ABSTRACT
Germany is the cradle of the Waldorf school. Yet, despite the over 100-years-long success story of this alternative pedagogy, it has so far been a marginal topic in educational research. The following article first illustrates that and then how this gap is increasingly being filled by representatives of an academic Waldorf education with a specific, pragmatic-scientific understanding of anthroposophy. Secondly, a change of perspective in public reception is traced, which recognises anthroposophy as a constitutive part of Waldorf education and criticises it in its implications, which are problematic not only but also with regard to the Covid-19 pandemic, and emphasises its socio-political relevance. Thirdly, contrary to anthroposophical attempts at enclosure, this media debate has brought new players onto the scene who, against the backdrop of their own biographical experiences, offer criticism of anthroposophy and thus challenge it anew.
