operating budget of the school as soon as a report would have been available about the quality of clean water on the property. However, as the report was postponed for months and finally for another school year, the school got in trouble with their current budget and could no longer pay the salaries of teachers. As a result, the school had to close after five years of existence in the year 2000.
Located in Limache, between Santiago and Valparaiso, exists an anthroposophical initiative since the 1999/2000 school year. Only one year after its foundation the school already included a kindergarten and three combined classes. Angelica Vallespir and Jorge Gomez have the vision to build a cultural center in Limache with a school, a training center, a clinic and agriculture.
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